There’s an old Buddhist saying that goes, "You need clothes to keep you warm, food to nourish you, and a roof to keep you dry. The rest is just desire." Buddhists believe that desire is the root of all suffering. If you desire something and don’t get it, you are disappointed. If you desire something and get it, the euphoria is fleeting and you move on to desiring something else, thus continuing the cycle.
Consumerism creates desire while at the same time fails to fully satisfy it. We buy one thing, especially the case with electronics, and it’s almost immediately obsolete. Manufacturers are constantly working on products to replace the ones we haven’t even bought yet. They know we are going to buy what they are currently advertising. They feed off our desire for their products and we feed off their ability to create those products. They keep telling us that we need these things; they don’t tell us why we need these things, just that we can’t live without them. Or so they’ve convinced us.
They bombard us with advertising that now shows up on the very products they sell us (smart phones, especially) to the point that we don’t even realize we need or want something until it is put before us. English writer G.K. Chesterton (1874-1936) said “There are two ways to get enough: one is to continue to accumulate more and more. The other is to desire less.” But when is enough, enough?
The problem with buying all these goods is that something new is always replacing something old, which means we are always discarding something. According to an EPA estimate, Americans create roughly 251 million tons (228 million metric tons) of garbage per year [source: EPA]. That number is only going to go up. In spite of telling us how to properly dispose of the batteries and other toxic components, many of these items end up in landfills, potentially adding dangerous chemicals to the environment.
“Everything that can be invented has been invented.”
Charles H. Duell, Commissioner, U.S. patent office, 1899
Okay, it turns out Charlie never said that. But think about this: what if everything we ever truly needed to survive had already been invented? Not wanting for anything more, would we then be living rewarding, more satisfying lives? We wouldn't have to work for things we didn’t need, only the basic necessities of clothing, food and a roof over our heads. Imagine how much happier we would all be.
Pulled Out of a Hat on Facebook
As a parent, I agree that the non-stop marketing of unnecessary crap to our children is absurd. Whenever my youngest daughter sees an infomercial, she automatically launches a campaign to convince me how much we "need" this product. My older children demand the latest version of everything to keep up with their friends, but have little incentive to take care of an expensive product since it will be outdated shortly and a newer version available for purchase.
ReplyDeleteAs much as I dislike the barrage of advertising, parents have the right (and obligation) to say no to unnecessary purchases and limiting the "wants" of our children. I got to (periodically) drive my father's 10 year old Honda to high school; our neighbor bought their 16 year old a Cadillac Escalade. A 9 year old playmate has 3 Nintendo DS's (each a newer version), a Wii, and an X-box 360 - really? What are we teaching our children? And we wonder why so many of us are in debt?
Catherine, thanks for taking up my "rampant consumerism" idea! I love the way you address this. Here's a lyric from Sheryl Crowe's "Soak up the Sun" that I try to remember now and then: "It's not having what you want / It's wanting what you got." Hmmm. Makes you think.
ReplyDeleteI'm in tune with Kelley who talks about kids and consumerism. I can relate! Every day they come up with new ways to spend money, based on advertisements or what their friends are doing. The latest kick now is feathers in the hair. I have FINALLY started giving them a regular allowance so that they can see how many weeks it will take them to save up for these faddish feathers. I just refuse to pay outright for a salon treatment that is so unnecessary. Grrr.
Oh, P.S. I'm singing the Sam Cooke song in my head now, "Desire Me." I love Sam Cooke!
ReplyDelete@MsCroker: I was wondering if anyone was going to pick up on the Sam Cooke reference!
ReplyDeleteWeren't feathers in the hair something they did in the 80s? By the time your kids have the money to pay for them, the fad could be over!
From Bryan- Yes, it was me. I was a few beers deep at that time and didnt know how it worked/didnt want to figure it out, and still dont want to so I am going to select anonymous again :-)
ReplyDeleteFeathers in the hair haven't made it to Virginia yet but I expect it will move East shortly. I'm still recovering from the Silly Bands epidemic...
ReplyDelete