low end of the dollar
Exclusive things will always be around, whether or not they are mass produced or handcrafted. They are what define us as a class society. if we could all party like paris hilton, she wouldnt have a platform to project herself from, and would be therefor unmarketable. Our world has been, I would argue, and always will be class and exclusivity driven. That is the only thing that makes things special, and therefore marketable. Nick made the point himself saying that the tour bikes are rad, and as such saleable because they are expensive, light, and fast. these things of course have nothing to do with rideability, or the ability to enjoy something beyond mere ownership. At the low end of the economic spectrum, in America, people are stuck with subpar choice via forced marketing, ie poor people watch show X and brand Z advertises during that show, so brand Z becomes the poor guys’ brand o’ choice. Why else would anyone in thier right mind drink bud, or coors? given a blind taste test of 10 cheap beers, those would undoubtably be near the bottom. To further that, why do poor people smoke marlboros and not american spirits? american spirit doesnt have a nascar sponsorship…I dont think we are moving towards a classless society. I think we are simply diminishing the middle class, and polarizing our current population. What were we talking about again?
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I guess I got to start simply with the comment that Casey knows more about bikes than me! Unlike most people I have run across, he doesn’t know about whats cool, he knows about bikes across the board. I do not share 5 dolla bud’s confidence that increased production and distribution will erase the inequities and everything will simply become a matter of taste. The last twenty years of this countries history appear to trend in the exact opposite direction. Neither do I buy into the idea that value is strictly driven by exclusivity. There are reasons why people choose to drop money on their bikes, and people look for different qualities and are willing to pay for it. Bridgestones are hard to come by because of certain qualities which have made thgem derireable, qualities I am not qualified to explain. I happen to agree with most of what Casey says about bikes, and would sooner drop money on my steel ride, but if someone wants to wear a body stocking made out of lycra from head to toe which is plastered with Discovery channel logos, I say good luck to them. That shit aint my style, but if anything, those rides just make me happier that I got the one I got.