On Affluenza & Other Symptomatic Material Moments…
March 31, 2008 | 5 Comments
This weekend, I went to the store to buy one book and left with another. Leaving a store with an item that I didn’t enter with the intention to purchase is not the “news story” here. If you’re anything like me, it probably happens to you all the time.
However, it’s the subject of one particular book which has me sheepishly explaining the incredibly obvious contradiction of the two books that I’m about to pay for at the check-out counter. Their titles are…”The Middle-Class Millionaire; The Rise of the New Rich and How They Are Changing America….and the book that somehow gripped me while browsing through the aisles. It is entitled…”Affluenza; The All-Consuming Epidemic.”
The clerk glances at the two titles and then struck by the polar opposite nature of the purchases, picks them up and examines them more thoroughly. Finally he offers this explanation…”Well, M’am…when you’re rich, you’ll know how to avoid Affluenza.” I nod in muted agreement…doubtful.
However, it is this book…the one I didn’t go to the store to buy that consumes my attention throughout the weekend. Affluenza is defined as:
n. a painful, contagious, socially transmitted condition of overload, debt, anxiety, and waste resulting from the dogged pursuit of more.
1. The bloated, sluggish and unfulfilled feeling that results from efforts to keep up with the Jones.
2. An epidemic of stress, overwork, waste and indebtedness caused by the dogged pursuit of the American Dream.
The book Affluenza is like a spirited conversation. An engaging and convicting look at what has transpired to us (and within us ) as we have doggedly pursued the American Dream…of more, more & more. It’s a wake-up call that brings into sharp focus the manner in which excessive consumerism has created a nightmare in which most of us are still sleepwalking.
Written with a wry wit and clear eyed analysis, this book offers a comprehensive diagnosis: Starting with Shopping Fever, the Rash of Bankruptcies, Swollen Expectation, Chronic Congestion, the Stress of Excess, Community Chills, An Ache for Meaning, Resource Exhaustion, Industrial Diarrhea and eventually Dissatisfaction Guaranteed, it gently prods us to see our over-drive efforts for improvement at all costs in an entirely new light.
I admit to being mesmerized and at the same time somewhat disheartened. Perhaps it is the sinking realization that one can be on the right path, yet in so many ways miss the reason for the journey in the first place. It is a sobering thing to recognize that the clothes we wear may have cost someone their life. Or that the fruit that is available all year round in the grocery store is cheap and plentiful because of exploitative labor.
As a real estate agent, our growing data-bank of millions of homes which remain unsold and are in foreclosure or shortsale remind us that this disease plays for keeps….Affluenza has real implications and disastrous results if left unchecked. It is literally destroying the financial welfare of millions of Americans even as it consumes their savings and now their personal homes.
But, the book is not a treatise on hopelessness. It seems that many of us are “waking up” to the fact that our priorities are out of whack. We’ve been focusing on the wrong things. In fact, things in and of themselves do not have the ability to provide meaning.
Many “rat-race” refugees are seeking refuge through a different route in life. An empowered path which starts by acknowledging that we’ve been living with a skewed framework of values. A path which seeks restoration within and revitalization in relationship without. An understanding which knows that when I am my brother’s keeper, I have not only gained a brother…I have indeed found myself again.
If you’d like to explore this condition further, check out this site where you can diagnosis, understand and find some proven methods to combat the disease. It’s guaranteed to change your perspective!
To Learn more about the Story of Stuff, click on the link or on the picture. It’s an incredible story!
Picture is courtesy of: debaird’s photostream
Better World Shopper: Becoming An Educated Consumer
March 3, 2008 | 1 Comment
What makes a good consumer?
I ask myself this question all the time. Most commonly we look for the cheapest deal, the highest quality, and the best service for our money. We must fed, clothe, house and entertain our busy, demanding families on a budget, and we don’t always have the time, or space of mind, to give the topic another thought. In a society based on materialism, it’s hard to make sense of our purchasing options and the power behind them.
Perhaps at this, the start of a new year, we might examine our consumer habits with a broader perspective. Who makes our goods? Who makes the toys we buy our own children? The IPod for our spouses? The food for our Christmas feast? Are they paid well? Do they get benefits, such as medical and dental insurance? Which companies maintain environmentally sound facilities? Do they protect our natural resources? Are they active participants in their surrounding communities?
Which companies can we trust to practice responsibility towards the impact their very presence creates? And as a consumer, how do you find the right answers if you are only beginning to ask the right questions?
Well my friends, here’s a start: A simple book, small enough to fit in a purse or thrown in a glove compartment for easy reference. The Better World Shopping Guide ranks almost every product available to the consumer. Did you read that right? Is it really that simple? Yes. The following is a quote taken directly from www.BetterWorldShopper.com.
“The only comprehensive guide for socially and environmentally responsible consumers available, this book ranks every product on the shelf from A to F so you can quickly tell the “good guys” from the “bad guys” — turning your grocery list into a powerful tool to change the world. Representing over 15 years of distilled research, data is organized into the most common product categories including coffee, energy bars, computers, gasoline, clothing, banks, cars, water and more.”
The Better World Shopping Guide rankings are based on five key values and a letter grade based on how they comply with them. They are as follows:
After 5 years of intensive research and using 20 years of collective data, author Dr. Jones has come up with a wonderfully comprehensive system of rating goods and services produced by companies “relative to its competitors in the same product category.” These range from baby care products, car manufacturers, dairy alternative manufacturers to the newest category, fast food restaurants. Follow this link to check out where your favorites stand among the rankings.
The best part? This book goes for less than your favorite best seller. Purchased from the website, you can be the proud, and newly educated owner of the Better World Shopping Guide for only $10.00! The more books you purchase, the more your order will be discounted. Buy in bulk, save money, and give the most eye opening book to your friends and family!
To some it may sound inconvenient to carry a book around in their pocket, which is exactly why the Better World Shopping Guide has been converted into software for you IPod. For $5.00, you can download the entire book and it’s wealth of information onto your IPod, where you can access it at anytime, in any circumstance. Becoming aware of your world consumer power has never been so easy!
On a personal note, I can attest to the difficulties owning this book may cause. I know, believe me. Especially when shopping for food, there are inner conflicts that occur. A sense of responsibility is often compromised for the best bargain or in my case, the lowest calories count. But try for a moment to push this fear aside and consider that owning this book is your first small step. It is a doorway into an awareness that can be applied to perhaps not all, but some areas of your life. Whether it inspires you to purchase a car from an environmentally aware company, or clothing made by employees who are well paid and work in safe environments, your small choices will make a difference. This book is not an “all or nothing” situation. It is a step in the right direction, and in some areas of your life, steps I know you can take.
I will leave you with words from the Better World Shopper website, words I could not have come up with myself, and words I hope will inspire you to view at your spending power in a whole new light.
“Money is power. And wherever large amounts of money collect, so also new centers of power form. The latest historical manifestation of this is the modern corporation. Make no mistake, these new power centers are not democracies. We don’t vote for the CEO’s or their policies (unless we are: rich enough to be significant shareholders, informed enough to know what’s going one, and compassionate enough to care about more than just personal profit), yet our destinies are increasingly in their hands.
As these power centers shift, we must shift our own voices if we wish to be heard. As citizens, on average, we might vote once ever 4 years, if at all. As consumers, we vote every single day with the purest form of power…money. The average American family spends around $18,000 each year on goods and services. Think of it as casting 18,000 votes every year for the kind of world you want to live in. Use this site to take back your power.”
Not On Our Watch
May 17, 2007 | 1 Comment
The Cover Caught My Attention.
This child’s eyes tell the story. The story of atrocities that are happening right now as I type. These atrocities are happening in Darfur, in the country of Sudan. You can see HERE on a map of where this is occurring. Over 400,000 have been killed two million men, women and children have been displaced. This is what GENOCIDE looks like.
The Numbers Are Overwhelming.
Let us look at that number again. There are approximately 395,000 people living in the city of Oakland, CA. Now, let’s imagine the military coming in and killing everyone in the city. That’s what 400,000 deaths look like. There are 2,016,582 people living in Houston, Texas. Let’s imagine the entire city migrating towards the Mexican border. The ENTIRE City. That’s what 2,000,000 displaced people look like.
This Is Tragic.
It is our job as human beings to stand up and scream it from the rooftops. This should not be happening in 2007. So what are we going to do about it?
Words Are Inspiring.
After I read the inside flap, I knew I could help. It says,
“The book outlines six inspiring strategies that every one of us can adopt to help bring about change: Raise Awareness, Raise Funds, Write A letter, Call For Divestment, Start an Organization, and Lobby the Government. Simple, but powerful. No personal action is too small. For the sanctity of the human race, it is imperative that we not stand idly by as innocent civilians in Darfur and other war zones continue to be victims of unthinkable brutality. TAKE A STAND. Raise your voice. Find out how you can make a difference. The time to act is now.”
So I started reading it today. I hope you do too. You can find it HERE on Amazon.
*population numbers were taken from Answers.com
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