WEBVTT NOTE 19. Three Cheers for “Petty” Concerns 1 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.240 Three cheers for petty concerns. 2 00:00:05.240 --> 00:00:10.080 My seven-year-old daughter asked me the other day whether I was born before email. 3 00:00:10.080 --> 00:00:13.480 Yes, I confessed. 4 00:00:13.480 --> 00:00:17.240 Then she quickly followed up, Were you born before plastic? 5 00:00:17.240 --> 00:00:22.960 No, I said I was born after plastic, but before email. 6 00:00:22.960 --> 00:00:26.840 Satisfied that she had placed me within the structure of the history of the world, she 7 00:00:26.840 --> 00:00:29.760 went back to her weekend play. 8 00:00:29.760 --> 00:00:35.760 There is important truth here that this tribe and not that tribe controls Kabul isn't the 9 00:00:35.760 --> 00:00:40.280 kind of thing that changes our lives, so it's hard to understand the hysteria. 10 00:00:40.280 --> 00:00:44.600 What really drives forward the data of history as we know it are the products we use in everyday 11 00:00:44.600 --> 00:00:49.640 life, things like the computer, the DVD or the CD burner. 12 00:00:49.640 --> 00:00:55.960 These simple and so-called petty economic concerns, not war and politics, are what define 13 00:00:55.960 --> 00:01:00.200 in Progress, and distinguish one generation from another. 14 00:01:00.200 --> 00:01:05.920 Thus, it is extremely newsworthy that baby bells are suffering because everyone is cancelling 15 00:01:05.920 --> 00:01:11.440 his second phone line – what with the advent of high-speed internet access. 16 00:01:11.440 --> 00:01:17.700 Turns out that the second phone line schtick was big business for these little monopolists. 17 00:01:17.700 --> 00:01:21.880 Other ominous signs include the tendency of college kids, and even small businesses, choosing 18 00:01:21.880 --> 00:01:25.880 Having the cell phone only option, just like they do in the third world. 19 00:01:25.880 --> 00:01:32.880 Now, tell the truth, isn't this more interesting than the latest squabbles between the Tajiks 20 00:01:32.880 --> 00:01:36.880 and the Pashtuns in that other planet we call the Middle East? 21 00:01:36.880 --> 00:01:41.440 So, let's talk about the trends that really matter. 22 00:01:41.440 --> 00:01:45.800 The first one concerning fast food, and the second one dealing with the colour of our 23 00:01:45.800 --> 00:01:47.760 teeth. 24 00:01:47.760 --> 00:01:51.640 There are revolutions taking place in both sectors that will transform our lives within 25 00:01:51.640 --> 00:01:59.800 The Fast Food Revolution begins at Arby's, that's right, that old fuddy-duddy of a 26 00:01:59.800 --> 00:02:05.260 fast food outlet founded in 1964 that hasn't even been in the running during the wars that 27 00:02:05.260 --> 00:02:08.800 have pitted Burger King against McDonald's. 28 00:02:08.800 --> 00:02:13.440 The idea of a hot roast beef sandwich was big stuff in the 1970s, but it's been downhill 29 00:02:13.440 --> 00:02:15.800 ever since. 30 00:02:15.800 --> 00:02:21.280 Even during the market hysteria of 1998, the Tri-Ark Restaurant Group, which also owns 31 00:02:21.280 --> 00:02:27.000 Arby's, TJ Cinnamons and the Pasta Connection suffered startling blows with the value of 32 00:02:27.000 --> 00:02:30.160 the invested dollar falling by half. 33 00:02:30.160 --> 00:02:36.800 In 1999, Arby's captured only 3.9% of the fast food market. 34 00:02:36.800 --> 00:02:40.360 Does anyone really look forward to an Arby's? 35 00:02:40.360 --> 00:02:44.480 It's only what you eat if you can't find any other outlet where the drive-through lines 36 00:02:44.480 --> 00:02:46.480 are short. 37 00:02:46.480 --> 00:02:56.600 Now to the big news. Arby's revolutionary Market Fresh Sandwich. It may be the greatest 38 00:02:56.600 --> 00:03:04.040 sandwich you have ever tasted. And this is not hyperbole. Whoever came up with this sandwich, 39 00:03:04.040 --> 00:03:10.440 first introduced in May 2001, is a genius. A person who thinks completely outside the 40 00:03:10.440 --> 00:03:16.040 box as they say. It is a radical departure from everything that has ever defined Arby's. 41 00:03:16.040 --> 00:03:19.720 or fast food itself, for that matter. 42 00:03:19.720 --> 00:03:24.600 There are no warming lights, no greasy buns, and no wilted lettuce. 43 00:03:24.600 --> 00:03:30.600 You open the wrapper, and it's a deli-style wrapper, to find a magnificent meal, a thing 44 00:03:30.600 --> 00:03:35.280 of beauty, stacked high with all fresh ingredients. 45 00:03:35.280 --> 00:03:42.080 It comes on whole grain bread, and contains real Swiss cheese, sweet red onions, and fancy 46 00:03:42.080 --> 00:03:44.040 honey mustard. 47 00:03:44.040 --> 00:03:47.500 With the first bite you will swoon with delirium. 48 00:03:47.500 --> 00:03:53.020 You have finally found the perfect lunch, a sandwich to rival the best New York deli 49 00:03:53.020 --> 00:03:58.420 at fast food prices under five dollars. 50 00:03:58.420 --> 00:04:01.300 Not only that, but there is no waiting. 51 00:04:01.300 --> 00:04:05.420 The sandwich is sitting right there for you to pick up in an instant. 52 00:04:05.420 --> 00:04:09.820 It comes in four varieties and every one is fantastic. 53 00:04:09.820 --> 00:04:18.020 Roast beef in Swiss, roast turkey in Swiss, roast ham in Swiss, and roast chicken Caesar. 54 00:04:18.020 --> 00:04:23.420 To ensure quality, the company decided in favor of a national distribution of the ingredients 55 00:04:23.420 --> 00:04:29.860 on solid grounds, that they didn't trust the quality of local produce. 56 00:04:29.860 --> 00:04:34.540 I was so astonished by the quality that I did an informal look around the restaurant 57 00:04:34.540 --> 00:04:37.240 to see who else had ordered this item. 58 00:04:37.240 --> 00:04:42.680 It turns out that more than two-thirds of the patrons had the market fresh on the table. 59 00:04:42.680 --> 00:04:46.800 And just talking to a few people, it was clear that they had the same impression I had, that 60 00:04:46.800 --> 00:04:51.200 this is an incredibly good meal. 61 00:04:51.200 --> 00:04:55.640 Now Arby's has started a second round of national promotion for this item, based on interviews 62 00:04:55.640 --> 00:04:57.620 with real customers. 63 00:04:57.620 --> 00:05:04.600 If this takes off, and how can it not, think what this could mean for the whole industry. 64 00:05:04.600 --> 00:05:09.240 McDonald's will have to follow suit, then Burger King, then Wendy's, and then everyone else. 65 00:05:09.240 --> 00:05:14.000 Still, in the end, Arby's will remain the leader, simply because they were the first 66 00:05:14.000 --> 00:05:16.640 past the post. 67 00:05:16.640 --> 00:05:22.400 The delis and deli chains are going to suffer some serious competition. 68 00:05:22.400 --> 00:05:26.960 And the political left, which has been fulminating against the great American hamburger for a 69 00:05:26.960 --> 00:05:29.620 decade, won't know what to do. 70 00:05:29.620 --> 00:05:35.300 The fast food nation, as the title of a book by some leftist prig puts it, will be eating 71 00:05:35.300 --> 00:05:40.100 a completely different product supplied in the same capitalist manner that put the hamburger 72 00:05:40.100 --> 00:05:42.260 on the map. 73 00:05:42.260 --> 00:05:47.540 One can never tire of watching with amazement at how the market responds to consumer demands 74 00:05:47.540 --> 00:05:49.260 with new innovations. 75 00:05:49.260 --> 00:05:54.340 Thus, we come to the second example of the great revolution of our times, teeth whitening 76 00:05:54.340 --> 00:06:03.200 Making strips, as introduced by Crest this past summer, a box costs between $30 and $40. 77 00:06:03.200 --> 00:06:07.480 These simple strips contain hydrogen peroxide and are worn on the teeth for 30 minutes at 78 00:06:07.480 --> 00:06:10.860 a time, twice a day, for two weeks. 79 00:06:10.860 --> 00:06:16.400 They turn your teeth pearly white, thus achieving every consumer's dream that has been promised, 80 00:06:16.400 --> 00:06:21.640 but never delivered, by the toothpaste industry for 30 years. 81 00:06:21.640 --> 00:06:25.080 The effect lasts for six months, and then you have to do it again. 82 00:06:25.080 --> 00:06:29.240 They are now available in every pharmacy, and they have become so popular that they 83 00:06:29.240 --> 00:06:34.160 are put in the checkout stands at grocery stores. 84 00:06:34.160 --> 00:06:37.960 The phenomenon first appeared to me about a month ago, when someone I've known for 85 00:06:37.960 --> 00:06:42.880 years smiled, and I noticed that his teeth were incredibly white. 86 00:06:42.880 --> 00:06:47.080 I happened to comment on it, and he revealed the great secret. 87 00:06:47.080 --> 00:06:51.520 Then I was at the flower shop and noticed that the checkout lady had sparkling white 88 00:06:51.520 --> 00:06:53.720 teeth. 89 00:06:53.720 --> 00:06:58.000 Then I began to take greater notice and saw that every student at the university library 90 00:06:58.000 --> 00:07:04.860 was walking around with super white teeth and everyone seemed utterly smiley. 91 00:07:04.860 --> 00:07:09.740 Now the South is a smiley place to begin with, but these strips have made it even more so. 92 00:07:09.740 --> 00:07:14.240 You wonder if these strips could even enact something of a cultural revolution in crabby 93 00:07:14.240 --> 00:07:23.280 We all know that when you laugh, the whole world laughs with you, whereas you cry alone. 94 00:07:23.280 --> 00:07:28.520 But soon the whole world will have every reason to smile as widely as possible. 95 00:07:28.520 --> 00:07:33.720 Soon stained teeth could become odd, and even regarded as unsanitary. 96 00:07:33.720 --> 00:07:38.160 Thus the advent of teeth-whitening strips could be as revolutionary as the invention 97 00:07:38.160 --> 00:07:41.360 of deodorant itself. 98 00:07:41.360 --> 00:07:47.920 I know the neoconservatives and state builders say concerns like this are, quote, petty. 99 00:07:47.920 --> 00:07:52.320 They would rather us live in a world where people think only about building the warfare 100 00:07:52.320 --> 00:07:57.600 state and sacrificing for the common good, where we huddle up to dream about sending 101 00:07:57.600 --> 00:08:03.600 our youngsters off to fly bombers and kill enemies of the nation state. 102 00:08:03.600 --> 00:08:05.080 Not I. 103 00:08:05.080 --> 00:08:12.240 To me, the great society is the one that loves inexpensive deli sandwiches and the whitest 104 00:08:12.240 --> 00:08:20.360 teeth in the history of the world and relies on voluntary market cooperation to get them. 105 00:08:20.360 --> 00:08:26.560 I envy the generation born after today that can brag that it came after teeth whitening 106 00:08:26.560 --> 00:08:32.080 strips, fast food deli sandwiches and CD burners. 107 00:08:32.080 --> 00:08:37.740 I'm willing to bet that six months from now, not even the people of Afghanistan will speak 108 00:08:37.740 --> 00:08:43.000 of the liberation of Kabul from the Taliban as a decisive moment in the history of the 109 00:08:43.000 --> 00:08:43.500 world.