The Scooter LifeStyle

Scooter Lifestyles

Commentary:  This is a fun article I wrote some time ago about Scooter Lifestyles. I attempted to associate the lifestyles with music to create the imagery of each lifestyle. Portable devices such as iPods, iPads, Blackberries, etc.. may not load YouTube tracks well.  I am making updates and refining this article.  Please think about products and services that support each lifestyle. Feel free to email those ideas to me or post them in the forums. Last update Aug 25, 2012.

Other topical articles to consider:

Who are you Calling a Euro-Sissy?
Vespa Makes GQ’s Ultimate Holiday Gift Guide!
Scooter Enthusiasts Descend on Times Square

Roman Holiday 1953

Mention scootering and many older folks reminisce about Rome with sort of a classic 1960’s La Dolce Vita thought. In their minds eye, they see black and white snapshots of Italy as picture perfect models zip along on a Vespa Classica. The nostalgic allure does have a sense of panache to many riders and has become an iconic Renaissance Lifestyle of many scooter enthusiasts who purchase a Vespa, although not the classic model. 

Spend Thrifty Fun

Meanwhile, in the more youthful spend-thrifty lifestyle of university students, a pop culture has emerged centering on buzzing around upon classic scooters under 150cc engines. They hook up with friends and get silly as captured in the July 1999 music video “You Steal My Sunshine” by LEN. The song and music video personified for many people another scooter lifestyle in  which the volatility of youthful fun and romance are a primary ingredient.

Online scooter discussion groups have many testimonials in which one gets the sense that for many people scootering has been a way of living for a vast portion of their life. Some riders in their youth mowed grass and collected soft drink bottles to raise the change to purchase their first scooter. For them, scooters were a low maintenance work around solution to the more costly automobile. In years past, most states did not regulate engines under 50cc or require licensing. Today most states regulate all motor sizes and engine operated vehicles. 

The modern scooter enthusiast has matured beyond the nostalgic notions of La Dolce Vita and spend thrifty college student. Thirty something women to professionals to seniors have become mainstream scooter riders. Everyone is riding scooters and defining their own style. Whereas, motorcycles define the rider.  For example, in 1969 Peter Fonda starred in the Movie Easy Rider which was an iconic social statement of the times. The movie stirred the America spirit of adventure framing the rough and tough carefree rider. Years later the movie Wild Hogs highlighted middle aged men attempting to recapture that sense of adventure. In these movies, the motorcycle was the star defining who the people were supposed to be. Nonetheless, defining a common scooter lifestyle is difficult because the star is the rider who selects the scooter to fit their own image and style.

Unlike motorcycles, scooters attract a broad range of folks who define their own lifestyle and express that through their scooters. The scooter enthusiast may have several lifestyles they practice and there are at least six popular lifestyles that I have been able to identify. Each lifestyle has a temporal element and serves a tradeoff between functionality and style.

Rider Styles

The sky is pitch black and the radio snaps on with Vitamin C modulating the pop song Smile. The Early Riser Lifestyle is centered on morning errands and socializations;  up and out before sunrise. After a swing by the dry cleaners they may stop in at the local bagel palace where they chat briefly while imbibing Vitamin C in an orange juice or jolting their system with coffee before they are off to the next stop. Once they return home, they may switch to another vehicle for the drive to work or they may remain on the scooter switching to another lifestyle mode.

The City Lifestyle is utilitarian. The scooter is ridden to work, shopping, and for general commuting best characterized by axiom Takin' Care of Business. Along with an aroma of exhaust fumes and a blush of heat waves from the pavement, these riders dart around congested traffic. An occasional horn blast catches one’s attention on the busy streets before the putter of a scooter passes by. The rider may be in a suit and tie, have a load strapped to the back end, or making lunch deliveries. At any rate, the day is a bustle and these riders  are busy taking care of business!   

The Metro Lifestyle is characterized by after work errands and entertainment. Glowing neon lights of diners, cafes, theaters, and comedy clubs contrast against a purple and orange sunset of the early evening. The  buzz of the evening is set by the haunting sound of the 1961 pop hit  The Lion Sleeps Tonight. The rider has shed their work clothes for a relaxed stylish appeal. That may mean the tie is in the pocket and the collar is open.

The Nightlife Lifestyle is late evening to late night frequenting of comedy clubs, lounges, dance and night clubs.  A song fades in to your thoughts from the back of your mind. "Just listen to the music of the traffic in the city, Linger on the sidewalk, where the neon signs are pretty, How can you lose? The lights are much brighter there, You can forget all your troubles, forget all your cares. So go downtown!" It is a throw back to October 1964 and the song Downtown by the joyous Petula Clark. A group of elegant women in thigh high black evening wear stand in the shadows of swanky late night club entrances awaiting a taxi. The scooter rider exudes a GQ personification perhaps in a well fitted European suit catching the attention of the ladies in the door well of whom one may just leap on the scooter in a fit-of-fun! 

The Renaissance Lifestyle is a throwback an unfettered way of life and a keen sense of style. Avoiding the cliché of popularized Italian melodies, this lifestyle is about a way of life and not a distant place. The tune Summer Wind best modernizes the lifestyle. The rider would don designer clothes and sun glasses. There is a sense of panache associated with the Renaissance Rider and people are attracted by magnetism or allure of a carefree and stylish life. 

The Action rider buzzes the scene looking for the happening spot, to socialize, or just scout out where the action is. They are the Ramblin' Man and tend to ride during the weekends for the thrill of the road and open air. They may ride to the beach, parks, malls, and out-of-the-way restaurants they come across. They may ride alone, double up, or with friends. The action rider seeks adventure.

Accentuated Lifestyles

The rider accentuates the lifestyles with products and services. They seek scooter friendly crowds and businesses. By accessorizing the scooter with a variety of features, they listen to music, carry cargo, and serve other functions for the riders. Some scooters come equipped with cigarette lighter sockets for powering devices such as  iPods, cell phone, and GPS.  

Scootering is much more than a means of transportation.  At the end-the-day the rider derives a sense of belonging to a movement or something greater than themselves. The scooter gives them a sense of fluidity and community unparalleled by other vehicles.  Scootering is a way of life for many riders who combine the many lifestyles in ways that make them individual or unique. In doing so, they retain a sense of the American spirit; adventuresome, free spirited, and on the move.

Literary Review of C.S. Lewis Fantasy Works

Many of you may know that I have read mostly C.S. Lewis's non-fiction works. I just saw a fascinating literary review that 'unlocked' the mystery in Lewis's fictional works. As it turns out Lewis was intrigued with the Medieval view of the cosmos and had studied it in great detail. He was a noted scholar on the Medieval. He recognized that it was mechanically incorrect. Yet he saw something deeper. He saw a beauty in a creation in which a God was interwoven tightly.

He took the Medieval cosmological view and layered that under parallel Biblical thread lines then layer that under parallel fantasy thread lines. Each fantasy story as it turns out is fundamentally built upon Medieval symbology for each of the 7 planets. In Lewis's mind this was representative of peeling the onion back in our own universe in which complexity layered with complexity then layer with even more complexity has a God that is interwoven amidst it all. The reason he wrote Narnia was to communicate the idea of a "meaning drenched Universe". The example was given that science may report that heat applied to water causes it to boil at 212 degrees but the purpose or meaning of that is to prepare a spot of tea. This is antithetical to authors like Richard Dawkins of "The God Delusion" who conclude there is no purpose or meaning. Yet, I am confident that Dawkin's has purposefully boiled water for a spot of tea. Was that purpose to enjoy the taste of tea, hydrate, or just to quench a thirst?

In a sidebar, I have been developing the concept of three distinct sciences in the Bible. I was amazed to learn that this had been known and even discussed among Lewis and Tolkien, author of "Lord of the Rings."

Anyhow, I read "The God Delusion". The book has an appeal to the mind numbed. The depth is measured in terms of 'picometers'. Dawkins is often factually incorrect in histories and distorts or ignores well established scientific truths. At the other extreme end of the spectrum is the current day Creation Museum with poor logic for a God of Order and distorted context. We seem to have many people today with odd ideas and poor reasoning holding entire communities of practice hostage. Whereas Lewis's works were so deep that even Christian philosophers such as Tolkien failed to grasp the literary genius in the works. Interestingly, Lewis's works are revealed whereas others such as Dawkins are insisted upon.

The more I learn of Lewis, the more I am fascinated by the complexity of his mind. He certainly ranks near Leonardo Da Vinci (not related to DiCaprio) who had extreme breadth as opposed to Lewis's focused genius. Lewis's fantasy stories are artfully crafted in a beauty no longer considered by the world. What a shame.

Reflecting on the Character of Business and the Economy

Today we are faced with a disrupted economy having sustained high unemployment numbers. Many of our leaders in industry and government have ideas on how to resolve the issues with wide spread opinions. Some believe in near revolutionary change and others believe in continuing the status quo.  Some in leadership believe the government operates outside of business principles while others believe conventional business principles apply wholly to government. Regardless, real people are affected and the people are responsible to engender a solution for the common good. This an open discussion that looks at one interesting model and traditional thinking given the change imposed on the world around us. This is intended to be thought provoking by presenting views that often are overlooked or missed in the demogoguery. Whether there is merit and if what has been presented is good or not is for you to determine. 

This post was originally posted in December 2010. I have updated the post to reflect the current circumstances as of April 2012 then again during April 2013.

The Transitioning World

The world has made transitions from a theological pride to a secular nationalistic pride for over the course of 2000 years. History records the transition for Israel to secular governance during the time of David. Other transitions are occurring right up to modern times. For example, a 1950's mass movement demanded national self-determination for the Bengali people. The politician-preacher Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani championed the demand for national self-determination and the demand that the state distance itself from Islam. Bhashani led the transition to secular politics in the decades that preceded the emergence of Bangladesh.

Today, the world is in transitioning once more. This time towards an economic pride as evidenced by regionalization efforts ongoing throughout the world such as the European Union, EU, and others in Africa (ECOWAS), South America (UNASUR), and the Western Pacific (APEC). Keeping in step, the region currently known as North America is undergoing several major transitions. The first major transition is a movement away from national sovereignty towards a regional center of economic influence under the auspices of the North American Free Trade Agreement, NAFTA. The second major transition is the form of governance that will be over newly formed NAFTA region. Some form of governance needs to emerge since all the participating national identities are consumed in the larger organization and newer identity. Will that be a Islamic Caliphate, a Progressive ideology, or will a constitutional form of Government prevail.  The final major transition is the character of the economy within the NAFTA region. In this discussion, I want to focus a little on the regionalization effort and more on the character of the economy as well as on the character of business.

The movement towards a regional center of economic influence is evidenced by the NAFTA treaty coupled with the rapid infusion of foreign nationals effectively dissolving the international borders between the participating nations; Canada, The United States, and Mexico. NAFTA, as a treaty, originated from the Montreal Economic Treaty during the Reagan years in order to raise up the wage in Mexico. In 1992, U.S. political leadership converted NAFTA to a new political system in order to advance a regional center of economic influence. Henry Kissinger commented on the passage of NAFTA during 1992, as a regionalization effort, that “...is not a conventional trade agreement, but the architecture of a new international system [of goverment]" (Henry Kissinger Los Angeles Times, 1993). Since that time, the political leadership has been expediting this transition as anxious ideologues leap at the opportunity to advance their ideology that may have the effect of superceding the US Constitution. The construction of NAFTA superhighway, Figure 1, if not intended, has the effect of increasing the freedom of movement throughout the region for Mexican and Canadian nationals. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, if not intended, has had the effect  to quickly stabilize immigrants in homes. Likewise, the ability to vote, obtain a driver license and healthcare are instruments that, if not intended, have the effect to stabilize U.S. immigrants more quickly than the traditional course of three generations. The passage of nationalized healthcare on March 21, 2010 brought the region closer to a regional healthcare system as Canada and Mexico are already on socialized healthcare. 

Figure 1: NAFTA Superhighway Map.  Source: NASCO

The regional phenomenon extends beyond geo-political systems to other systems. For example, power companies have been consolidating and regionalizing power systems. The same has occurred with the phone companies, and now health care is consoldating under the nationalized healthcare system. We observe companies like Duke-Progressive Power consolidating control of the American SouthEast power distribution.  Kaiser-Permamente has consolidated healthcare control of the American West. The phone companies have gained regional control such as Bell South. Even the grocery industry is regionalizing with Von's in the SouthWestern US and Publix in the SouthEastern US.  These regionalized centers of supply point control cross state lines. Thus, states rights are challenged as power shifts to interstate trade and control of the federal government. This  regionalization of supply points will continue to increase and dissolve state sovereignty.

Whether this regionalization is deliberate or natural course of a systematic pattern, the advancement an economic center of influence and dissolve national and state sovereignty is clearly emerging as an inevitable future for the North American region. Such regionalization has tremendous impacts on industry, commerce, and individual lives.

The Free Market Capitalism and Business

The character of the economy in the emerging regional center of economic influence is an underpinning of the governmental form. Briefly, socialized and Marxist's governance is reliant upon the notion of social justice or the use of governmental methods to redistribute wealth to those deemed less fortunate by the aristocracy. A competitive model is Ayn Rand's worldview detailed in her works "Atlas Shrugged". This model is a separation between economics and government similar to the separation of Church and State. Rand's model is ultimately a Godless society focused on economic pride or gain. The character of the economy in a Democracy is free market capitalism. In the free market economy industry and business redistribute wealth based on value-added or created value. The free market is considered natural because when freed of all regulations and other constraints such as taxation the free market character persists. While this discussion uses the term free market most societies impose some degree of controls and constraints on the market. Thus, a free market, in practical terms, is considered one with minimal controls and constraints. The free markets existed long before modern complex economies emerged out of feudal Europe. Unregulated markets operated over 2000 years ago throughout the Middle East, Greek, and Roman Empires.  The largest Roman seaport and marketplace was locate in Pozzuoli, Italy called the Serapeum, Image 1. (note: The term Serapeum is  actually a religious temple. The Italian Government officially recognizes the site as such. Scholars and the locals acknowledge the site as an ancient marketplace.)

Image 1:  The Serapeum Ruins, Pozzuoli, Italy 

Photo taken by JT Bogden, February 2008

The efficiencies in a free market are also considered to be natural as opposed to human induced efficiency efforts when an inefficiency is perceived by the aristocracy and/or government in a command economy. For example, anti-trust lawsuits and regulations have often been touted as supportive of competition and the free market. However, the application of anti-trust lawsuits has typically emerged out of power struggles between Governmental enforcement of regulations and industry compliance. During the 1970's the U.S. Congress was instituting many environmental and labor laws that dramatically affected industry. Industry reacted sternly using  economic influences to apply pressure to Governmental leadership in efforts to change the direction of the legislation. Governmental leadership fearing industry had become too powerful sought to marginalize the influence by breaking up large corporations using anti-trust lawsuits. Some analyst tout that the computer revolution was actually delayed until 1985 because of anti-trust lawsuits during the 1970's. Henry Novell of Novell Systems was employed at Bell labs when the anti-trust lawsuits stopped AT&T from entering the computer networking market during the 1970's and forced the breakup of Bell Systems forming Lucent in place of Bell Labs. Novell left and formed Novell Systems networking computers about 7 years later. "Antitrust policy over the last 25 years can claim substantial achievements. First, the stated terms of the debate have shifted to consumer welfare and efficiency, and away from vague and easily misused goals such as dispersion of political and economic power," (Bittlingmayer 2002, p 52).  Regardless, of the reasons or outcomes the point is that, in this case, governmental efforts at improving competitive efficiencies was tainted with political bias and may have never achieved the efficiencies sought. The efficiencies were observed later as an outcome of deregulation efforts during the 1980's in a return to more free markets. Such deregulation lead to competitive forces in the airline industry, telecommunications, and other industries.

One Business Model to Consider

Counter to popular thought, the free market model of business, Figure 2, is not one of a bottom line but instead one that is a zero sum in the long term for business. The bottom line, Profit = Revenue - Cost from the income statement and resulting business ratios, has its place metering efficiencies during the short term. Businesses are usually started and operated in order to support a lifestyle for the owner and their family based on the value-created in the business. In the end, the business is sold putting cash in the pockets of humans upon sale or liquidation. Thus again, the business is a vehicle to put purchasing power into the pockets of people in order to give levity to their lives. The business is a zero sum in the long term and redistributes wealth based on created value. That being said, free market business is actually all about the well being of people and is based on their productivity or ability to do good.

Figure 2: Free Market Business Model 

Its Really All About the People

There is an ole adage that circulated on the state of our lives remarking that at least we got jobs and can put bread on the table. When we made more we were willing on our own accord to be charitable, to give from the heart. In a Democracy and free market, individuals are compelled through a social conscience as opposed to a social justice to be charitable with excess. Charity is usually driven by one's worldview. However, America has been struggling with its identity as the forces of multi-culturism are reflected in the society.

I want to reflect on the classic movie, "Its a Wonderful Life". Jimmy Stewart had a social conscience helping people not only get by but also achieve their dreams. In time, that same charity flowed back to Jimmy Stewart after, through misfortune, his bank came up short on its receipts. In the recent biographical story of James Braddock, "Cinderella Man", Braddock sought to put bread and butter on the table during the 1930's remarking that he returned to boxing, his job, to fight for his family endearing the hearts of millions. In both these instances, it was a social conscience and productive work that overcame adversity in peoples lives.

Reference:

Bittlingmayer, G. (2002). The antitrust emperor’s clothes. Regulation.Resourced fromhttp://www.cato.org/pubs/regulation/regv25n3/v25n3-11.pdf