Anti-consumerism

Most of us have made new year's resolutions, which we have every intention of keeping, but which we will probably abandon by Easter. But one group managed to keep theirs all during 2007, and there seems to be quite a few groups following in their footsteps. About 50 friends in San Francisco  at end 2006 decided on a dare to go 6 months without buying anything new (exceptions food, health, safety and underwear), and extended it to one year. They called it the Compact and felt it allowed them to go beyond recycling, to reduce clutter and waste in their homes and to simplify their lives. The nice side effects are that it allows them to save money, to rebel agains consumerism, to be environmentally friendly, to be less dependent on department stores and to reduce their environmental footprint. The mouvement has caught on and there are chapters everywhere, even on Yahoo! and even has its own church: the Reverend Billy of the Church of Stop Shopping. There is a good explanation of the various terms and trends on the BBC website.

I don't know what this will do to the US economy which is in slowdown mode, but given the sub-prime crisis and the debt situation of many individuals, it is probably not a bad resolution to make.

Comments

[George E. Scheller]

I am not against consumption, but I believe a certain relationship should be built up between a person and article acquired. I love my tea pot and was most irritable when the handle was knicked and I had to get a new one. A relationship of over 20 years went to tatters, will this one last? My sugar pot was bought 35 years ago in a Nagoya porcelaine shop.

It reminds me of my broken tea pot.

Respect for a utensil brings about a way of handling the utensil. The lack of such care brings about "over consumption".

regards George

[P]

This is a great concept! I'd like to try it, though maybe start out small and try not to buy anything new for a month and then set my goals higher after I'd accomplished this. I fell this would definitely be a good way to become free from shopping and find some other more interesting and enriching things to do with my time. Plus who doesn't want to save some money??