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The Story of Stuff: Saving, Spending, Stacking, Sorting, Stuffing, Stocking & Self
We have a holiday tradition of going through the house, basement, garage and shed and looking for items to donate to charity. Each year we can come up with at least six big bags full. We all live in an economy that is dependent on "consumer spending" and consumption. We are at war for resources, our environment is impacted by our overuse and our economy is flailing. Yet we are encouraged to continue to spend, acquire, update and upsize.
It was in this context that I became aware of three things that I wanted to share at this early point in a new year.
The first is an article by Robert Weissman in The Guardian entitled "Selfish Capitalism Is Bad For Our Health". The second is the article and trailer for "The Story of Stuff," which explains the "materials economy" in 20 fun-filled minutes. It features Annie Leonard, cool graphics, humor and a thorough but conversational analysis. The third is a book called "Free Lunch: How the Rich Get Richer," by David Cay Johnston, and you can hear the audio version from NPR at the link.
Here are additional references from Doug Tarnapol at Free Expression which discuss The Story of Stuff and related issues.
The Story of Stuff
Z Mag article
Kent's Bike
M-Pyre
Excerpted information from: Selfish capitalism is bad for our mental health
The growth in relative materialism over the past 20 years is taking a heavy toll on the wellbeing of English-speaking nations (This article appeared January 3, 2008 in The Guardian.)
The author notes a startling increase in child/adult mental illness since the 1970s and has written a book called The Selfish Capitalist - Origins of Affluenza. According to the World Health Organization, mental health has almost doubled in the three decades. In addition, English-speaking nations are twice as likely to suffer mental illness as non-English speaking European cultures. (In other words, mental health problems in America, Britain, Australia, New Zealand and Canada have been double that of Germans, Italians, French, Belgians, Spanish and Dutch, in the last annual period measured.) Why would this be?
He links it to the Reagan/Thatcher type of selfish capitalism where the wealth of the wealthy is increased and the average earner is robbed so that the rich might have more. It is in these countries where more tax burden has been shifted away from the rich. He goes on with British statistics, but the pattern mirrors what we see in US, with the top 1% becoming filthy rich and richer. He cites nations with economic inequality, such as Nigeria and China, but where mental illness is relatively more rare. What is the difference?
He blames not just the economic inequality but the extreme materialism (Affluenza), the placing of a high value on possessions, appearances and fame to meet psychological needs. This goes way beyond survival and stacks up unrealistic aspirations that cannot be fulfilled by consumerism alone. We end up with workaholism, child neglect, anorexia. The author then advocates for a more "unselfish" lifestyle and gives seminars on the subject. (see Selfish Capitalist.
Excerpted information from Free Lunch: How The Rich Get Richer
Here is the blurb:
Investigative reporter David Cay Johnston explores in his new book how in recent years, government subsidies and new regulations have quietly funneled money from the poor and the middle class to the rich and politically connected. Cay Johnston covers tax policy for The New York Times, where he won a Pulitzer Prize for his reporting on that beat. His previous book, Perfectly Legal: The Covert Campaign to Rig Our Tax System to Benefit the Super Rich — and Cheat Everybody Else, was a best seller. The new book, which expands the inquiry beyond tax policy into a whole range of regulatory machinery, is titled Free Lunch: How the Wealthiest Americans Enrich Themselves at Government Expense (and Stick You With the Bill).
But, what I took from the broadcast were a couple of shockers:
1. When you go into a "big box" store, it is likely that the sales tax you pay is going for the operating expenses of the store. There is a government subsidy program where this is allowed, to get the store started in a new area and supposedly attract business (but also runs small businesses out AND makes the customer subsidize the store instead of schools, libraries, fire stations, etc.) If most consumers knew this, they would not only never shop there but would seek action!
2. George Bush got 17 million dollars for doing nothing, really. It had to do with reselling the sports venue he ran along with others, and getting to keep the profits. Listen to the broadcast, for details.
In summary, I hope that we can all unload some of our stress and pressure with a "greener" and more humane philosophy of consumption. Small is Beautiful. (That was the name of aa book from the early period of environmentalism, written in 1973 by E. F. Shumacher, that is worth seeking out - click on the link for more information.)
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Another rich full piece from you! The video is GREAT, and I'll do the reading later. Have to teach now myself.
It does make me want to start purging the house, at the least. Not that that is perceived obsolescence--it is a feng shui nightmare, that's all!
No shopping from us either.
Very good read, DiAnne...
Of course, here in Southern California, the Hollywood celebrity lifestyle encourages even mere mortals to spend as much as possible - on cars (you are what you drive, and I am guilty of this too), on clothes, on gadgets, and so much more.
I still remember my high school years, when my then-cash-strapped parents could only afford LA Gear for me, all my classmates wore Nikes, and everyone made fun of my cheap brands. Or my beat-up Corolla (which I was lucky to even have at all) vs. all the Integras and BMWs of my classmates. Consumerism was taught and encouraged, even in our teenage years.
Much of this had to do with the fact that most of my classmates were immigrants from formerly poor East Asian countries that had suddenly become rich - and because their countries "worked hard" for those riches, they felt entitled to spend as much as they wanted. They functioned a lot like those conservatives who think all liberals are lazy and on welfare.
Again, I am guilty of some of the frivolous spending myself (to partly offset the misery of my teenage years), but I will do my best to cut down from now on. After all, if there is anything those nouveaux-riches East Asian countries teach us, it's SAVINGS, not CONSUMPTION, that drove their financial success.
My son grew up when everyone wanted a "logo" - when he was a kid he always wanted British Knights, then Adidas, then Puma.
Now he will spend for American Apparel but that's because he knows they are not sweatshop-made. I've been glad to see that the kids love to go thrift shopping.
Also there is much less car-consciousness once they have to pay for it themselves - they are more interested in whether it runs & in bussing, doubling up trips, carpooling etc. - because of the cost of gas.
& most of them are having to move in with parents right now because of the bad job market & the condo conversions, which have removed most of the affordable housing from the urban area.
It is amazing, really. Don't tell me we're not in a recession. It was the same when I was a twenty-something and we were heading into the Reagan era where the rich got richer.
My son grew up when everyone wanted a "logo" - when he was a kid he always wanted British Knights, then Adidas, then Puma.
Now he will spend for American Apparel but that's because he knows they are not sweatshop-made. I've been glad to see that the kids love to go thrift shopping.
Also there is much less car-consciousness once they have to pay for it themselves - they are more interested in whether it runs & in bussing, doubling up trips, carpooling etc. - because of the cost of gas.
& most of them are having to move in with parents right now because of the bad job market & the condo conversions, which have removed most of the affordable housing from the urban area.
It is amazing, really. Don't tell me we're not in a recession. It was the same when I was a twenty-something and we were heading into the Reagan era where the rich got richer.
Right now we're saving alot by going to an International grocery and buying rice, all kinds of vegies, hardly any commercial brands! It is at least 50% cheaper. There are sections for all of the Asian populations, plus Mexican, Indian and Russian. So we try alot of new things too.
NMP
You have a good point - even here, the ethnic grocery stores are a good bargain. The mainstream ones (Ralphs, owned by Krogers, and Vons, owned by Safeway) are very pricey, and while they may be unionized, their labor relations are horrible as well.
For now, my family business is doing fine due to all the extra military spending, but continued success will hinge on the federal government making infrastructure improvements as opposed to wasting money on combat (and if the Dems take back the White House, I will look forward to doing more civilian jobs too). If it weren't for an SBA-Navy setaside, I would be starving as well - economy is horrible right now.
Surely, the rich get richer, the rest of us get poorer. Those who can afford to buy luxury items still continue to buy them, more than ever. No wonder BMW keeps pandering to the likes of O'Reilly - the Republican economics are helping them set sales records in the US, even as more pedestrian brands lose sales due to the rest of us getting poorer.
Great thread nmp. Loved the video - I just sent it to my friend who lives in Japan. I got out off the consumer treadmill back in 1992 when I had to move house and was sick of the expense so I purged almost everything I owned - I thought. Then in 1994 when I had to move again, I decided to purge properly. Everything must go! properly. The two hardest things to sell were my books and my piano. Easy to sell - hard to part with. I actually cried when the piano went out the door. But once I was over it and realised that I still have about 20 books that I don't want to live without. And that if I rent furnished I don't have to own or accumulate and I can move house in no time. This place had white goods but nothing else. I've started accumulating now and I don't like it.
Everyone helping me to furnish the place gave me stuff. I now have 5 tables - 1 under the computer and printer; 1 round with drop sides as my extension for stuff I need to look at whilst working; 1 dining table; 1 card table (hiding in a wardrobe) with 2 directors chairs (outside) to use outside; 1 proper outdoor glass-topped cane table. More than enough chairs - 12 in all - various types - and only me to sit on them most of the time.
I've done the purge 3 times now. I'm getting it down to a fine art. And I hate accumulating now. Food and grocery shopping I've mastered. Not having been a driver for 22 years I've had to learn and work out better ways. I phoned a local small family-owned-and-run supermarket. It's a bit more expensive than the giants, but these people deliver for nothing and I don't have to go into the shop. I email an order and they deliver once a fortnight. No impulse buying for me now. If there's something I want - they'll try and get it if they can.
For fresh fruit and vegetables, I get those from the fruit and vegie shed down the road - they farm, harvest and sell. And it really is a shed. I do need a lift there though, but when the weather cools down I can walk. That's if I can find one of those old lady trolleys that the wheels don't fall off after you've done about 20 km with it!
And for flours, cereal, seeds and grains there's the bulk foods/wholefoods Graingrocer. No packaging - I take containers that are weighed before and after filling.
And most of that I do on foot and bus. So, that part of my life is fairly green. I have no idea how I use so much electricity at home - I think it's the very old heater and the very old stove, fridge and washing machine that were made before energy was considered a worry. Made over 20 years ago when things were meant to last a lifetime. They do! Those items come with the place I rent.
Thanks for this nmp - it's good to stop and think about it all.
DiAnne~
This is wonderful!!!
The video is great~I will be following these links. Wow. Something positive .
Truth speaking.
Its the way.
Dianne,
Great thread header. I'm sorry it took me so long to come and comment on it.
Anyways, I've only made it through half the links.
I do agree with you that the commericalism will kill us (so to speak). But we're sort of trapped in a quagmire. IF we don't purchase, then people lose jobs. If people lose jobs, we hurt our economy even more!
The problem is that the commercialism feeds all of us even as it takes away our soul.
And on that happy note...