Friday, August 06, 2004

Nothing in Moderation Virginia Postrel's speech last night at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena on The Substance of Style was incisive, stimulating and aesthetic, especially to an unaesthetic guy like me who has trouble getting his socks to match. At one point, she spoke about the great diversity of design choices available to today's consumers, buttressing her case with photos of groundbreaking automotive designs like the Mini Cooper and the Chrysler PT Cruiser, accompanied by a quote from a JD Power and Associates executive: "It's better to polarize some shoppers than to generate mass apathy." Judging by their convention, the Democrats have turned this philosophy on its head: "It's better to generate mass apathy than to polarize some swing voters in battleground states." No doubt the Republicans will follow suit.  The likely result: This tiny sliver of the electorate, to which both campaigns are devoting 100% of their pandering, will register their preference for None of the Above on election day. In other words, the key swing vote that determines the election's outcome will come from the state of apathy.  11:17:12 AM