Materialism and Consequences
Over the past several centuries first world countries have become rabid shoppers.
Their citizens have let themselves be defined by their physical possessions
rather than their personalities, and the result of this is a glut of overconsumption. The annual “Buy Nothing Day” is a noble yet fruitless purpose of raising awareness of this problem.
The goal of “Buy Nothing Day” is to expose the environmental and ethical
consequences of over-consumption. The goal of “Buy Nothing Day” is to “expose
the environmental and ethical consequences of over-consumption. These very
valid concerns include problems such as pollution, wage slavery, poverty, and
the exploitation and destruction of natural resources. With the huge number of
products bought daily, factories must be built to supply stores. These factories
emit unacceptable levels of pollutants into the atmosphere, bodies of water, and
landfills. These pollutants destroy our environment, and environments art not
purchasable from Wal-Mart. Stores also take advantage of the storm of purchases
to maximize their profits, leading to wage slavery in places such as China and
Bangladesh. Other, poorer nation have their resources: land, labor and capital,
stolen from them for exploitation by the consumer powers. This is the problem
that “Buy Nothing Day” attempts to address. By attempting to raise awareness
about the evils of the capitalist system, “Buy Nothing Day” strikes to the root
of the problem and tries to make its presence felt in the hearts of the
multitude.
Noble purposes aside, one question must be asked about “Buy Nothing Day,”
does it work? The answer, quite sadly, is no. The medium “Buy Nothing Day” works
through is awareness, and in the words of New Paltz High School student Jared
Giangrasso “I’ve never heard of this before.” The organizers of “Buy Nothing
Day” have so far failed to bring the issue to the fore, with unemployment and
the GDP being more important to the average consumer than the adverse effects of
rampant capitalism. Despite the good intentions of the founders, the annual “Buy
Nothing Day” has failed to leave an imprint on the souls of the afflicting
consumers.
“Buy Nothing Day” was created to “expose the environmental and ethical consequences
of overconsumption.” It attempts to combat wage slavery, pollution, and resource
exploitation. Unfortunately, it has so far failed to achieve its goal. However,
the organizers should continue to follow their dreams, so that someday, they
might make their dream a reality.
Over the past several centuries first world countries have become rabid shoppers.
Their citizens have let themselves be defined by their physical possessions
rather than their personalities, and the result of this is a glut of overconsumption. The annual “Buy Nothing Day” is a noble yet fruitless purpose of raising awareness of this problem.
The goal of “Buy Nothing Day” is to expose the environmental and ethical
consequences of over-consumption. The goal of “Buy Nothing Day” is to “expose
the environmental and ethical consequences of over-consumption. These very
valid concerns include problems such as pollution, wage slavery, poverty, and
the exploitation and destruction of natural resources. With the huge number of
products bought daily, factories must be built to supply stores. These factories
emit unacceptable levels of pollutants into the atmosphere, bodies of water, and
landfills. These pollutants destroy our environment, and environments art not
purchasable from Wal-Mart. Stores also take advantage of the storm of purchases
to maximize their profits, leading to wage slavery in places such as China and
Bangladesh. Other, poorer nation have their resources: land, labor and capital,
stolen from them for exploitation by the consumer powers. This is the problem
that “Buy Nothing Day” attempts to address. By attempting to raise awareness
about the evils of the capitalist system, “Buy Nothing Day” strikes to the root
of the problem and tries to make its presence felt in the hearts of the
multitude.
Noble purposes aside, one question must be asked about “Buy Nothing Day,”
does it work? The answer, quite sadly, is no. The medium “Buy Nothing Day” works
through is awareness, and in the words of New Paltz High School student Jared
Giangrasso “I’ve never heard of this before.” The organizers of “Buy Nothing
Day” have so far failed to bring the issue to the fore, with unemployment and
the GDP being more important to the average consumer than the adverse effects of
rampant capitalism. Despite the good intentions of the founders, the annual “Buy
Nothing Day” has failed to leave an imprint on the souls of the afflicting
consumers.
“Buy Nothing Day” was created to “expose the environmental and ethical consequences
of overconsumption.” It attempts to combat wage slavery, pollution, and resource
exploitation. Unfortunately, it has so far failed to achieve its goal. However,
the organizers should continue to follow their dreams, so that someday, they
might make their dream a reality.