Spectacular Times THE SPECTACLE A Skeleton Key Pocketbook SeriesPART ONE Once upon a time Once wpa atime there wes a revolutionary working, clate mevement - Firek organized | by Maré and Gakuen in eRe lath caakbury ik has over bhe years, boon diverted , hijacked and defeated, im Ehe West by the bourgeoisie, m che Fast by Ehe Bolsheviks. Copikaliim rules. Inthe West “free enterprise” big buciners and Eha multi- pottousls — grant corporations wath budgets equal Eo those of medium tired vations. > Dn the Eask the monopolies dream - one big Company — Souiek Union Abel. * Aad the workers? = borak to death in a ‘peoples. borracks or legless ww. Saneyland.——_—_—___—_—— A 4dit-blgh glass fibre statue the town that has every tage nsioging of John Lennon, called Working a billion dollars | ise Hero, was put on shew at Business a year, 12,000) prostitutes 1 and the slte of the Cavern Club in morechurchesperhes@than anywhere | werner Street, Liverpool, I else, | yesterday. { Wik Wks modern Lechnology — mass media, ropich Eransport systems, computert, Gronomie Plans eke, — copitolism cam now control the very eondikioné of extskenca. The World we see is mt Ehe real world, ib it m sihe of the weeld we are condikisaed ke see. "They sey. “They, are filasaina, - “They are building Life itself has become a show contemplated bby am oudience. That audience ic the proletoriat. Reality is now cemething | we look al and think abouk, not something we Guperieuce. Capitalism has made all social relation- | ships commodity relationshipse Tha very structure of our daily lives is basedon commodity relationships, Society ia coneuned as a whole = the ensemble ef social relationships and structures is the central product of the commodity sconomye Carol Ehrlich Capitalism and the state are genuine sociel structures, but like most matters of social structure they have also been internalised. In that sense, we are the state. It exists in our minds, and we produce it in our day-to-day existence. The bamalities of everyday Life, the ueaninglessness of most work, our profound isolation from othera, and our being treated ( and treating others) as objects - these are not by- products of capitalian: they are key mecheniams of social controle Howard Je Bhrlich VETAT CEST CHACUN DENOUSThe Spectacle The Spectacle is net a collection of images but a secial relation among .people mediated by inages....The Spectacle in general, as the concrete inversion of life, is the autonomous movement of the non-living.....the diar has lied to himself. Guy Debord Ta the real world, whet porrble ts datermined only by our retources and the Limits of our imagination . But upon Ehis real world o Eokally foke world - He Spectacle - has been conekrocked. The Spectasle ie a congkructed realiEy. I wonder if we could contrivers:some magnificent mth that would in itself cerry conviction to our whele community. Flato Republic 3.41 Talking about life today is like talking about rope in the house of a hanged mane Raoul Vaneigemt — a nme . * Ansther diplomat evtting 4] "Whek i possible | mented = "TF you tzke aside hes come Eo mean | he fact that there is martial | s ac law here, press . tention withoot trial and 4 What is possibl < ban on politieal activity, then fe busin rights situation ts | jwithin Ehe gecteku not toa bad.” a. ee oF Ehe Speckscle , MEM, OFTEN APFLAU Seo The old Eermine logy of revolutionary ideology, delinek when Lhe Eechaslegy ot the disposal of modern capitalism ries undreamt of , has proved hopelessly inadequate . Like o& Fundamentalist preacher Erging to come ko berms wi kh space keavel, we are enughe Ergin be make che new conditions fri Fhe old onalysis. “To attempt a description of these new conditions Heart Lefebvre saggested “the Spectacle” as on ad hoc berm — a term later defined ond analysedauy Debord ss 5 stall boys qi by Gey Debord (see , leFt) in “The Soneé y 1 of the Spectacle" and Roeul Vomergem in “the Tokality Far Wide” amd a Revolubion of Everydou hile”. vomremnunan | Ln this Speckscular Society we ore offered the imoqe ond neder the realiky . Tes oa dream Lor more properly lo night mare) come Erue, Te does nok satis ly - TF conmak satisfy - Te offers only Ehe dream of satisfaction, From time to time the dream even includes the illusion of bein awake.Our life is divided between ‘work’ time oma ‘Gree Eime. But we sleep on, buying hock im our “Feee” ime whet we Produced in our ‘work’ cime . Real life ig elsewhere. Culture as Spectacle covers everything; we are born into it, go to school in it, work and relax and relate to other people in it. Even when we rebel ageinst its the rebellion is often defined by the Spectacle. Carol BhriictSo great was the demand for last weak's rip-off fashions ihat we hawa another super offer for you tacay, exalusly aly dasiantd for Sun readers at a price you can't aflard ta miss.People go through huge portions of their livas without much consciousness of whet is immediately arownd them. The media have convinced them that whet's around them is unimportant. And thet's why they're lonely. You see it in their faces. First the Little flicker of searching, end then they lock at you, you're just a kind ef object. You don't count. You're not on T.V. McAllen’s patice force in stalled a video-camera im ins headquarters’ interrogation room in the early 1970s. Tha purpose, ironically, was to protect officers against tru brutality charges. In twofisted Texas, how: ever, with its long history of and-Mexican oppression. the camera became a ‘training toal* that Aspiees Brim carn petition, Night after night, officers tthtted to watch playbacks of themselves beat i. up drunks and other ellcged Jawbreakers. Communication 2 In one tape, five officers take turns at attacking an wn resisting, handcuffed young man. He i [ited by pants, belt and hair, then dropped facedown on the cement. floor, His arms are wrenched until he screams. His head is smushed time after time into aiable top. Amid valleys of abscenity, he is punched, slapped and kicked as tre lies pleading for mercy, The Speetoole makes spectators of us all, Eves che ‘exkros* wank Eo be spectators of ther own ackrons - os it reality con omly be confirmed by...“7 Seeing Som eEhing done rather Twa people sitre arrested: one for re- sistingan offices of thelaw, anew of- fence under wetion 10ef the 1979 Crim- Ital Low Act;the other for oh struction, ANew Standord photographer who was held, apparently far obsirac: don, was released after otleer cembers of the press hadi protested to the police | ond threatened to put thelr cameras down until he was freed—a tactic that has been adapted recently in France when press phowgeaphers put down thait cameras im protest at police behaviour. E all the events in hemap history, the one (0 attract the largest audience wat not a great political occasion, nor a special celebration of some complex achievement in the acts or sciences, but a simple ballgame - 9 is claimed that more thar 1,000 mil- lion people tuned in te the World Cup Fonal bebveen Argentina and Halland. This means that something like one- quarter of the entire world population stopped whatever they were doing and focused their attention on a small patch of grass in South America where 22 brightly clad figures were kicking 2 ball about in a frenzy of effort and concentration. The very essence of the apectacle is that the spectator should remain | passively receptive soccer match. Ona Juneday in 1978, it | towards the whole design, however frenzied he is in the pursuit of a particular spece teacular myth or fashion, dexander CockburnSuch alebal ‘communikies’ as Ehig — uaik ed only im chet pessive Contemp Nation. af the Spectacle - ore Fraudulent. They ore crowds of strangers - olienpbed From almost everything, and everyene. “They cheer Cogether, bon together, cry together —'k is the solidority af & shit-seered humanity. But alvenakion is good for business. Alienation multiplies needs (because YE can sabishy mone of them.) Whichis why we've developeda revolutionary new concept -One plus One. Oneside a complete alburn— Plus a bonus — One side a blank tape, “fhat's the point of robbery when thereta nothing worth stealing?" Adam and the AntsCreating new needs stimulates productivity. flut the Spectacles immense Produckiiit has become its central problem. Enormous energy is now devobed bo Che preFitable waste of resources — armaments, sdverising, builk-in abselescence , etc, etc, te provide adequate food, 1th and housing for been estimated at & haze sum of Hew Internationalist All this conspires to conceal from the people the fack thet the materia | preconditions for social liberation, olresdy exist.Recuperation To survive , the Spectocle must have Secial canErel. Lt can recuperate o potentially threakening stkuakton by shifbing ground , creaking, darling alternatives — or by embracing the threal , making “E safe ond then selling tk back tous, BIG MONEY FROM THE BURGLARY BOOM! Sark in, on via Hecurtey Maret Inetaling MAR TEMGUANG ITB sockets yatesHere is haba cores: Te con alto recuperate o demond by giving as (olmect) what we asked far —ad tauteum, “I remenbar how shocked I was, the first time T read one of your big circulation newspapers.a...tfime, divorce, anecdotes, twaddle, anything te keep them distracted, anything te prevent thom from thinking? Algous Huxley Just connect 6 the aerial socket of any colour or black and white donvestic TY receiver and to your Post Office installed jack socket and you are into the Cccting world of PRESTEL, Vie simple push button use you ane able to view a staggering 170,000 pages of wp bo the Minute information on many services and utilities, order goods fron ecarnpanies, even play games!! All this and mare without ever leaving your armchair!Exposure to this flood of information may serve to nareotise rather then te energise the average reeder or listeners n tz peculiar respect, mass communications r be included among the most respectatle and efficient of social nercotics, ney be so fully affective es to keep the addict from recognizing his own moledy. Eoul F.lagarsfeld fabert |. Lerton isae Té we get bored wth all thts maberialigo..... A String Box when you find them Tr ts Counssy House Price eh wai and only fer 5 +d cxtak asolid £9.95 ‘_. leek of mahoganyon the That endless search fee Island of Muck in the Inner useful and eigimal presents’ — Hebrides. Eacnane is Here isone: that a ncally fended, then polished, with uneuual. Thys handsome Joulng care and atiention by 2 sme man devored whiser and proud of histesules. bs nanan approximately 6” tall by 413" wide. Pamageand Packing é?.10 Tea Bag Holder Country House Price £9.95 awa. the Spectacle Encourages Us Eo possess expervences hearefully structured, of courte ) MONG HS attractions, the Great | British Alternative Holiday Catalogue i offering an adventure vacgtion near Winchester, Among the features af the holiday j i | ing Noztstyle prison comp established | camp ore: arrival £y coltle-truck late at e Rat vou, immigration to South Africa will 4, The huge complex near Col- ogne presents fun, adventure, and romance lo everyone. A. wild west town, a bubsleigh Tun, & monorail. a pirates” Bal- Jeon und a haunted castle — all this ond much. much mare ina chan and charming alifiosgnere. | magne, barbed wire compounds, search | fights, worchtowers, up fo SO guards in | SS uniforms, the stamping of the guests" | forefeca’s vith serial numbers, and a week= end of forced labour, dowsing with Aoses, | and deprivation of seep. Saturday is Phantasialand Ds Our tur includes em: trance Wi the park, anu all rides are frec!! Only those who have already hon to this German jewel will kmevor whist awails the visitor here — itcan only be described as an ex- Sptional experienee, and shoukl not be confused with the usual immitatians, whether at home or abroad. Time simply fies by in @ magical way, “ ‘Meurape pennve an now youve gek all Ehak ouk of your system aveus Th 's buck 1 Catogre | for some shopping | in the renowned Schilder- | gusse. scrnaon bs yours for | oie seme 5 onl | round the shops. 1 Sap | 20d all those sh . Foe Douce | | guilt disappear fq pent blues 1 Mel tte! dtm EME Chang (ott | ; 18 Darude of shoo oh hops | sens owe co get down ko khe cesl busmess of leisure Lime — contuming. Urbanism The Spectacle Fille ast onla time but z 3 =“The contrel of cur environment has been Koken from us and pal ko Ehe hands of tpecialisks = archibects , plonning commrbt eet, developers, etc. Their abjeck is Fo orgemise the eavironmonk nto sire manageable structures — offeee” com pleres 1 fackory Fount , civic coukros , Sapermarkets hypermarkcets, “country” parks. The result ie that huge “Tes not just £ land are now your house ar€as oa on. ir : they are Eotally devoted bomork | atter...it's anh proFit with no regard » your whole For the genuine needs oF a eee BFE the peaple Irving khere. e = ve a “Belford di dn'tjust happen, Tiwas set up specifically to anspor GauSRNREaIE the ideal environment for growth. Sea SL staaes reee ———————___ The Borongh has ae? carefully nurtured industrial estates where advance factories are ready for occupation. A skilled ww workforce with firm roors im hard work awaits you, 5X And a superb communications network spreads branches throughout the UK and abroad, workbettet. Shopping centre. . rf One disappoint ment is Ehot the local population stem bo make no aktempt af all Co look ke the people im Ehe archikect’s drawings. Shopping ja Chavet Street i pleasant —it must be one of the country's showpore stretches oF pedertrianization and if it were. noe foe the gateitout dowsliness of the Beitich shopper You'd be forgiven far wbinking yourcel ire High Street, Europe. DAVID SANDS: ‘Shop Freperty™ The 500 sites are regarded as having the potential of a Flix - borough disaster. The chemical Ta the mistaken Plant at Flixborough on Humber- . the to third parties, d Privately, some executive offi- seem to Ehink cials acknowledge their fear that, they should hove were the list te he pubblicis residents meéar the sites wo press for the installations to be . closed down. They are also cos Sowe am in Ehe cerned that there would be a public demand for other smaller bev fites to be regarded as majoc| @ckiwkies of local hazards—and the executive does v not have enough inspectors to mdustry, cope,Rogid kransit systems allow che workforce bo be drawn Prom o wider area. Lt alse allows For centralisation of praductian, standordisation , monopely and conkeel, Buk no matter how rapid Ehece beast systems are -me never seem bo catch up with ourselves, "Tn the Clobal Village everything seems to be happening et the other end of towne" Frederic Raphael A curious effeck of Ehe development of rapid tranit susbems is that as bhe distance between communities closes, the dittance bekween individuals within, Ehece communities widens . "I've got friends all over the world. I don't know anyone down this street - but I've wot friends all over the world." Tony Hanceck "The Radio Ham"The physica avision of pur erviranment Serves Eo reinforce the separation of human cebivities. Industrial etkakes, leisure ceatres, Shopping precincts — specific areas ond spect Fic Eines For specific acbisikies, Once Ehe Cime and place appropriate Ee o partreular ackiviky bas been eskabliched , we eon sabely be allowed some say im how chat time oad spece 1 consumed. Such "parkizi pabion” just gives us o. greater Sey im che canckruckion of the world of oor own alvenotion, The sub-division of spoce. 18 just the Concrete manifestation of what has alresdy happened Eo Ewe. The divisions of Most of “x | bime ond space make wb Catier.., to remforce the values of the Society of the Spectacle. Amather book chat provoked the wrath of Mrs Gabler's committees hag included a sya athetie discussion of Rebin ood, The Texas ladies had aboot as much ayeiparky for Rabin ac the Sherif af Netting. ham. They viewed bis thieving on behalf of the poor as “an attack on marality.” Lromieatly, the First side elfeck of Urbanism is the disiakeqrat tan of those values. “wargame” Was conducted by the Department of Health and Social Security a year ago om the basis of an interruption 10 gil benefit payments. How long would it be, the ame's central question xan, tiore momeyless people became desperate and Tan- sacked their local shops? The answer, whieh Lond Séames will no doubt be con sidering in hig bunker, wag three weeks,e-RCOBBER i to be continued......