Janine R. Wedel, "Confidence Men and Their Flex Lives"
Questions for Making Connections within the Reading:
1. On the basis of Janine Wedel’s “Confidence Men and Their Flex Lives,” write a job description for a flexian. What kinds of education are probably required, and what kinds of employment? How does a flexian differ from an ordinary professional, business person, academic specialist, or government bureaucrat? Consider the crucial importance of good communication skills. Why are these skills essential for a flexian’s success, and what are the key arenas in which the flexian must communicate? How does a person get started on the road to becoming a flexian, and how do young, prospective flexians begin to create the flexnets within which they operate? In what ways are Barry McCaffrey and Steven Kelman perfect embodiments of the flexian type?
2. One reason that the flexians are hard to recognize, let alone keep track of, is that they move so readily across the boundaries that normally divide government and the public good from business and personal enrichment. A major theme of Wedel’s discussion is the persistence of this “ambiguity” in the world of the flexians. What different forms of ambiguity does Wedel describe, and how does each enable the flexians to circumvent public oversight, ethical rules, and, on occasion, even laws? How do “truthiness” and “spin” work to protect flexians from scrutiny? In what ways do the values of a free society, which encourage openness and mobility, allow them to operate out of view?
3. How can we explain the rise of the flexians? Attributing their rise to simple “selfishness” is clearly unsatisfactory because selfishness has been, more or less, a constant throughout human history. What special aspects of social life today have made the flexian modality so appealing and effective? For example, one key element of the flexian life is group loyalty. According to Wedel, “Flex nets, like military elites and religious cults, induce obligation and loyalty through shared ideals and ordeals. Their goals as a group are ideological and political, as well as to varying degrees financial.” Why would group loyalty be so important, and also financial advancement? Do flex nets help to compensate for the failure of other institutions which once made people feel secure—neighborhoods, communities, and governments? How might the security that flexnets provide come at the expense of society as a whole?
Questions for Writing:
1. Some readers might object strenuously to Wedel’s account of flexians. These readers might argue that the flexians are actually creative and ingenious—in effect, social entrepreneurs. If you agree with this characterization, write a response to Wedel’s argument in which you engage with her major points. Look in particular at what she says about their “interlocking roles.” Are such interlocking roles an unavoidable consequence of life in a complex society, with many different sectors and layers? Is it possible that in a complex world, existing institutions—such as government and the press—are just too slow and isolated to act effectively?
2. Flexians first made their appearance in the old Soviet Bloc that included Eastern Europe and Russia. “Ironically,” Wedel writes, “the formerly communist world and the maneuverings that flowed from its transition away from communism proved an ideal training ground” for new flexians in Western Europe and the U.S. How does the decline of traditional institutions—government, business, the media, and the university—promote the rise of the flexians? In what ways might that rise be understood as a response to social disintegration, and in what ways do flexians actively contribute to the decay? What effect might their actions have on the credibility of the social order as a whole?
Questions for Making Connections Between Readings:
1. In “An Army of One: Me,” Jean Twenge offers an “anatomy” of the Boomers and their offspring, Generation Me. About Generation Me, to which she herself belongs, Twenge makes these observations:
GenMe’s focus on the needs of the individual is not necessarily self-absorbed or isolationist; instead, it’s a way of moving through the world beholden to few social rules and with the unshakable belief that you’re important. . . .We simply take it for granted that we should all feel good about ourselves, we are all special, and we all deserve to follow our dreams. . . . Jason, 25, relates how he went through some tough times and decided he needed to change things in his life. His new motto was “Do what’s best for Jason.”
In what sense does the worldview of GenMe support the behavior typical of flexians? Consider in particular GenMe’s emphasis on individual fulfillment and disregard for “social rules.” Are flexians really just the most successful of the Boomers and their children? As you develop your argument, try to find passages that connect with Twenge’s observations above.
2. In “A Life of Its Own,” Michael Specter introduces his readers to leading figures in the field of “synthetic biology.” These figures include Jay Keasling, Tim Knight, and Craig Venter. Even though they are all respected in the world of science, these three and many others in the field also have a financial stake in the research they are conducting, and all three have formed private companies. Do the leading figures whom Specter celebrates qualify as flexians, and if so, what special dangers might arises from their interlocking roles and potentially conflicting loyalties? In what ways might the dangers of bioengineering necessitate greater transparency and more intensive regulation? Are flexians the best people to decide the genetic future of life on earth?
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