Do we really need two different kinds of Tang?

This week, I spent a number of hours listening to an interview with John H. Nicholson. He was a City Councilman in Upland and Head Engineer at Sunkist, among other things. His interview spanned across three double sided tapes. I was impressed by the wealth of knowledge that he had about the area, the Sunkist Corporation, and about his own community. Nicholson’s remarks on the sheer number of goods that Sunkist produced got me thinking about how rapidly changes in how we produce and consume things occur. The corporation made almost 700 different products for their customers. Nicholson also mentioned that some products were very alike, he pointed to Tang as an example, sharing that the only difference might be the addition between it and a similar product might be the addition of more sugar. Sometimes it is hard to think about how and when some of the big social and economic changes in the world took place– there were not always this many options at the grocery store! But this interview highlighted a point in which specific industrial changes in the Sunkist corporation occurred in this region. As we begin to think about the future we want to leave for future generations, it is important to understand at which point changes occurred in our past.This can give us tools to be able to reflect on the alternatives for the future. This week I asked myself “Do we really need two different kinds of Tang?”