CONSUMERISM

By Gus

We live inmersed in a culture that has made CONSUMING a lifestyle; mass media, corporations and governments support a system where people mistakenly think that they are worth because of what they have. Today, consumerism has become the focus of the lives of many people and social communities.

To be able of living outside of this dynamic it´s necessary to understand that there is a difference between CONSUMPTION and  CONSUMERISM. That we are all CONSUMERS, but we choose to be or not be CONSUMERISTS.

CONSUMPTION:

Acquisition of goods, services and articles to satisfy basic needs. Examples: Clothing, Food, Electricity, Water, Furniture, Appliances, etc.

MODERATE acquisition of goods, services and articles to satisfy personal likes and /or recreational activities: Examples: Sport Accessories, Fashion Accessories,Electronics and Entertainment devices, Gadgets, Jewelry, Lotions, Toys, Books, Travel,Recreation, etc. -

CONSUMERISM:

EXCESSIVE acquisition of goods, services and articles of the two previous items, without taking into account the needs to be met and the utility and lifetime of the articles acquired. Consumerism becomes generally a lifestyle that follows the trends imposed by fashion, technological advances, and the need to have more than other people and  to demonstrate social status and purchasing power.

Poster by Gabriela Navarro - 2009 Selection

In Brief, consumerism is: Buying EXCESSIVELY and  unconsciously  services and articles that you don´t need, that you already have moderately, or that you could replace otherwise.

Be careful: The line between what is needed or not is very thin and each person must determine it based on their needs, economic opportunities and living situation. A person might argue he doesn´t  need more than 2 pairs of shoes while another may argue that he needs 25. EXCESS is the problem, and by that I mean any article, goods or services. Following are some examples:

• If you have several pairs of shoes of different types (formal, casual, sports, for football) but  you want more every time a new model or color is released.
• If you change your cell phone or computer, while it still works or can be upgraded, just to follow trends in fashion or advertising.
• If you buy books, CDs, DVDs, or video games very often, only to have them and not really using them.

• If you buy articles and clothing basing your choices in “brands” and not in quality,  just for the “social” value attributed to them.

Many people believe that working and earning money, entitles you  to spend it as you like; I wish things were that simple. We must understand that the world does not revolve around us, that each one of us is responsible of setting or own limits and we must be aware that consumerism affects the environment directly.

Unfortunately, the vast majority of consumerist people spend more time  defending their position, trying to justify ir or  stating nonsensical sentences to those who consume less than they do.

“But you also wear jeans, but you also have a car, but you also have a cell phone”…… No comments

Following are some videos for furhter knowledge on the subject; they will probably encourage some reflextion./ Gus

The Story of Stuff / Part 1

The Story of Stuff / Part 2

The Story of Stuff / Part 3

Consumo Cuidado

Hooked on Growth/ Trailer