Mike Daisey is a monologuist in the tradition of Spalding Gray. He is also an avid fan and user of Apple products. But in this monologue, Daisey describes his trip to Shenzhen, China, where the vast majority of the world’s consumer electronics are assembled, and the appalling working conditions he found there. (Think of it as The Jungle for the Information Age.) Apple isn’t the only company with operations in Shenzhen, and perhaps other companies have had employees commit suicide by pitching themselves off the factory roof. (Management’s solution was to put up a fence around the perimeter of the roof.) But Daisey believed that Jobs (unlike other CEOs, owing to his iconic presence and sweeping influence) was singularly placed to make a difference, to effect a change. Sadly, no such change was forthcoming.

If you are interested, you can read the following articles in the Washington Post: Jane Horwitz’s informational discussion of Daisey’s monologue; a review of the performance by theater critic Peter Marks; and a reflection on the topic by technology writer Rob Pegaro.

Joan Boemmel
Perry Hall, MD