since the flight to Poland earlier this year, i’ve made a habit of the study of the company magazine on board. the advertisements and articles draw the contours of a region which SouthWest seems to target, and identify with – California, Nevada (and lots of Las Vegas ads…), Arizona, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida. this month’s issue includes a special feature on New Orleans, more than 30 pages, all geared towards getting tourists back as part of the reconstruction – the part of reconstruction that the authorities focus on: making the French Quarter ready for tourism. from an interview with hotel manager in the French Quarter, in the article ReNew Orleans: “It is OK to come to New Orleans. That’s the message I’d want to leave you with, that I’d want everyone to get. The city that you’ve always loved is still here. So if you don’t know how to help, coming here is really helpful. Come to New Orleans and have a great time. It’s OK. We want you here.”
cramped in my row with two fellow passengers from California flying east. a young guy who works at Google. with his yellow Google t-shirt and his enthousiasm, he’s a natural ambassador for the company. “What is it that attracts you,” asks our fellow traveller, who shares my google criticism (mind you, i use it all the time…) but is genuinely interested in the attraction of things. “I’ve never been in an environment with such a bunch of intelligent and creative people. I feel I’m being stimulated to think, to be creative, all of the time.” i think i get it, yes, this is how Silicon Valley works, this is the creative and dynamic side of capitalism that the Communist Manifesto invokes so magnificantly. the other travel companion turns out to be professor in Monterey. she’s a theologian, working on the intersection of women, religion and violence. (i had already spotted her taking notes for a lecture on globalization, WTO and popular protests.) we talk and talk. she did fieldwork in asia and focused on buddhism, looking into liberation movements that at some point or another use violent means. the contradictions of what she calls “militant pacifism”…