Davey.Matrix_Value

The Matrix of **Value**

Value has a few meanings. Some connotations have to do with ethics or family structure, however I am most interested the root definition. Value is defined as relative worth, merit or importance. In today’s fast paced, high consumption culture, the questions arise, what do we value and why? Our current motives and desires are certainly far flung from what our hunter-gatherer ancestors set as priorities. If we look closely at what we actually require for survival, for example hard work, food and shelter, we expect to get the most possible for our money, often times sacrificing quality for volume. Fast food culture, agri-business and big box stores encourage us to spend less of food and essentials while saving as much disposable income as possible to stimulate the consumer goods market, therefore increasing solid waste on a global scale, driving labor injustice and further distorting the future of the next generation through exercise of purchasing power. As we sprint towards a more and more globalized economy, the problems presented by these cultural stigmas become more severe and their growth accelerates as our population continues to increase.

**Value and Food**

In the vein of the food industry, value is the most skewed. We have allowed our food systems to be determined by very few controlling parties, while the number of stakeholders multiplies daily. Biodiversity, food quality, clean water supply and personal health are all put at risk when food sources become centralized in big agriculture. Additionally, tremendous inefficiencies exist along industrial food value chains, which cause over production, poor inventory management and a variety of other issues which could be solved through a more careful analysis of how we produce what keeps us alive. While at the root of life is the need for food, we have devalued this essential element to mere fuel. With the devaluation of the product has come the devaluation of the labor that produces food as a commodity. This exhibits an example of irrational rationalization, where we go to stores like McDonalds for food which has been shipped across the country and can be prepared in less than five minutes, wrapped in a disposable package and sent down the hatch for a small price.

**Value and Labor**

Value and labor correspond in an interesting way. As mentioned above, the labor that produces our food has been devalued. Farmers producing food for millions of people struggle to break even due to carelessly designed government subsidies and the greed of corporations like Monsanto. However, the farmers are not alone. All around the world social injustice exists around labor. Labor is cheap, you just need to know where to find it. Marx’s transformation problem begins by stating that output price should be proportional to the content of labor spent. This statement draws the first line in determining how to create profit. Capitalism has grown up and continues to find labor to produce goods where this proportion may be distorted. A core issue here is labor demand. Overpopulation is a sustainability problem for many reasons, but one that stands critical to our modern culture is that when there are many unskilled workers, the labor pool seems infinite. Therefore, if a worker demands higher wages, they may be replaced easily. This represents a dream come true in the realm of human resources, but an unfortunate truth in terms of how we value where our goods come from. For example, China has long had a reputation for cheap labor and prevalent sweatshops. Labor intensive jobs account for seventy eight percent of China’s job market. That said, there has been a recent increase of migrant workers within China and labor demand is increasing. A potential cause may be increased of standard of living or an exhaustion of the cheap labor supply. Another contributing factor is the Chinese “One Child” law. Due to this law, an attempt by China to control its massive population, eventually we will see a drop in Chinese population, therefore increasing labor demand further and diminishing availability of cheap labor. If more countries had the ability to implement similar policies as China, we could possibly look forward to a future where not only do we mitigate overpopulation as its own sustainability problem, but we see its resolution as a potential solution to issues around value of labor. In the mean time, if China gets too expensive, Company ABC can move to Thailand, India or Bangladesh.


 * Consumer Value**

So what does it all mean? Are we dominated by greed? Are we puppets strung along by corporations motivated by profits alone? Greed can be defined as an excessive desire to possess worldly goods, or to possess goods beyond one’s basic needs. In a globally functioning capitalist economy, this sounds like a behavior of a good citizen. Shopping is a hobby. This year, average spending on Christmas presents is expected to be almost seven hundred dollars. This figure rivals some families’ monthly grocery bill. So, what are we buying? Electronics, clothing, power tools, some of which will likely be bundle priced to allow the consumer to get more for their money, a story of great value. However, every year corporations and retailers must increase profits to please shareholders, which means that either costs must go down, sales must go up, or ideally, both. Therefore production of these goods, whose destiny is to become solid waste, will increase, more fossil fuels will be burned in production, and with the ever booming electronics industry, more and more e-waste will end up in China, being melted down for precious metals. We continually also see corporations honing their skills for targeting consumer segments. It has recently been recognized that there exist sub-sets of consumers even within youths, so therefore no blanket marketing strategy can be used for a given product. All of our children need product XYZ, they just don't know it yet.

General: 1. Shinn, M.. (2010, September 1). Is greed holding you back? //Chicago Defender,// p. 14. Retrieved October 25, 2010, from Black Newspapers. (Document ID: 2140084871). 2. Kenner, Robert, Dir. //Food Inc.//. Dir. Robert Kenner." Magnolia Pictures, Participant Media, River Road Productions: 2008, Film. . 3. [] 4. [] 5. [] 6. [] 7. [] 8. [] 9. [] 10. [] 11. [] 12. []
 * Sources**

Peer Reviewed: 1. Fleissner, P.. (2007). The Marxian Transformation Problem Revisited. //Nature, Society, and Thought, 20// (3/4), 383-387. Retrieved October 25, 2010, from ProQuest Social Science Journals. (Document ID: 1615050321). 2. Douglas Dalenberg, John M. Fitzgerald, Eric Schuck, & John Wicks. (2004). How Much Is Leisure Worth? Direct Measurement with Contingent Valuation. //Review of Economics of the Household, 2// (4), 351-365. Retrieved October 25, 2010, from ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID: 805843681). 3. David H. Taylor, & Andrew Fearne. (2009). Demand management in fresh food value chains: a framework for analysis and improvement. //Supply Chain Management, 14// (5), 379-392. Retrieved October 25, 2010, from ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID: 1963641471). 4. A. Keivan Zokaei, & David W. Simons. (2006). Value chain analysis in consumer focus improvement :A case study of the UK red meat industry. //International Journal of Logistics Management, 17// (2), 141-162. Retrieved October 25, 2010, from ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID: 1095870121). 5. Richard Lee, Jamie Murphy, & Larry Neale. (2009). The interactions of consumption characteristics on social norms. //The Journal of Consumer Marketing, 26// (4), 277-285. Retrieved October 25, 2010, from ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID: 1879664871). Photo Credits http://s.shld.net/is/image/Sears/9990000006394011?hei=600&wid=600&op_sharpen=1 http://www.worldofstock.com/slides/PCU2146.jpg http://www.globalenvision.org/files/sweatshop.jpg http://paperdollreview.com/images/family1950s.jpg http://snackyousilly.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/dollar-menu.jpg <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 26px;">[] <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 26px;">http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:BX784xTEOs3WlM:http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/8959/starvation.jpg&t=1// //[]// //http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:yCYtNkx_G26zAM:http://img43.imageshack.us/img43/9674/quiltednorthernbathtiss.jpg&t=1