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The late comedian Norm Macdonald had a special legerdemain that let his jokes pierce through the plotty tendrils of public discourse and remind us of the bottom line. One bit he reprised time and again went roughly like this:
Some grave offense to human dignity comes to light, say, a murder. Macdonald’s friend tells him, “You know, I think the worst part of this whole thing is the hypocrisy of it all.” And Macdonald disagrees.
“You disagree with that?” the friend asks, nonplussed.
Macdonald nods. He says, “I think it’s the murder.”
Murder is, admittedly, an extreme example, but people often cite hypocrisy as the worse part of grave offenses, especially when the guilty party is entangled in public life. In a “damning CNN supercut” last year, HuffPost’s Lee Moran wrote that when President Donald Trump demanded that Attorney General Pam Bondi prosecute his political enemies, he laid “utterly bare” his hypocrisy. I tend to think the damning element is that Trump wanted to prosecute his political enemies.
On Sunday, a guest letter in the Indiana Daily Student argued the real problem with Bloomington’s proposed logo is not whether designers created a product worth the cost, but whether a city needs corporate-esque branding at all. This is an interesting question, I concede, but I disagree that it’s the one we should be asking. I thought the worst problem was the cost.
Bloomington’s city council approved a contract to redesign the city’s logo as part of a broader rebranding initiative that cost $95,000, which puts the bill above $1 per resident — more than that per taxpayer. The branding package the council received in return is full of minimalistic shapes with trite — or, as youths would say, cringe — slogans and inane facts that could have been procured at a much smaller cost. Bloomington’s audience, the package tells us, is “primarily the people who call Bloomington home.” The city’s story is that, here, “potential wakes up.”
I doubt any sum would have been best spent on the city’s branding. This is the kind of project that a thriftier council might have put upon kids. And adults. But mostly children. A citywide design competition would have creatively engaged the arts classrooms across Bloomington — both in elementary schools and at Indiana University — thus connecting citizens to their government. It would have ensured the product that’s supposed to represent Bloomington came from the people whose hearts and imaginations were formed in Bloomington.
The Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce held a logo contest to give a face to its “Showcase Bloomington” festival two years ago. And so that contest showcased Bloomington, indeed.
I grant that less than $2 per taxpayer is not the heftiest burden. However, it could be argued this is emblematic of other, greater cost-saving measures not taken. I shall point out instead that, together, $95,000 is a considerable amount of money to burn. That could pay for nearly eight years of in-state tuition at IU, and left alone, Bloomington’s taxpayers would have spent this amount at local businesses, which do the city’s branding best.
It’s not because of a “B” in a special font that people bring their wallets — and hearts — to Bloomington. It’s because of Curt Cignetti’s football team and the Little 500, as much as some residents of the city resent the university it contains. It’s because alumni want to relive their college years at the eateries that line Kirkwood Avenue when they return, because current students now dine there, especially when the road closes, and because of local enterprises like the Bloomington Community Farmers’ Market.
No design will change those realities. The fact that the proposed logo also looks like a human butt — or so Dave Askins of the B Square Bulletin and many others online say; I don’t see it — is poetic justice to the bottom — pun intended — line of the matter: spending money on a logo was a stinky idea to begin with.
Eric Cannon (he/him) is a junior studying philosophy and political science and currently serves as a member of IU Student Government. His column appears Sundays and Wednesdays. Never miss them or his other opinionated musings on X.
