San Diego Reader

dear matt:

How did a dozen red roses get to be "the one"? What's wrong with seven yellow dandelions?

-- matt, the net

Nothing. It's just that the rose industry had a better marketing team than the dandelion industry. Now a dozen red ones is a virtual necessity if you want to be taken seriously. It's gotten to be a tradition. Tradition: the perfect ending to a perfect marketing campaign. Why is a diamond "the one"? No reason. No reason that stands up to examination. Marketing, marketing, marketing. How dare you question it, matt? There's an order to the world of consumerism, and it's heavily based on image. If you start messing with the system, well, who knows where it will end.