The One Percent: Not Kristallnacht but Lebensraum
Remember Tom Perkins? Probably nobody wants to, but with all the talk about the profligacy of the one percent, Perkins comes iconically to mind.
Consumerism
Foreward from Notes to Nowhere
The illusion that progress will solve the problems of the future is presented to obscure the ancient truth that future-problems are created by the present.
Crowd Control: Political revolt and the accumulation of more
For the last several years, the word “revolution” has been hanging around backstage on the national television talk-show circuit waiting for somebody, anybody…to cue its appearance on camera.
The Creation of Society’s Shared Hallucinations
Our social reality is a combined construct of what we directly observe, what others tell us directly, and the parallel realities created by the media.
The Psychology of Global Warming
One way to psychologically deal with global warming is denial. For those who profit from fossil fuel production or those who want unlimited use of fossil fuels, this is the primary way in which the issue is addressed.
Annie Leonard on stuff, “citizen muscle”, and what she’s giving this Christmas
What better way to close our month’s theme than to talk to Annie Leonard, creator of the ‘Story of Stuff’ series of videos, who has done more than anyone to popularise the idea of "stuff"?
Getting the Most Out of Christmas
Here’s a question: how many second gifts do you remember from your childhood Christmases? How many third or fourth gifts?
Adam Corner on the “adverts that want to be your friend”
We’re all far too sensible to be influenced by advertising, right?
Consumerism and Happiness – headlines
•The Gift of Death •The more we hate it, the more it agrees with us. How advertising turned anti-consumerism into a secret weapon •Should We Prioritize Measuring Happiness?
The Hidden Door
In my imagination, the confining wall is the whole of consumer culture.
The Movement to Live More Simply Is Older Than You Think
If we want to wean ourselves off consumer culture and learn to practice simple living, where might we find inspiration?
Reimagining Santa’s Grotto: The Restart Project
The mental image we were brought up with of Santa’s workshop was of hoards of elves working away making new stuff, painting wooden trains with paintpots and so on. But what if we were able to shift that image, and instead tell our children that the elves aren’t making stuff, they’re repairing it?