By Shane Rodgers
The Ricky Gervais movie The Invention of Lying is set in a society where nobody can lie.
One of my favourite scenes is when Gervais walks past an advertising billboard that says: “Pepsi – When they don’t have Coke”.
It’s funny because we all know it’s a choice. You have to be either a Coke or a Pepsi person.
Just like you have to be a dog or a cat person.
At school we had to be either a Holden or a Falcon car person. Debates over which was better were fierce, even though they were pretty much the same engines and shape.
Personally, I like Pepsi Max (not very often – I know it’s not healthy). But most of the time when I go to a restaurant, they stock either Coke or Pepsi. Seldom both.
So then I have to make a choice between a Coke restaurant or a Pepsi restaurant, irrespective of the food.
It seems that our society enjoys picking sides. In politics there is a big left and right divide, even though most of us probably are a little left and a little right.
We are, as Donny and Marie Osmond used to sing, a little bit country and a little bit rock and roll.
In the US in every Presidential election there is a starting point of red “Coke” states (Republican) and blue “Pepsi” states (Democrat) and the elections seem to be decided by a few swinging farmers in states with 350 people.
In the climate change debate, everyone is shuffled into either the “climate change is destroying the planet” camp or the “climate change is fraud” camp.
Yet most of us probably believe that, regardless of your philosophical view, it makes sense to have a less polluted planet and a sustainable rather than depleting society.
And that segways to things like mining. You are expected to be either pro-mining or anti-mining even though anyone with average intelligence knows our whole society is built off products that are mined.
It is also bleeding obvious that fossil fuels will phase out over time. The only issue is the pace of change and controlling the economic and social collateral damage that could result.
In childcare and early learning there is a growing wedge being placed between for-profit and not-for-profit operators based on a weird notion that we have to pick one or the other.
The reality is there are good and not-so-good operators in both parts of the sector and even not-for-profits need to be run on commercial lines to maintain quality and capital needs.
Frankly parents will just pick the best one for their children and competition is a strong driver of quality.
In international politics, the world is rapidly segregating into tighter pseudo philosophical blocs. We seem to be moving towards a world where you need to pick east bloc or west bloc.
This is looking like a world dangerously divided. Yet when you meet and talk to people from any of these countries they tend to share the same basic needs and aspirations.
They all want a quality life for their families, to educate their children, to live in peace and to retire with dignity. Ultimately, regardless of our bloc, there is more that unites people that divides them.
Why don’t we start there?
My point is, why can’t we have Pepsi and Coke? Most of the time I don’t need or want to pick sides. Because mostly everybody is half right and some days I just feel like a Coke, even though I’m a Pepsi man.
Which brings me to a famous 2001 Pepsi advertisement. Coke was boasting that year that it was outselling Pepsi four to one.
So Pepsi released an ad that just had a young boy walking to a vending machine. He put in his money for a Coke, and then another lot of money for a second Coke. Then he stood on the two Coke cans so he could reach the higher button to get a Pepsi.
He walked away with his Pepsi, leaving the two Coke cans behind.
Sometimes all is not what it seems. And suddenly I’m craving a Dr Pepper.
Shane Rodgers is the author of Worknado – Reminaging the way you work to live and Tall People Don’t Jump – The curious behaviour of human beings.
