Sunday, June 7, 2009

You’re Known by the Heap that you Keep

It is hardly enlightened to observe that - especially in Western society - most people have a deep affection for the things they own. Materialism seems to be part and parcel of the so-called modern world. The automobile in particular has long been acknowledged as exemplary of this disposition. But the affiliation goes far beyond what is at its worst mere unilateral idolatry. The ownership of a car can promote fairly significant barriers between oneself and other human beings. While it might be thought that only those who enjoy the ownership (or lease) of high-end automobiles are likely to turn their respective noses well into the air, the truth is that there are as many divisions of ownership as there are automobiles. Each brand carries with it its own entitlements (and causes for segregation). So, for example, the operator of an energy-saving small machine is just as probable to sneer at gas-guzzling SUVs. Likewise the owners of practical and economic cars are no doubt ill-disposed towards the owners of excessive and opulent ones (my preference, by the way). Then there’s the German vs. North American thing; propane vs. fuel, and so on. There’s simply no end to the forces which drive automobile owners apart and consequently provide ample fodder for indexing and honking horns when perturbed by a bit of bad driving on the part of  the other.