| Once any trend has been established, the obvious | | | | Unlike many other nationally-known government |
| question is: how long will it last? FDNY Sweatshirts | | | | organizations, they're not explicitly partisan: it would |
| are no exception. Most observers are desperately | | | | be hard to misunderstand someone who lionized the |
| trying to figure out how long the trend will last, since | | | | marines, for example, but the FDNY can be |
| there's nothing worse than jumping in just at the | | | | reasonably claimed by either side. Its popularity as a |
| peak. Meanwhile, others are looking for what | | | | middle ground makes it valuable to people who have |
| sub-trends and supplanting trends will arise: after | | | | partisan views, but are tired of critiquing their |
| FDNY-branded sweatshirts, will there be more | | | | ideological opponents. |
| explicitly patriotic clothes? Will people rush back to | | | | For someone involved in marketing FDNY |
| irony? Will the outcome be entirely unpredictable? | | | | sweatshirts, the answer is clear: it's too hard to |
| It's hard to say for sure, but I suspect that FDNY | | | | predict what kind of similar trend will arise to replace |
| sweatshirts are part of a long-term trend in a new | | | | them, but it's pretty likely that the replacement won't |
| direction. It's harder and harder for people to stay | | | | abandon the ideals espoused by FDNY sweatshirts. |
| cynical all the time -- thanks to increasingly partisan | | | | From this perspective, it's clear that the best course |
| politics, we spend lots of time discussing significant | | | | is to continue marketing FDNY sweatshirts. Although |
| issues in trivial ways. FDNY sweatshirts give people a | | | | one can't be certain, it's quite likely that they will |
| way to recuse themselves from the petty | | | | remain popular for some time. If they don't stay |
| arguments, but still demonstrate their affection for | | | | popular, it's quite hard to predict what will replace |
| the outcome. And since avoiding partisanship is so | | | | them, and only a little easier to predict what won't. |
| popular, even years after 9/11, it's fair to conclude | | | | Unlike many fashion items, FDNY sweatshirt adoption |
| that even if FDNY sweatshirts don't remain common, | | | | wasn't driven by an arbitrary desire to differentiate |
| their successors will be in a similar spirit. | | | | people. Quite the opposite: it was driven by a need |
| But will the next big trend in a similar vein be an | | | | to identify all of us as fundamentally the same -- to |
| homage to similar groups? It's hard to say. Aside | | | | say that even bitterly divided, partisan people can |
| from NYPD clothes, FDNY sweatshirts seem to be an | | | | recognize a hero when they see one, and can agree |
| ideal balance between patriotism and partisanship. | | | | to disagree (at least some of the time). |