Could The Columbia, S.C. “Famously hot” Slogan be Hurting the Local Economy?
By: Mr. Ashley Brooks, Busy Bee Lawn Care & Sprinkler Repair
By: Mr. Ashley Brooks, Busy Bee Lawn Care & Sprinkler Repair
Columbia has been described as oppressively hot, stifling, sweltering, muggy, sultry, and just plain hot. Yes, Columbia South Carolina is the armpit of the South; it’s quite difficult to be productive outside as it is…so why did the powers that be vote for the current “Famously Hot” slogan? This moniker is not only stifling to the economy as an end result, but along the way it is making for bad morale, management problems; it offends would be vacationers…why would anyone want to stay here if the negative impression that they already have of Columbia is verified with this slogan? We’re still trying to live down the whole “armpit of The South” thing! I believe that dealing with the heat is a mindset and that if we do not think about it, have to think about it or be perpetually reminded of it we can be more productive and make it through the day without it being such a bain to our existence. As a blue collar business owner here in The Midlands, among The Midlands’ hundreds of companies who make their living out in the “non air conditioned” world, I for one vote we change this slogan to help our economy and to improve morale overall.
Complaining about the heat (as I, having been sucked into the media spin of it all myself, have caught myself doing, albeit jokingly, and just recently discovered the inherent problems therein) creates several problems and translates into a loss of revenue from the top down. I think we all can grasp the idea that if, in the minds of our peers and co-workers, the heat condition is perpetually portrayed in such a negative way, then production is going to decrease, revenue is going to continue to decrease, and we’re going to end up as a purely consumerist society where no one actually produces anything tangible be it labor with an outcome, a valuable product or a worthwhile service. Production verifiably decreases either outwardly, psychologically, or from peer to peer and ultimately take away motivation and drive. That throttling back of production of our extremely crucial blue collar industry (which is the backbone of Columbia’s economy) in this, our only productive 8 months out of the year (the other 4 plus are spent either preparing for a holiday, enjoying the holiday, or flat doing nothing productive at all), will trickle down negatively throughout our entire economy from the guy who mows your yard to the guy who sells you an insurance policy; everyone is affected. If the blue collar workers are no longer inclined to “just do it” or “acclimate” to the condition because the media has stifled their enthusiasm and appreciation of gainful employment, then their purchasing power will decrease as a result of lack of income or future income increases, the seller of the goods that they purchase will suffer due to the reduction of revenue, the building owner who rents the seller’s store to him would suffer, the tax system that we are born into and will die paying towards that supports our infrastructure will suffer, and on and on. Do slogan voters understand that perception can affect the economy?
We’re not getting any hotter, it’s the same as it has always been. Hurricanes are not getting more prevalent, El Nino is here one year and gone the next (it’s a cycle, we know this!), and the polar bears in Alaska are not dying as a result of anything short of God’s Will and the natural progression of the environment.
Tangent? Who cares! Its my blog get over it =)
For information sake, maybe it would help the cause somehow to mention that there exist several ways of dealing with the heat that those who are native to our fine City may or may not be familiar with. One way to beat the heat is by wearing a wide brimmed hat. Ironically, a company named Columbia Sportswear, makes such a hat which not only keeps the blazing sun from frying your ears and crown, but also seemingly brings the temperature down and shades your eyes. This hat alone buys you 20% more up time in the heat and glare (20% more up time for you means 20% more up time for your employer and 20% more uptime with the economy down from there). Some people may not consider such a garment to be the most “hip” thing in the world to wear but hey, we’re talking about survival here, not a fashion show. Another vulnerable body part that has to be protected lest you develop melanoma in your golden years is your forearms. Under Armor, Nike, etc make a long sleeve, lycra/spandex shirt that will cover your arms and shoulders to the equivalent of over 100 spf I’m sure, wick away moisture from you or retain moisture if you like (wet it with a hose!) to cool you, while not weighing but a couple of ounces and not weighing you down like cotton. The shirt buys you another significant percentage of up time. And finally, the 2 golden rules that we all hear which are so true: Hydrate and take a breather, either of which equate to a happier, healthier, more productive day for everybody.
So why would anyone want to come to Columbia with that sort of slogan hanging over our heads? We work so hard to tout our Vista Nightlife, good times at Lake Murray, the great residential developments like Lake Carolina, Forest Acres, Lexington…but we have this slogan that reminds the world how oppressively hot we are? If the word “hot” in the slogan was perceived as “trendy” then that would be a slightly different matter but it isn’t…hot is hot, as in temperature and its having an effect on our pocketbooks where travelers and vacationers are concerned. Think it is not affecting our coastal neighbors? Think again…Myrtle Beach isn’t exactly flourishing right now.
So being that it is not my nature to present a problem without some sort of solution, I have some suggestions for a new slogan that the powers that be should consider. How about “The heart of those Smiling Faces Beautiful Places” or “A Great Place to work and Raise a Family”? If our target market is Vista Goers how about let’s call a spade a spade and just say “The Vista from here is Great!”?
So tomorrow, like every day, the media will persist with their proclamation of “record highs” and, while in their air conditioning, joke about the oppressive condition of it all and we’ll all, ever so subliminally remember those statements and wonder why we’re having increasingly miserable summers. When did these “records” begin anyway? Did they start this temperature record keeping perhaps as far back as the late 1800’s? Maybe? Folks 100 or 200 years of “records” is not even a drop in the bucket where the timeline of humanity is concerned. We’re not heading into a hellish 120 degree every single day summer, we’re not on the brink of Armageddon, we’re not getting away from the fact that The Summers in Columbia are The Summers in Columbia, and we as human know-it-alls don’t know jack about meteorology or where this is all going in the grand scheme of things. What we do know is that we have a negative slogan that needs to be changed. It’s just my 2 cents…don’t hate the pot stirrer here…maybe something productive will come out of my rant for the betterment of the community. In the meantime, I’m going to keep on smiling, keep my head down, and try my best every day to be one of the driving forces of our economy even if it’s in a relatively small way.
