The bottling of 'Aussie values'.

I'm writing my Msc thesis on foreign ownership of Australian resource companies. The Qantas furore provides a colourful backdrop. I'd love to have a 10,000 word rant about iconic companies and their rarefied status (along the lines of this article), but alas must weave my story into the tedious continuum of IPE theory - yawn.

However, I think this is an interesting question - to what degree do we allow firms to sell us an idealised version of ourselves for profit. Qantas says very little about the mechanics of flying in its advertisements. You'd think 'Qantas' was a touring children's choir, a beach holiday broker, or a government department devoted to building national self-love. They do very well out of us too. So long as our superannuation investments are the primary beneficiaries, Qantas' profit is not a bad thing. But in the hands of private equity the profit will be split by the few. The jobs are important, but should we still love Qantas?

There is a shampoo brand in the UK called "Aussie." It is owned by multi-national Procter& Gamble who sold US$29 billion of beauty and health products globally in 2006. Aussie Hair products are produced in the UK and sport a kangaroo on their logo. There is NO link to Australia beyond an attempt to capture 'Aussie values' along these vacuous lines "there's more to life than hair, but its a good start - The Aussie philosophy." In the US the slogan is "add some roo to your do." The Aussie hair website is blatant, linking their Aussie hair products to Australian cuisine, travel, lifestyle etc. Check this out:

"Think of Australia and beautiful beaches, hunky surfers and hot beach babes instantly springs to mind, but we assure you - Australia is much much more! Aussie is inspired by the vibrancy and free spirit of Australia, from the incredible natural ingredients we use in our products to the everyday vitality of the Aussie way of life."

Does anyone else find such a rip-off objectionable? Perhaps the fact that Proctor&Gamble has an office in Australia excuses this. Is it any different to Qantas? It's not like they're saying bad things about us, or our 'values'. I just find it slightly creepy that our character as a nation can literally be bottled for profit - with zero benefit to our country. Who do you tell? The WTO? Ban Ki-Moon?