Welcome to The Pleasuredome?

By Anders Drejer

In the common Age of Automation

Where Man might eventually work 10–20 hours a week

Man will have to confront himself with The True Spiritual Problems of Living

(Lyrics of a Frankie Goes to Hollywood song, origins unknown to this author)

She should stop and think

This author is a self-confessed old-school man. The latter cannot be denied. Hence, the most interesting phenomenon in my world is … women. One at a time — as old-school. It is, therefore, interesting that the obscure quote from a song by the Mighty “Frankie Goes to Hollywood” of 1980s fame refers to “Man” … That I know is old-school, but my very modern teens refer to people, regardless of gender, as “persons”.

So, what happened to Women?

Relax, you might say. Well, according to my friend and the inventor of “Sheconomy”, Benja, about 85% of decisions on purchases for the household are today made by women. At least in the Western world. In my small household, it is closer to 100% … When small female Greta Thunberg in 2019 caught the world’s attention and relaunched the idea of Sustainability into the public limelight, my daughters started turning off the lights everywhere in our home. Sometimes when their aging father was in the room! They actually changed behaviour. And it stuck.

My youngest came to me after her — much celebrated — Nonfirmation (we are atheists at “Chez Anders II”) and demanded to use some of the considerable money given as gifts to buy forest to reduce our combined CO2 footprint on an already strained earth. Or Gaia as some say. Gaia is Mother Earth by the way, if you did not know.

As a responsible father, I denied her request. By saying that her money should be used for Fun & Games, but that I would spend some money that I could have used to celebrate my 50 years birthday on buying us some forest for her conscience.

I had already then conceived the idea of “Guaranteed Quilt Wash (Global)”, a company dedicated to making solutions available to discerning customers around to globe to reduce their carbon footprint. There are already millions of solutions out there, they just need to get to you. One of them will be The Victoria Forrest in Africa soon enough.

Alas, a surprise-party at my 50 years birthday will descend into the honeycomb of History as I, apparently, have friends that will move Heaven and Earth for me. But that is an entirely different matter.

Two tribes?

The message? Perhaps the message is for you to make love your goal. Not for some abstract people, but the people you live and work with. Stop trying to (pretend to) know everything. I am not Cowboy Number One. Neither are you.

Listen up. Ask your children how they feel about the future. Their answers may surprise you.

Personally, I am greatly surprised by the power of women. But if you look to Africa, for instance, my experience is that Women create the greatest positive changes there. By making businesses and initiatives in their local environment. That shows the way to a future.

In nature, the Alpha Wolf is most often female, it is said. Wonder why?

Perhaps it is time for us to unite as a Humanity? I do not care if we now have 29 (or 42 or whatever) genders in the post-modern age. What I care about now is that we unite and collaborate to rethink the future.

The key? Business. As it is, the market is the most powerful change mechanism we have. Bar one. A great Danish Poet, whom you do not know, translated Darwin’s “Origin of Man” and downgraded the term “sexual selection” to “choice of mating”. The key message, however, was still clear — the choice of mating in nature as with people is always made by the female. As it should be.

For Heaven’s Sake?

Leave them behind, those clouds of trouble. Frankie says. One glory day, we will get together in the world. And Women certainly will rule the world in the future. And for the better if you ask me. You are a manager. You have spoken to a female customer today? Or even recently?

Things change. The world changes. Your customers and employees will change. Live with it. The alternative is worse.

Life goes on,

Day after Day

(Frankie Goes to Hollywood)