Strange to think that even in Our Ford's day most games were played without more apparatus than a ball or two and a few sticks and perhaps a bit of netting. Imagine the folly of allowing people to play elaborate games which do nothing whatever to increase consumption. It's madness. Nowadays the Controllers won't approve of any new game unless it can be shown that it requires at least as much apparatus as the most complicated of existing games.
Aldous Huxley Brave New World
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My mother bought it for her grandchildren's amusement. They like it a lot. No one seems to understand my dismay. It's just a simple children's toy, right? I'm not so sure.
I think it's a sign of the coming Apocalypse.
(click on photo to purchase)
It has its merits. It takes no batteries. It makes almost no noise. It keeps the porcupets amused. I could go out on a limb and say it's educational, even, and go on a bit about game theory. All this would be true. And yet....
If you haven't recognized what this is, look closely. See it now? It's a 21st century version of... you guessed it, Rock, Paper, Scissors. Only in America would someone use a pound and a half of plastic to create such a game.
When I was a boy, we played Rock, Paper, Scissors with our fingers. Now, you can purchase an exciting new plastic version. For a mere $19.95, you can support the petroleum industry, the Chinese economy, and the abomination known as Wal-Mart. The game seems fairly durable, but when it breaks, as all toys usually do, it can occupy space in the local landfill for eternity. Ah. Progress.
First, there was the conscription of consumption, Huxley wrote. Well, he missed the mark there. There is no need for conscription if there are enough volunteers, after all. Almost twenty-five percent of the world's people survive on less than $1.25 a day so that we can spend $19.95 for a game that is properly played with your fingers. And there it is.
Only in America.
Very Truly Yours,
Porcupine
