Made to Break (p83-p185)

I finished the 2nd reading section for Slade's Made to Break and I'm convinced it's a book worthy of my eyes. I was kind of thrown off when I read the chapter on radios at first, but Slade's message became clearer towards the end of the 2nd section. I remember reading about all the info from the radio chapter b/c I read about David Sarnoff and RCA in a media studies class awhile ago. "The 1950s marriage of transistors and printed circuits rendered the postwar generation of consumer electronics obsolete, because it made them, for all intents and purposes, unrepairable." (p.105) That sentence is what kept his argument relevant to me for that particular chapter at least. Radios, aimed to sell to teens were being shipped, to the States in different colors and styles making them appear disposable seeing as how teens are one of the largest groups of consumers in the US. The death dating phrase on p. 113 added a new outlook to the phrase planned obsolescence. The fact that products are designed by scientists to purposely not last long is kind of f-dup if you're a consumer.
I understand why he is talking so far in the past, but to me, some of it is unnecessary. The strong usage of the past just reminds of the saying, you won't know where you're going, if you don't know where you came from which is why he must be relying on the past so much. I can respect it, but I would honestly not want to read all of it. Chapter 5, The War and Postwar Progress, made the reading assignment more interesting compared to the last chapter. Chapter 6 introduces the 1960s history of obsolescence and also counterculture. A lot of ways of life changed in the 60s but the speed at which technology evolved got faster. I enjoyed on how Slade explained a change in advertisement as well through obsolescence. "...psychological obsolescence through their VW ads..." (p. 179). I agree with how obsolescence became a trend and has further manipulated how Americans live their lives. The only problem I have so far with in this book is that I feel like I'm getting waterboarded with historical references. Other than that I like it.