It's the economy, stupid

I heard someone on the radio today criticize the shortsightedness of this oft repeated James Carville quip. The criticism was that it's not the economy, but the culture.

Economy is just the quantification of culture, if you ask me. We are always trying to measure things and the economy is great for that -- we assign numbers to everything. However, if you've ever tried to do any sort of accounting, it's nearly impossible to actually come to an accurate, watertight answer. Have you ever prepared your taxes or balanced your own budget? Real life isn't cut into exact pieces.

It's similar to the environment and social spectrum. It always confuses me when people conceptualize the environment as a place you go to, rather than the place you are (plus a few other places). The environment and society are impossible to disconnect. So why do we think of them as separate? I think it's the numbers game again. We can measure emissions and waste. It's harder to measure happiness (although, that's being done too).

Being a bit of a data nerd, I'm inclined to like the numbers, the measurable version. However, as an anthropologist and a human in general, I know the world is more complex than our measuring systems and sometimes we have to use stories and experience to gain understanding.