The Irrational Forces II: A Brief Story of Inappropriateness Or How Charlie Sheen Has Perverted My Nana

My sister is getting married, she is the first person, in my family, to get married since the mid seventies, so it is a very exciting time. It was at my sister's bridal shower, that the irrational forces made themselves apparent. However, before I get into the grim set of events that have left me disturbed, it is necessary to give a brief description of my Nana and the role she has played in my life.

My Nana is devout Irish Catholic, it was on her insistence that I be brought up as such. She has since been a beacon of propriety and social respect. She is a staunch conservative, she even has picture of Ronald Regan in her china hutch. Upon her arrival we little ones were forced to be on our best behavior, meaning no booger or fart jokes, or lewd gestures toward our genitalia. We have since been forced to keep certain aspect of our lives a secret, so as not to upset her image of us. These are some of the things that made me recoil in shock and disgust upon the news of what had transpired at my sister's bridal shower.

At said bridal shower, my Nana was asking my mother about the condition of my brother and I. My mother told my Nana that my brother was fine, as he is unemployed and does not go to school; what could be wrong with that? My mother than told my Nana that I was very stressed out, because of school and work. It is here where the irrational forces reared their sporadic heads. My Nana, who is 80 years young, then said: "He needs sex!" At this point my mother had come face to face with the irrational forces, and was inclined to react. She asked my Nana why she felt it was appropriate to say such a thing, to which my Nana replied "They say it on Two and a Half Men all the time."

Now we can see the way the irrational forces, and Charlie Sheen have corrupted my Nana and destroyed the humble sweet image that she had worked so hard to achieve. How it was that the irrational forces had made this show, wherein they discuss the necessity of sexual activity, appealing to my Nana is beyond me. Further, how it was that the irrational forces had made my Nana feel that it was appropriate to say such things to my mother, and my mother to tell this story to me, is beyond me.

The simple fact that my Nana would feel it necessary to comment on my sexual activity, or lack thereof, is revolting. Further, the idea that sex would help me is wrong, sex would only compound my problems. As it would force me into a feeling of shame and self-loathing that has been brought about by my catholic upbringing, which my Nana had forced on me since birth. Furthering the proof that these irrational forces will not stop plaguing humanity.

Deconstructing "Human Resources"

As capitalism is conquering the world, it is also seeping into our language, in ways that are almost undetectable. This is something we must be aware of, as our language should be kept seperate from that which dominates and exploits us. Language is another milieu that capitalism wants to monopolize, as this will allow it to control the means of communication and possible revolution. I was made aware of capitalism's penetration into our language, through the term "human resources". Human Resources is a department of every business, it handles payment and is the bridge between the employee's personal life and professional life. However, we are not interested in the functions of the department as they appear to the employee, we are interested in the term and how it applies to the capitalist agenda. The best way to do this is to deconstruct each term on its own.

First, then, we shall examine the term "Human", as it is understood in relation to the business world. Here this term stands for that which the department is directed toward, namely humans, people, the employees. It is trying to understand the human aspects of employment. In this way the employees are looked at abstractly, not as people, but as that which needs to be managed and controlled. It is human resources that handles applications, terminations, and the dreaded performance evaluations. It would seem as if applying the term "human", to a business department, is a mask for the actual function of the department. At face value the department seems to be beneficial to the employee; it ensures that the employee gets their compensation, but in reality it just manages and controls the employee.

The other term, "Resources", is much more simple to deconstruct, but it will make apparent the capitalist manipulation of the term. If we think of any other thing that is designated as a resource, such as energy, food, lumber etc., we will understand the context that the employees are held. It is the employees that are the resources which "human resources" seeks to control. Resources are things that are managed. Essentially, we look at resources as that which is expendable, up to a certain point. For example, the amount of people a company can keep employed, until the company loses money, is something human resources handles. It is as if humans are something to be harvested (or employed) and utilized, in the same way that lumber or energy is. Humans are literally just another resource.

The tragedy is that we, the employed, are oblivious to this manipulation of language. In every place of business, there is a department that specializes in the manipulation of a living resource, namely the employed. It was unapparent to the employed because capitalism is seeping into all aspects of our lives. We must resist this kind of language abuse because once we are treated as manipulated resources, we will begin to see others as resources for our own manipulation, thereby creating a society of sociopathic citizens, breeding paranoia in the form of a constant cost benefit analysis of every situation and person that the citizens come across.