Thursday, April the 1st, 2004
back to: title, date or indexes
Let me begin with a caveat. Reincarnation is not a topic I know much of, so I may be about to write something inaccurate and simple-minded. I am under the impression that those who claim past lives always seem to have been at, or close to, the seat of power. Napoleon's manservant and Cleopatra's handmaiden are popular “phantom memories”, or, if more anonymous, the previous corporeal existence has usually become embroiled in major historical events—a footsoldier at Agincourt, or a spectator, knitting, as the tumbrils rolled through Paris during the French Revolution. No one ever recalls a past life as a simple peasant scrubbling around to eke a few potatoes from the muck, which is what the vast majority of our forebears spent most of their time doing, regional substitutes for potatoes notwithstanding.
Then, when it comes to posited future lives, there is a consensus that one's return is as a non-human. Cats and dogs are popular choices (or aspirations), as are horses and other majestic and elegant beasts. Those lacking self-esteem may bemoan their likely reappearance as a worm, but that's about it. Nobody says, thrillingly, “I think I'll come back as a locust!”, do they?
The point of all this is to pose a question. Is it feasible for someone to be reincarnated as a multinational corporation? Consider the evidence. Exactly twenty eight years ago, on 1st April 1976, the painter Max Ernst died. Onthe very same day (exciting emphasis), Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak formed Apple Computers. Spooky? I think so. Is Apple the first global surrealist company? And if—as seems likely—it is, how does that affect its business operations, its day-to-day running, its mission statements and project schedules and, by all the angels in heaven!, its human resources policies? An in-depth investigation is urgently needed, but I haven't got the time. Perhaps a reader or two might take this up and report back.