Billions are spent by corporations to advertise valueless products such as cigarettes and Starbucks. A consumer rebellion of one person might not put a dent in big business, but could do wonders for that individual’s conscience. Because of the marketing process, we have been conditioned into believing that there are certain things that we must have in order to achieve comfort of mind. It could be something as innocent as the softness of toilet paper – that’s not a high end item by any means, and I’m not advocating picking up a pile of corn cobs out in someone’s field, even if they are free. My point is that we don’t think in real (i.e. relative) terms about what we do in the consumer world. If we are modest in our habits, we congratulate ourselves. Consuming is not the problem. The promotion of selfishness through consumerism is the problem. It dulls our minds by diverting thoughts away from others and onto our self. Here’s a little exercise for the next trip out into the world – look at a random individual and ”see” them as a person of worth. What do you feel? *Note of caution – it may bring up disturbing feelings because this is at direct odds with self thinking or unconscious stereotyping.
But I’m Only One Person
What one person CAN do.
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October 30, 2007 at 3:34 am
howlingmadcoyote
Value is intrinsically based on comparison. We start from a baseline and think up or down.
Americans have far fewer actual horrible things to deal with than many other nations, and our horrors are often well hidden. From here, healthy is baseline, and caffeinated vs. non-caffeinated becomes a real and worthy choice.
From what I’ve seen in Iraq, most folks here accept premature aging and mild suffering as a baseline, and blown up vs. not working so hard is their worthy choice.
Short of purposefully INCREASING American suffering, I’m not sure anything can replace character and upbringing to instill a real sense of value in most folks walking around. A puzzle worth poking at, though.
October 30, 2007 at 3:41 am
howlingmadcoyote
Maybe the answer lies in showing what little things we can do that have both “real” and “percieved” values. For instance, I love my Yaris because it makes gas mileage (eco-friendly, lower dependence on foreign oil) affordable (fewer “new” technologies than hybrid), and therefore more appealing to universal human greed.
There are plenty of people who know how to use human nature to sell crap to the lowest common denominator. I’d like to see sensible things get sold to people for reasons other than guilt.
Until you can grow consciences in a petri dish and install them like car parts, it’ll always be easier to sell the phrase “School is cheaper than jail” than it is to sell “Jail should rehabilitate, and not punish.” Following either thought would potentially reduce crime…now which one would actually sell?
November 11, 2007 at 6:08 pm
butimonlyoneperson
I don’rt really think consumerism is going to change in the US. Like it or not, it is what it is and is a product of our national mindset. Now, for myself, I was innoculated against any thought of an “other” person except for a passing twing of “oh, that must be bad for that poor person, group, etc.” Then it was off to “my poor life” as usual. Now, week after week in my Health and Social Inequalities of the African Diaspora class I am seeing how ONE THIRD of the world’s population is infected with treatable TB, and how AIDS is out of control in the Third World. All of these people are basically thought of as not COST EFFECTIVE to treat, and are essentially victims of genocide. I am now mad. I am doing this blogsite as a response to my anger. I am telling others what I have learned. I am presenting a paper to my classmates on what they can do. Even if only one person does something in response, it matters to the person who benefits! And yes, I am putting my money where my mouth is. I know you can’t legislate morality. Globalization won’t work. We are studying that brilliant little work of inequality right now… So, in essence, consumerism was merely a launching pad for a tweek of thinking…