It is about this time of year that I have my annual “consumerism gone wild” rant.
Everywhere you look, the effects of Affluenza are clear for everyone to see. But what is Affluenza?
Now, Wikipedia defines affluenza as;
affluenza, n. a painful, contagious, socially transmitted condition of overload, debt, anxiety and waste resulting from the dogged pursuit of more.
affluenza, n. 1. The bloated, sluggish and unfulfilled feeling that results from efforts to keep up with the Joneses. 2. An epidemic of stress, overwork, waste and indebtedness caused by the pursuit of the Western Dream. 3. An unsustainable addiction to economic growth.
Now, wait a minute. There is that economic growth example gets thrown around a lot of late. All forms of government seem to keep telling us that we must stimulate the economy, and increase economic growth. But doesn’t growth mean destroying, sorry, squandering the remaining resources we have left on the planet? That can’t be a good thing, can it? More on that in another post though. Lets get back to the subject of Christmas.
We have lost our way. It doesn’t need to be like this, but economic growth demands it.
Around this time of year, our consumer culture ramps into high gear, urging to buy the next shiny thing with money that we just don’t have. So what do we do? We go into debt by using credit cards, and end up with a big fat debt headache in the new year.
So now you know what Affluenza is, have a listen to the show where I will hopefully convince you that there is another and better way.
Once you have played the entire episode, please leave a comment about what you think of Christmas Consumerism. I would love to read your thoughts on the matter.