
A New Yorker Walks into a San Francisco Start Up… - adrusi
https://medium.com/@jenniferdaniel/a-new-yorker-walks-into-a-san-francisco-start-up-6926651b8254
======
ojbyrne
Tufte's article about the space shuttle:

[http://www.edwardtufte.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-
msg?msg_id=0...](http://www.edwardtufte.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-
msg?msg_id=0001yB)

is the canonical example of how design could have changed the world.

~~~
eevilspock
Respectfully, you totally missed her point.

~~~
ojbyrne
I don't think I did. As far as I can tell, amongst the complaints about rent
and sexism, this is the point:

"This debate is an attempt to assuage the guilt we already have and know we
have because we’re here doing THIS instead of something truly meaningful."

So I posted that there is at least 1 example where design could have done
something truly meaningful, if people had actually accepted the proposition
that "design can change the world."

~~~
eevilspock
Seriously, you are stuck in a literal read of what is a purely rhetorical
statement. She isn't really saying that all design is pointless. She's arguing
against the underlying motivation for the debate, and the cognitive dissonance
that underlies that, and the moral failings of her industry as a whole. And
because you are not in her field and not her audience, you don't realize what
she actually means by the all-caps "THIS". She's not talking about design in
principle.

 _" Are we having a debate or a therapy session?"_

 _" Designers will do anything to convince themselves we are not in a service
industry. Why are we so desperate to make ourselves feel better? Because we
feel GUILTY and we have to reconcile what we do professionally with the world
we live in. We WANT to save the world so we repeat our daily affirmations on
our way to work…"_

 _" This debate is an attempt to assuage the guilt we already have and know we
have because we’re here doing THIS instead of something truly meaningful._"

So what is "THIS"? Most designers in today's consumerist culture work on
things that are morally empty, have little to do with making the world a
better place. So they make themselves feel better by convincing themselves
that they are in fact saving the world through design. I have a college friend
who studies art and is very counter culture. But because of the limited job
market, she works in the marketing department at Avon. I know that inside she
hates it.

The internet technology analogy would be how most people who work on ad
supported websites, especially those who work on the ad tech itself, in their
gut feel wrong about pushing ads on people, but then put a positive spin on it
by telling themselves, their coworkers and friends that it enables people who
can't afford their content or service to use it for free. Cognitive
dissonance. I know this personally as long ago I led teams that worked on the
systems that inserted ads in the Disney, ESPN and ABC websites and into their
internet and iPad video streams. Not a single person was proud of their job,
though it was plain as day everyone tried their best to pretend to be. "daily
affirmations"

She calls out the dishonesty of taking advantage of privilege while critiquing
the injustice and unfairness of the world:

 _" …on our way to yoga…"_

 _" We drink fancy coffee and eat free gummy bears and free catered dinners
meanwhile the median cost of rent in SF is $4,300 dollars. Is idealism truly
that desperate here that we equally applaud free wifi in Africa and a $1,500
smart oven that “smart” preheats your soylent to save you a little extra time
for cross-fit and netflix?"_

Then she goes in for the kill:

" _Change the world? Design can’t even change the design industry. Let’s talk
about something meaningful and actionable like why we have six dudes and one
lady on stage. We don’t need a debate about design’s place in the world — we
need a reckoning._ "

So yes, you _totally_ missed what she was saying. If you STILL don't believe
me, note that she upvoted this reply to her post:
[https://medium.com/designer-fund/choose-meaningful-work-
fb37...](https://medium.com/designer-fund/choose-meaningful-work-
fb376d275d57).

------
cafard
Design will not save the world, but a lighter touch with caps lock (and enter
key) might make it prettier.

