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http://www.get some fresh air.comby Allan McNaughtonI don't know how many of those disks I've gotten in the mail or with magazines or with my new phone book now; I've lost count. Each one goes straight in the trash can. Not the "virtual" trash can at the bottom right hand comer of my Mac screen, but the real one. These promotional giveaways don't offer you anything "free" at all, except the opportunity to plug in and take your rightful place in the newest growth industry, the chance to be another unit of the burgeoning target market of Internet consumers. Phrases like "net surfer" and "information superhighway' make it sound like an activity, a contact sport, a segment to be introduced by Henry Rollins on the next MTV Sports, instead of what it really is — a new way to be sold things, to spend your disposable income, the infinite Home Shopping Network. "Ten Free Hours"? I spend a large portion of my working day, as well as the time I spend working at MRR or on my own 'zine, gazing at a computer monitor, so the next time I actually have ten free hours, I'll be doing something a lot more meaningful and worthwhile to me.
Originally appeared in Drop Out 'zine #4.5.
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