Obsoleting

When you think about obsolescence, and how big a part it plays in our experience of objects these days, you notice how it is everywhere. And yet the process itself is easy to miss. I mean the exact moment when one thing displaces another, like a new lover. So think of it not as a noun but as a verb, 'obsoleting'. And notice how it describes a competition for our attention, for example among consumer items such as cars, mobile phones, computers. One thing obsoletes another, and we discard the old one for the new, fresher version. Notice how colour is one of the tactics used: the new Irish rugby jersey for the world cup is a darker green than the old, and sells for about €20 more. At a stroke, it has made every other Irish rugby jersey out of date, and this includes every photo of our heroes, even those taken last season. (Mind you, they may want to go back to the 'old ones' to try and forget about their performances in this World Cup!) Parents were complaining a few years back that Manchester United changed their strip annually to drive sales of their red shirts, and this was forcing mums to spend more in an effort to keep up.
Or think of why Mercedes-Benz introduced new headlights on their cars in 2005; at first they looked strange. But their job was to push every pre-2005 model into the dustbin of the past, to draw a line for our eyes between what is 'cool' and what is 'history'.
Every day's newspaper obsoletes the previous day's
New technology like the iPhone obsoletes yesterdays' 'new technology'
Today makes yesterday obsolete
Your children's growing up makes their earlier years look charming to you and embarassing to them
Makeovers, cosmetic nips and tucks... are they examples of obsoleting or of defenses against it?
The glorification of Youth and Beauty is the battlefield where the fight against ageing and human obsolescence takes place.
I got a call from a man this morning who has been made redundant by his company. He is struggling to retain his sense of pride, and it comes through even in a short conversation in which he is ostensibly looking for information but in truth, calling loudly and pathetically for help. What has 'obsoleted' him? A new plant in China? A software improvement? An outsourcing solution?
In conclusion, the study of obsolesence presents 2 faces: to Youth it speaks of Innovation and Opportunity. To Age, it speak of Mortality, and the those 'hungry generations'. Perhaps it is the face of Shiva, Godess of Creation and Destruction.