I Love Capitalism. God Help Me, I Love It So.

So much on the internet is free. Well, actually, so much everywhere is free. Why pay for anything? Well, Seth Godin, a human I adore, offers seven product features that humans will pay for, when they could otherwise get the product for free. Below is a marriage of his ideas with my certain je ne sais quoi. (In other words, none—not one—of these ideas are mine.)

· Immediacy -- Sooner or later you can find a free copy of whatever you want, but having it delivered to your inbox, the moment you want it, is something humans will pay for. Remember that immediacy is a relative term. Those who are uncomfortable waiting will pay handsomely to get it now.

· Personalization -- Having something personalized means you’ve had a conversation with a creator or an artist or a producer. You have a relationship. When dear Kathleen (the woman who helps me) arranges for my bath towels to be monogrammed, she contacts the embroiderer. It is a relationship that produces personalization. Humans will pay dearly for that.

· Interpretation – Puppies are free; obedience school requires tuition. Certain things become valuable to us only through support and guidance.

· Authenticity – Some dogs think of themselves as purebreds, but they are Bargain Bin until the appropriate papers are produced.

· Accessibility –Many humans will be happy to pay others to tend their "possessions." Have you noticed that iTunes backs everything up, pays the creators, and delivers to humans their desires? Netflix does the same thing. Most of this material is available free somewhere, if humans want to find it, tend it, back it up, and organize it. Or, in exchange for a few dollars a month, others can take care of it for you.

· Embodiment – Even as a K9, I can appreciate the difference between words on a computer screen, and words printed on luxurious paper and bound in hardback. It smells and sounds and feels so good. I understand. Or how about live music, with actual real human bodies manipulating musical instruments? The music is free; the bodily performance expensive.

· Patronage – I consider myself a patron of the arts. As my readers know, dear Kathleen (the woman who helps me) delivers me regularly to the symphony, to the theater, to galleries, and of course to those ubiquitous-but-necessary opening night receptions. This is a part of my artistic bent—I honor it; I breathe into it. It is my small, humble offering to the artists and musicians who add such beauty to my life.
(A tip of the hat to Seth Godin http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2008/02/better-than-fre.html, who in turn tips his hat to Kevin Kelly. This is beginning to look like the finale to “A Chorus Line”)