Thursday, February 5, 2009

Coffee Snobbery

Recently I've seen in the news, as I'm sure most people have, that Starbucks has been laying off a lot of employees. I find this distressing, since some of the worst news in a recession is about people losing their jobs. The only thing I can think of right now that bothers me more is how many people have lost their homes. I know that eventually the economy is going to recover one way or another, and in the end many people will have learned some valuable lessons about frugality and the importance of family and friends, and I hope about not placing too much importance on material things.

Nevertheless, if it weren't for the job losses, I wouldn't mind if Starbucks went out of existence completely. I know that Starbucks is often the whipping boy for various causes, especially those which complain about how large franchises have driven small business out of existence in many sectors of our economy. That doesn't bother me too much. Nor am I one of those people who don't like Starbucks' coffee because it's too strong. I like coffee that has a strong flavor and enough caffeine to help me stay awake. I don't have a problem with Starbucks' prices; they're a specialty chain that sells a luxury item. They can charge what the market will bear.

The thing that bothers me is that many people I know who frequent Starbucks (and they know who they are) seem to think that having a latte or a cappucino makes them better than other people. If you drink Starbucks coffee simply because you like it, then this doesn't apply to you. If you're one of those people who think that having something from Starbucks is something to brag about, and that it makes you better than people who drink Folgers, I have some news for you. It doesn't make you better. It makes you worse. It makes you a pretentious snob who looks down on other people because of the kind of coffee you drink. That just means you're a jerk.

Some years ago I was a student in Italy. Before I went there I had never heard of these various Italian coffee concoctions. I learned about them quickly though, and began to like them over a short time. It wasn't what I was used to, but it was good, and you could get it on any street corner for a small price. This was true about the prices even in Rome, which is an expensive city.

What I didn't notice at the time but I did remember later is that in Italy, everybody drinks this stuff. I mean everybody. Office workers, construction workers, teachers, students, rich people, poor people, and so on all drink a caffè e latte or cappucino in the morning and perhaps an espresso in the afternoon. They don't think it makes them better than other people. It's just coffee to them, prepared in various ways according to what they feel like having, sort of like how a lot of people here have cream or sugar in their coffee while others don't. Some Italians do occasionally order a caffè americano. Some of those people seem to think that makes them better than those around them, which I find hilariously ironic.

Just for the record, if you look down on other people because of something you've actually accomplished, you're still a jerk and a snob. Maybe you should look down on all those coffee snobs.

Hans Bricker