March 9, 2009
Daily Dose of Economic Caution
Don't Trust Anyone Over 30K
In her essay on ritual joking, Mary Douglas wrote that the function of humor was to reveal the completely arbitrary nature of social categories. She suggested that jokes take recognizable categories (what we would call reality) and contrast them with less "logical" (i.e. acceptable or normal) interpretations of these constructions.
The Only Expert We Need
The result is nothing short of a revelation: by seeing the "normal" construction of events challenged, we understand this construction as a mirage with no inherent rationale, and thereby grasp how fragile the fundamental tenets of society are. Indeed, the very term Douglas uses for the normal construction, "logical," is logical only according to the majority view of what makes sense; the challenging comedic interpretation is often perfectly rational in its own right.
By continually challenging the dominant narrative of the unfolding financial disaster, "The Daily Show" has illustrated Douglas' theory beautifully. From the beginning of the meltdown, through the ever-deepening recession, the "Show" has unmasked the sheer arbitrariness of pundits' pronouncements and "expert" advice alike, steadfastly refusing to be fed the party line.
When banks and businesses began to fail last year, Secretary Paulson and then-President Bush absolved themselves of all responsibility. Meanwhile, in a gesture that encapsulated the sheer terror of the moment, Jon Stewart hid behind his desk and (in the voice of Joe Everyconsumer) said "We're dying here." This small moment of physical comedy challenged every pundit, administrator, and higher-up who claimed to be worried about the majority of Americans, but threw money at banks and businesses.
The show has also changed its main news title to "Clusterf#@k to the Poor House." This less obvious choice of wording contrasts with the entire cultural construct of a "serious" economic discussion--but then again, calling the mess a "clusterfuck" isn't exactly illogical, nor is worrying about being financially ruined. It's just the turn of phrase that is unexpected. And that is precisely the point. The show's language challenges the serious pundits to tell it like it really is, rather than cloaking the disaster in approved, "logical" administrative language.
On February 12, the "Show" hosted John Sununu, and Stewart did his usual fine job of sticking it to the man who deserved it. But the opening segment, with Resident Expert John Hodgeman, was even more impressive in its social critique.
Hodgeman addressed the crisis of consumer confidence, suggesting measures such as having Christmas "right now" and giving consumers access to cocaine, because he'd "noticed that cocaine makes people feel very confident." All of Hodgeman's suggestions were completely illogical, and based on his apparent misunderstanding of the word "confidence."
But the overall message of the segment was entirely logical. If there were contest for Most Arbitrarily-Determined Economic Category, consumer confidence would win. To anyone but the most devout capitalist, the idea that stockbrokers are allowed to react to how people are feeling, that the market runs on emotions and not on facts, is completely asinine--and a good reason, in fact, to rethink the whole system. By revealing the fickleness of this category, and the market as a whole, the segment took aim at the supposedly unassailable "science" of economics.
