5 ms·

Unfortunately I think it is worse than just justifying your purchase; for a lot of people it is defining their identity. You say "iPhone's are stupid!" and all

by rkalla 15y ago

Unfortunately I think it is worse than just justifying your purchase; for a lot of people it is defining their identity. You say "iPhone's are stupid!" and all they hear is "I think YOU are stupid!". A lot of people define themselves by distilling the version of themselves they want to portray to the world as a collective of company logos and brands. I don't think it is healthy, but it sure makes sense why people do it.

jwwest 15y ago
This is exactly what Apple set out to do, equate the brand with the self - much like fashion. Harley Davidson is another example where this occurs.
- danssig 15y ago
  Come on, you think Google doesn't do this? If anything anywhere on the net is critical of something Google does there will an army of fanboys there within seconds in Google's defense.
- roc 15y ago
  Even before Apple consciously set out to harness this, people were self-identifying as Unix people, Microsoft people and even CP/M people. So, yes, Apple consciously leverages this. But, no, the behavior is not solely a result of their effort. Consider all the tribes that don't even have a coherent "brand" behind them: C people and Ruby people; truck people and sports car people; dog people and cat people; PC gamers and console gamers; new york- and chicago-style pizza people; goths and hipsters and rockabillies; nerds and jocks; white-collar and blue-collar people; etc.
tvon 15y ago
If you say "Linux is stupid" or "Ubuntu is stupid" or "FOSS is stupid", you'll get the same response.
- rkalla 15y ago
  Oh, I don't think it matters. It just depends on the social circles you run as to what the noun in that sentence is. You a farmer in Illinois? Then the noun could be "John Deer" or "Monsanto" and you'll get appropriate responses. If you are a chef in New York you could say "Dilantium Knives" are/aren't stupid and get an appropriate response and so on. We are a lot like race car drivers anymore; draping the brands of the companies we are proud to identify ourselves by.

by rkalla 15y ago

jwwest 15y ago

This is exactly what Apple set out to do, equate the brand with the self - much like fashion. Harley Davidson is another example where this occurs.

danssig 15y ago
Come on, you think Google doesn't do this? If anything anywhere on the net is critical of something Google does there will an army of fanboys there within seconds in Google's defense.
roc 15y ago
Even before Apple consciously set out to harness this, people were self-identifying as Unix people, Microsoft people and even CP/M people. So, yes, Apple consciously leverages this. But, no, the behavior is not solely a result of their effort. Consider all the tribes that don't even have a coherent "brand" behind them: C people and Ruby people; truck people and sports car people; dog people and cat people; PC gamers and console gamers; new york- and chicago-style pizza people; goths and hipsters and rockabillies; nerds and jocks; white-collar and blue-collar people; etc.

tvon 15y ago

If you say "Linux is stupid" or "Ubuntu is stupid" or "FOSS is stupid", you'll get the same response.

rkalla 15y ago
Oh, I don't think it matters. It just depends on the social circles you run as to what the noun in that sentence is. You a farmer in Illinois? Then the noun could be "John Deer" or "Monsanto" and you'll get appropriate responses. If you are a chef in New York you could say "Dilantium Knives" are/aren't stupid and get an appropriate response and so on. We are a lot like race car drivers anymore; draping the brands of the companies we are proud to identify ourselves by.