How Fat the Western World? Some Thoughts on Consumerism.
When I used to teach, one of my favorite lessons was about needs and wants. It is not a lesson that was part of the school curriculum, but one that I felt was necessary for life. And so after drafting the lesson and getting it approved, it became part of the regular school year for 4th and 5th grade. I would start by asking the students did they know the difference between wanting something and needing it, and by a show of hands, almost always, they said that they did. Then I would start the lesson. I would ask a succession of questions that went like this:
How many of you think you need air, food, shelter, clothing.
And there was the big question. Because, while we need clothing, defining what were the clothes that we need was not so simple. From what items, to how much, to brand, very few of my students, could tell me exactly when it an item of clothing became a want from a need. Did they need Nike sneakers? A North Face Jacket? Why not a no name jacket? It was just beyond them.
Apparently, they also needed cell phones, computers, Game boys, Wii, I think you get the point.Some also apparently needed to go out to eat, go to the movies, have new cars, and go on vacation I could go on.
When I was growing up, my parents owned a house. It was modest and it took a huge hunk of their income to buy it. The clothes came from discount stores, and were limited. No designer names. We didnt go out to eat, not even McDonalds, because it was cheaper to make a home cooked meal. There were no family vacations and at the holidays we got one gift. We were made to understand that there was no money tree in the back yard. That this was the best that they could do. They could give us what was an actual need.
Western society has seem to have forgotten the difference between needs and wants. Not only do we have luxuries like cell phones, we feel the need to constantly upgrade them. There is a rush on new Ipads, even by those who have one already. We dont own cars; we lease them, which makes for endless debt. We have to have the largest TV that we can charge for. The fact that none of this is a need seems to elude us. All we see is that everyone else seems to have the same need. This is being played out all across the western world. We have become the ultimate consumers, and the price that we pay is that we are fat with personal debt, and we have passed the disease on to our children, who still only want or should I say, need more.
In developing nations, they are more like we were post WWII. The immerging middle class is beginning to want but it is no where to the extent of where we are. We say buy American, but in truth, we really dont want to. We already can afford what we want, how could we afford it, if it was made in America? We rely on these immerging economies for our wants. They have workers who still dream of a better life, and so, are willing to work for a heck of a lot less then we are, to attain a future for their children. They still understand the difference between a need and a want. And so consumerism hasnt become part of their lives yet.
We have come to a cross roads in our global economy. We Western nations have become used to a level of living that can no longer be sustained. We all want, we all need, but our expectations far outweigh our actual standard of living. And so, we live for the moment, not seeing that we are going down the path of our own destruction, and our own making, our consumerism making us fat on debt. How fat the Western world? Obese.
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Hummm... Thought there would be some opinions on this....
It came to me after a conversation I had with my Uncle in England. He blames consumerism partly for our current conditions. He made a good case to me and I thought I would share it with you.
Morbidly obese, actually.
I like the Ipad reference. Those and smart phones are usually the first things that come to mind for me. I know people with huge phone bills and pretty but pricey smart phones that simply do not need them. These are the same folks that piss and moan when they have to pay for some maintenance to their car or their home...well, uh....do the math and ditch the pricey wants and that won't be a problem or at least be less of one. Someone whom Peter and I know well, resorted to borrowing money and recently had to carry water from the neighbor's house just to get by, BUT...they still had the pricey phone and new books on the Kindle. Stupid if you ask me.
Shelly,
First of all, thanks for finding this article.
Your story is so spot on. I find it amazing that a person would borrow water in order to keep their smart phone... wait.. if a smart phone is owned by a dummy, does it make it a dumb phone? Anywho...
The choices that we are making as a society is driven not by smart economic sense but by wants. Back in the 50's and 60's part of home ec, was that you had to create a household budget... maybe that is something that we are missing from our curriculum?
Had my eye on it for a while. Just haven't been able to sit down and compose a thought or two. ; )
It absolutely is something we are missing. Not that many kids nowadays would retain the teaching, but it still needs to be taught. If we could get through to at least a few kids, then maybe the whole of western society wouldn't fall completely down the crapper. Baby steps, ya know?
Gotta agree. And you would be amazed. These kids would "get it" if their parents actually didn't behave in this way. Kids model what they see at home.
But no harm if our schools started to teach personal finance. It can start as simple as my lesson on wants and needs. Even that is hard for them to get.... the adults I mean, LOL!
Funny you should say that. We have a channel here in NY callAntennaTV. It shows all the old TV shows from the 50's through the 80's. It also shows the commercials of the period. There was always "new stuff" to buy, even back then, but people had the common sense to buy within their means. The only big difference that I can see, and hit me as I watched these shows.. was that credit cards were just coming out. People had notintegratedthem into their lives yet (at least in the 50s-60s). Credit cards now are a curse on the middle class. It gives the illusion that you can buy something today, and worry about it tomorrow. That is no way to live. Sometimes, you have to have the self control to say no.
What your ex does seems like utter madness to me. It's almost junkie like behavior but the drug isconsumerism. No one needs that stuff..... they want it. And that is why I taught it at school. I do think that it's part of an education and a lesson that they can use in the future, hopefully!
I see a few posters have alluded to this, but I'll just give my own take, from my angle.
Consumerism is partly responsible for the financial mess that the world is in. I'll take you another step further, and state that the moral fiber of the world is fraying due to consumerism.
Consumerism has trained us to believe that we can "have it all" and right now. We shouldn't buy the generic, because we might be embarrassed by a "friend". We don't have to save for it, because we can borrow to have it right now. We don't need to have a long view on anything, because we need to scratch that itch right now. In summary, there's nothing to stop us from having the top of the line, without saving for it, and - you guessed it - right now. That's why 29% of our homes are under water. That's why there's been record bankruptcy filings, with next year sure to eclipse this record year. That's why, as a population, our retirement accounts are grossly underfunded.
Which leads me to my next point, about the decaying moral fiber of our world. What is the opposite of consumerism, you ask? The answer, quite plainly, is volunteerism. Consumerism strives for the most, at the lowest price. Volunteerism asks, "What can I do to make it easier and better for my community?" There are many "G-d fearing" people out there who won't join a house of worship because they don't want to "pay to pray". They won't join because they can't see the "value" in a membership. They can't justify it, because they have no sense of community or volunteerism.Not so very long ago, people would tithe their earnings. That's 10% of their earnings going to charity. From the most recent information I could find, the IRS calculates that the average deduction taken forcharitable contribution is 1.7% of gross income, and they estimate that 1/3(!!!!) of that is, ahem, overestimated. I come in around 4-5% every year, and in discussion with friends, I get shit for "throwing my money away".
We are becoming increasingly selfish and self-serving, with no end in sight. We get whatever we ask for.
Why not ask for something else?
Yup
I would also suggest that the house of worship for many is the church of Consumerism. Our religion, passion and worship are easy to discover. What do we value as worthy of our attention, time, energy and sacrifice...that is where we will find our heart as well.
Great article and thanks!
:~)
Jonathan,
Wonderful response. I will even up theante. It also goes part in parcel with lack of civility. There just is no respect anymore for anything. No please and thank you at the check out, no holding open of doors, no getting up for pregnant woman... I could go on. As I watch Burns and Allen every night, I am reminded of these things that made life so much nicer. Now I'm not saying that the good old days were perfect, but there was sense of community that no longerexists.
As for charity, I would have to agree. Matt and I give about the same amount as you do, and we have friends who think that we are mad also. But I am glad to have friends who feel the same way. That there is a social responsibility. But I have to say that the ones who give are equal in number, the secular ones to the "god fearing" ones. I think you do, what you see at home. But most do view it as a waste of money.
But I guess that most people have forgotten the Kennedy Speech.
Dear Perrie: Great and thought provoking article.
What a wonderful teacher you were.
What a blessing for your students to be in the presence of such an accomplished educator.
Growing up, we too never had designer clothes.
The brand of choice for us carried the label, "Sale".
E.