What began as an innocent attempt at a casual stroll through the mall this past Sunday afternoon turned into mayhem the likes that take three months off of your life. I almost kicked a five year-old in the shins as he tried to squeeze his baby brother's stroller behind me in the mega-supermarket check-out line. What this mall trip provoked, however, is the consolidation of some ideas I've had about adverse effects of mall-ing in Chile.
Santiago has a grip of malls. I've been coming here every two years since I was twelve and there's at least a new mall everytime. And these aren't you're typical "walk it in 20" malls. These are mega-malls that would make even the Sawgrass Mall (the largest outdoor mall in the South), tuck tail and run off into the Everglades. I count at least six mega-malls in the metropolitan area alone.
From the outside it may seem, damn, Chile's economy is doing pretty well to support these malls. They're filled with people during the week and impossible to walk around in on the weekends. And people aren't just walking, they're buying as if the rent were due the next day (in some cases it is, but there's no money to pay for it). Unfortunately, the majority of shoppers buy on credit that they don't have. Some Chileans will say that this is progress. Thirty years ago, the poorest people had no food. At least now they can buy pasta and veggies at the supermarket on credit. True. But what concerns me is the greater problem.
The ten months that I've been here have shown me that Chileans have loads of energy and dedication. They work twelve hour days everyday, they bleed for fandom in the soccer stadiums, they will go out and buy neon orange bracelets in droves as a sign of solidarity. This energy and dedication is also channeled into consumerism. Which is to the delight of the
Chicago Boys but to my chagrin. How is it possible that a people, who only thirty years ago freely and democratically elected
the first Socialist president in the world, are now completely bonkers over the latest sock sale at Almacenes Paris?
I think the Chilean characteristics of energy and dedications are a factor. But I also think it's the fundamental difference between capitalism and socialism. The former exploits the worst in people, while the latter expects the best. And for this reason they can't co-exist. Successful malls transform the nicest people into rabid assholes, clawing their way through a bin to acquire the last spatula. For capitalism to work, the masses need to be passive and completely indifferent to the fact that everything dear to them (hopes, lifestyle, individuality) will be exploited for commercial use. Whereas for socialism to work, the masses need to be active and committed to always being righteous, fair, and noble.
I'm not an economist, but a humble social scientist. I could care less what flavor of government flies its banner in foreign countries, as long as its citizens can be free to live their lives as they wish (and not die in inner tubes a stone's toss from Key Largo, thanks Fidel). I don't know what the solution is at the moment, all I know is that mall trips will now be scheduled early-early on Sunday mornings.
