SHERYL CROW ON

ECONOMIC ANTHROPOLOGY

ATH 175: Peoples of the World

My friend the communist Communists

claim that

“property is

theft”!

My friend the communist

Holds meetings in his RV

Communists

claim that

“property is

theft”!

But this

“communist”

owns an RV

My friend the communist

Holds meetings in his RV

I can’t afford his gas

Communists

claim that

“property is

theft”!

But this

“communist”

owns an RV

And he

makes her

pay for

his gas!

And so I sit here watching TV

Because

television

is free

Except for

the

commercials

I don't have digital

Not all

televisions are

the same

I don't have digital

I don't have diddly squat

Not all

televisions are

the same

And which

kind of TV

you have tells

something

about you

It's not having what you want

It's wanting what you've got

Wait!

That’s the same point

Marshall Sahlins made

in the article you read

for this week.

Sahlins showed

that Bushmen

desire very little.

I'm gonna soak up the sun

Because

soaking up

the sun is

free…

I'm gonna soak up the sun

Gonna tell everyone to lighten up

Because

soaking up

the sun is

free…

Place less

value on

commodities?

I've got no one to blame

For every time I feel lame

You feel

inadequate

when you

want things

you don’t

have…

I've got no one to blame

For every time I feel lame

I'm looking up

You feel

inadequate

when you

want things

you don’t

have…

But

others do

have

them…

Gonna soak up the sun

Gonna soak up the sun

I've got a crummy job

I've got a crummy job

It don't pay near enough

We evaluate our

labor primarily on

what kind of

income it earns us

To buy the things it takes

To buy the things it takes

To win me some of your love

We use goods

to organize

relationships

Every time I turn around

I'm looking up, you're looking down

And these

social

relations

are in turn

organized

into status

hierarchies

Maybe something's wrong with you

That makes you act the way you do

A society that assumes

unlimited desires that can’t be

fulfilled

A society that assumes people

need very little

Which is better?

Is one

better than

the other??

vs

I'm gonna soak up the sun

Because

soaking up

the sun is

free…

I'm gonna soak up the sun

Gonna tell everyone to lighten up

Because

soaking up

the sun is

free…

Because it’s hard to

ignore the social

logic of money

unless others also

ignore it!

I've got no one to blame

You feel

inadequate

when you

want things

you don’t

have

I've got no one to blame

For every time I feel lame

I'm looking up

You feel

inadequate

when you want

things you don’t

have

But

others

do…

Gonna soak up the sun while it's still free

Because if they

could charge

for the sun, you

know they

would…

Don't have no master suite

Don't have no master suite

I'm still the king of me

Needing things

means things

control you

You have a fancy ride, but baby

You have a fancy ride, but baby

I'm the one who has the key

The real

value of

goods

lies in

how

they

organize

social

relations

Every time I turn around

I'm looking up, you're looking down

And these

social

relations

are in turn

organized

into status

hierarchies

Maybe something's wrong with you

That makes you act the way you do

A society that assumes

unlimited desires that can’t be

fulfilled

A society that assumes people

need very little

Which is better?

Is one

better than

the other??

Maybe I am crazy too

When you

defy social

norms, it

can lead to

identity

issues

I'm gonna soak up the sun

Gonna tell everyone to lighten up

Because

soaking up

the sun is

free…

Because it’s hard to

ignore the social

logic of money

unless others also

ignore it!

I've got no one to blame

For every time I feel lame

I'm looking up

You feel

inadequate

when you

want things

you don’t

have

But

others

do…

I'm gonna soak up the sun

I'm gonna soak up the sun

Got my 45 on so I can rock on…

Irony:

In our society, you

can’t even hang out in

the sun without buying

something!

All Sheryl Crow photographs

courtesy of creative commons

1. Photo: Selfessness from nl CC BY-SA 3.0

2. Photo: Truejustice CC BY-SA 3.0

3. Photo: Mingle Media TV CC BY-SA 2.0

4. Photo: Kay Schanuel/Smays CC-BY-SA

5. Photo: Anirudh Koul CC-BY-SA 2.0

6. Photo: The Heart Truth CC-BY-SA 2.0

7. Photo: Cliff CC-BY-SA 2.0