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September 13, 2007
That's Good Stuff
Matthew's mom gave us a gift subscription a little while ago to GOOD magazine. I think we started getting it in March or something. Well, like all of our magazine subscriptions, it sat untouched in a pile until it was relocated to the bathroom, at which point it was instantly discovered and retrieved for more intense scrutiny in the comfort of the bedroom. I guess the thing that inspired her to purchase a subscription for us is that the entirety of your subscription dollars is donated to one of a number of charities that they support. So, by becoming a subscriber, you are ostensibly doing GOOD for the world. Now, this is the kind of charity I like - charity that is not charity at all, but that, in fact, gives you something back. Something on delicious heavy paper stock with matte finish and lots of cool information graphics. I am only charitable if it serves my own selfish impulses.
Now, GOOD magazine is so full of goodness and social consciousness that it makes me feel a little dirty. A lot dirty, in fact. I don't grow my own vegetables in a rooftop garden, I don't wear organic cotton slacks, I don't rally for sustainability in schools, and I certainly am not giving up fried chicken. They describe their subscribership (that's supposed to be me) by summing us up as all having "the sensibility of giving a damn." Yes, well, I'm afraid I actually don't give a damn. We're all going to hell in a handbasket, and whatever comes our way because we've been F*ing things up ever since we started walking on two legs is really just exactly what we deserve. We are a plague upon our own houses. So, though activism is admirable, I'm just a jaded Gen-Xer who prefers to sit at home playing video games and snorting coke.
But, in the abstract, I like the idea of being that good. But people who are actually that good tend to irritate me. So, though I love the design of the magazine, I often feel patronized. But they really totally make up for it with all the really cool information graphics. So, if you have $20 that you're willing to give to some schmaltzy do-gooder organization in return for a little bit of social consciousness and a lot of good design, subscribe here. Just don't tell them I sent you. They might try to make me a vegan.
Boy. This sure makes me sound like a dick. At least I recycle. And vote (some good that's done). But, I did buy my dog from a farm, instead of getting it from the pound. I don't think I'll ever hear the end of that one. She needs love, too. Even if her love is more expensive, and more prone to hip dysplasia.
Posted by ribbu at September 13, 2007 08:25 PM