[thelist] Re: Design/Development Goes Third World?

The graceful thing would be to let this thread die a merciful death...
but because some of what I wrote was misunderstood, I'm throwing this in...

Tim Stewart from Britain/Australia wrote:

>I don't know when you last picked grapes, but around here squeaky
>wheels tend to get kicked out. Grape picking isn't a job for whingers.

If my personal experience is an issue...

I live in California slightly north of wine-grape country. I've never 
worked in ag but I did know a woman (indigenous Californian) who grew 
up in raisin grape fields and was so bitter about how the workers 
were treated (mainly in terms of reckless pesticide exposure 
including pregnant women & children) that she said she'd never eat 
another raisin.

As for me, I spent 15 years as a prep-cook, waitress, bartender, 
retail, and clerical (often holding up to three part-time jobs at 
once).  I later got a degree, became a part-time college instructor 
before I was able to beg, borrow, or steal the hardware and software 
I needed to build web sites.

I,too, am THRILLED to have the opportunity to freelance & be my own 
boss... difficult as it may often be.  I also currently have a 
(temporary) employer: a local .edu

I live in a rural area.  I have never been a union member, nor had 
the option.  With a few exceptions I have never had any benefits or a 
paid day off.  I have generally earned minimum wage or thereabouts. 
I have experienced unpaid overtime, work that caused injuries, 
exposure to carcinogens, etc etc whine whine.

 From this discussion, I gather that web workers generally don't want 
to unionize.  I was actually referring more to programmers in the 
earlier email, or "tech workers" as a general group. But I see the 
confusion because then I used the Web Standards Project as an example 
of an organized group with clout (the "opponents" being the browser 
makers, though "opponent" would not be my term of choice).

Probably the traditional "union" model is not appropriate in the 
design field.  The idea of a "guild" as in "hwg.org" may be more 
appropriate?  The point being: there is strength in unity.

>So what are you going to do if clients
>start turning overseas for volume work at low prices? Go on strike?

I'd like to see everyone in the world earning a living wage, making 
their own choices, and having health care.

My original point was, that there is dispute as to whether there is, 
in fact, a shortage of qualified tech workers in the US.

If we want to bring in more people and if that will help relieve 
companies the stress of paying a living wage,  then we (USA) had 
better be prepared to vamp up our educational and social services (in 
the US) so that those who continue to fall through the cracks 
(including: blue-collar workers, people with disabilities, people who 
are primary caregivers for elders or children, and everyone over 50) 
don't starve on the streets.  Again, that's education and social 
services, not PRISONS.

If I'm jingoistic (and I don't think I am), I'm jingoistic for the 
common people (whatever nation).

What worries me is the disrespect I've tended to encounter in SOME 
"intellectual" workers towards blue collar workers & people who 
suffer when their jobs are lost or digitized.  Just because you hack 
code (or manage) doesn't make you "better" than an unemployed auto 
worker, waitress, or a woman making shoes in China.  Not to mention a 
starving child in Iraq.

I do not understand what it takes to step over rows of homeless 
people to get to your high-paying SF or Silicon Valley job and still 
feel okay about the world and comfortable about your place in it.

>Why not take the
>positive viewpoint, and see what benefits being part of a global economy can
>bring to you.

My question is, who is running this global economy?  Who's benefiting 
and who's getting the global shaft?

ANYWAY: clearly, I love the web, and have written about many of its 
positive points in terms of intellectual and artistic freedom. And 
I'm all for cultural richness & it's why I love America.  (Wish it 
were better reflected on the web....)

I am not anti-immigration by any means... unless it is a deliberate 
move by businesses who want to systematically lower wages...  are 
current wages out of hand?  Maybe so.  Maybe all those old geezer 
programmers are too used to high salaries..?

I live in a rural area and, Eduardo et al, in most parts of the 
world, it is still tough to make it as a web designer... especially 
with few resources. But I believe that the opportunities are growing. 
I say just keep working on it as long as you love it.

And Ben, though cream rises to the top... life is not fair
and too often it's the scum that rises.

as for any subtle red baiting... tra la la...
"you ain't done nothin' if you ain't been called a Red,
if you've fought or organized, you're bound to hear it said..."

I can say this: The web has potential & the first step to creating a 
better world is to open our collective (yes, collective) eyes to what 
is going on right now.  The second step is to create a vision for a 
future.  The third is to work together to make it real.

<tip author="erika">

For design/color inspiration try these:

-savor a trendy eye-candy magazine.
-play some 80's arcade games (like defender, centipede, missile 
command... brilliant use of a limited medium).
-splurge on an issue of "Design Graphics" if (like me) you need all 
the Photoshop & other design tips you can get.
-force yourself to do a design or mockup in mono- or duo-chrome.
-watch the sun rise or set & be aware of the colors & movement of 
light & clouds... or simply look up & notice the sky.
-if you are coastal, find a secluded beach & be with the sand and 
waves.  It soothes the mind & spirit & gives the creative side room 
to breathe.
-if you're in a neon town, be with the neon.
-when all else fails, make a graphic in Fireworks (or Photoshop) & 
color it with the brightest, most garish combinations on the web-safe 
palette.  You just might find a color mix that works like you never 
expected.

</tip>

Erika


erika@seastorm.com
http://www.seastorm.com