Consumerisms Effect

Consumerisms Effect Consumerism is defined as, “the theory that an increasing consumption to goods is economically desirable; also: a preoccupation with and an inclination toward the buying of consumer goods” (“Consumerism,” n.d.). With this said, is consumerism healthy for anyone who is involved? From American cultures birth after the revolutionary war, this society has relished the flattery of consumerism. The search for wealth, material goods, and happiness has no boundaries in this society. Although some positive influences exist within consumerisms definition, a darker side to this phenomenon cannot be over looked. Consumerism reflects many negative human attributes and its increase is adversely affecting American culture, societal equalities, and the environment. Consumerism, in all its forms, has been around since the earliest times of American culture. From the earliest time of America, directly after the Revolutionary War, this attitude of need and want for material good and what was considered the best was very evident. One would think that during a life altering divide of nations the concept of consumerism would stop between them, but during this time, Americans still sought British goods. A high perceived value and thought pattern that these goods were of superior quality allowed these items to become a status symbol for early Americans. George Washington, weeks after signing a peace treaty with Britain, ordered a large beaded plated gallon tea urn from England (Kulman, 2004). After such destruction and hurt within the country he protected, consumerism’s grasp encouraged a founding father to secure goods from the country that oppressed for so long. This embedded culture of early America was not always thought of as a negative though. During much of the industrial and commercial revolutions this country has seen, consumerism’s culture has been the primary driver. Put another way, America’s economy exists because of consumerism and owes most of its successes to these principles. This trend has continued through today’s setting and consumer spending still accounts for 60-70% of the total economy (USA Today, 2002). Of this total however how much is need driven when compared to what would be considered a want. America’s culture has long stemmed on the function of over abundance. Realizing these trends, approximately one third of this total is spent on discretionary products and services (USA Today, 2002). In figure one, this break down between how America spends money can be seen. [pic] Figure 1
The underlying facts of how money is spent in this country stems around the idea of excess. With nearly one third of the total money spent going toward simple wants that culture supports, ideas surrounding what that money should be spent on begin to surface. Countercultures and anti-consumerist movements show a detailed history of Americas struggle with consumerism. This desire to have what is the best but not necessarily needed has long spurred deep rooted resentment among those who believe otherwise. One of the earliest movements critical to over consumption was Puritanism. Puritanism offers one of the first major movements away from main stream consumerism of its time. The idea of simple, service-oriented lives without over-indulgence created a divide, and this separatism ironically led this counter culture to settle the newly found America. Other memorable American movements include prohibition, the simplicity movement, the 1960s counterculture, and the consumer rights movement (Grobe, 2001). Speaking to what many consider the most memorable to modern society, the counterculture movements of the 1960s offered a deep divide between consumerism and living within one’s means. Grobe notes that even through the simplicity movement, WWII, and the Great Depression American consumerism did not slow down as much as would have been thought (2001). This growing resentment and long standing unrest of change not happening finally seemed to blossom into this movement. Inheriting a tradition of cultural dissent from the bohemians and the beatniks, hippies rebelled against established institutions and criticized middle-class values (Wikipedia, 2011). This strong movement against the normalcy of American society caused deep divide and a sub-culture that still exists today. Above this reminiscent culture of from the past, a new and modern sub-culture has emerged. This growing culture has come to be known as Freeganism. Hancock writes, “Die-hard Freegans use methods such as scavenging, bartering, and exchanging with others to obtain even the basics necessities of life, such as food and clothes” (2009). When looking at what is popular in today’s society, this belief system is quite different and altered from the typical American lifestyle. The idea of using less, re-using items, and basic exchange instead of simply buying whatever one wants makes basic sense. Only 1% of the things we buy are still in use after a year’s time. This leaves 99% that goes in the trash (Hancock, 2009). As a society and after thinking about this statistic, Freeganism also becomes a moral issue. Do we owe it to our country, children, and environment to take less and destroy less? A detailed look at the troubles of consumerism leads one down the path that this will have to be our duty in the time to come. The facts surrounding consumerism are often troubling and their examination has led to many troubling certainties. In offering a glimpse into just how much consumerism embodies humanity, review these startling tables on the misdistribution of the world’s wealth.
| | |
|Global Priority | |
| |$U.S. Billions |
|Cosmetics in the United States |8 |
|Ice cream in Europe |11 |
|Perfumes in Europe and the United States |12 |
|Pet foods in Europe and the United States |17 |
|Business entertainment in Japan |35 |
|Cigarettes in Europe |50 |
|Alcoholic drinks in Europe |105 |
|Narcotics drugs in the world |400 |
|Military spending in the world |780 |

Now compare that to what was estimated as additional costs to achieve universal access to basic social services in all developing countries:

| | |
| | |
|Global Priority |$U.S. Billions |
|Basic education for all |6 |
|Water and sanitation for all |9 |
|Reproductive health for all women |12 |
|Basic health and nutrition |13 |

(Shah, 2010)
These alarming truths are shedding light on a growing problem. In American society the need of an item seldom outweighs the desire or wants to have them. Culture has embedded excuses into the fabric of our existence. Justifiers like pleasure, stress relief, education, entertainment, or beauty often try to renationalize the idea of buying un-needed goods (USA Today, 2002). In addition to this nearly 28% of those polled believe self expression is the top reason for buying items other than necessities (USA Today, 2002). The startling numbers on what is spent on non-necessities, the embedded excuses in the fabric of American culture, and the realization the self expression plays and integral part in our decision making paints a grim picture. Coupled with the fact that Americans spend a large amount of money on what they simply want, research results have indicated that those with higher income, and in turn higher consuming power, are actually less happy. The leading contributors seem to stem around incurring debt, working longer hours, spending less time with family or friends, and less time amongst community (Williamson, 2008). Williamson also adds, a sense of being secure with ones standing in life is often more important that the ability to acquire material goods (2008). This realization in turn leads to even greater unhappiness. The desire and need to buy and over consume often overshadow the simple want of being secure in life’s standing. Often thought of as non-consumers, another starling trend is the spread of consumerism to America’s youth. The gripping reality is that America’s children are just as involved in consumerism as their parents. Take this figure for example:

|Children watch between 25,000 – 40,000 commercials a year on television |
| |
|$15-17 billion was spent on advertisement geared toward children |
| |
|$160 billion spend per year by teens |
| |
|Children up to 11 spend $18 billion per year |
| |
|Children and teen influence on parents spent is believed to be $130-670 billion|
|a year |

(Shah, 2010)

Coupled with this growing trend are highly negative side-effects. Children with higher links to consumerist values were shown to have strained relationship with parents, greater feelings of boredom and physical pain, higher levels of depression and anxiety, and lower self-esteem (Williamson, 2008). These facts should be leading society away from consumerisms growth, but nothing seems to be changing. Children, along with parents, are continually swallowed up into the entire experience of the process. Williamson states that, “by age ten, the average American kid is aware of over 300 specific brand names” (2008). When one sits back and thinks about how much saturation is needed for this to be true, one can only hope that things can improve. Although not often realized, consumerism is also revealing a devastating effect on the environment. Sadly, the term consumption can be linked to nearly every devastating environmental concern in today’s society. Consumption is defined as, “The utilization of economic goods in the satisfaction of wants or in the process of production resulting chiefly in their destruction, deterioration, or transformation” (“Consumption,” n.d.). This idea and thought pattern has influenced the environment since its inception. An example lies in China. Twenty-five years ago barely any private cars existed. By 2000, five million cars were on the streets with the number expected to rise exponentially in every year following (Mayell, 2004). The new found freedoms, wealth, materialistic desire, and consumerisms drive all behind this startling environmental concern. In America the problem is much the same. In 1950 American families owned one car, by 2000 one in every five owned three or more cars (Kulman, 2004). Food production for the consuming masses is also devastating the environment. The Sustainable Table website offers this glimpse into the impacts food production is causing: “Factory farms concentrate an unnatural number of animals in one place, which creates an unmanageable amount of waste. For example, a single hog excretes up to 17.5 pounds of manure and urine each day. Put 1,000 hogs together, and that’s six million pounds of waste each year. On a factory farm containing 35,000 hogs, over four million pounds of waste are produced each week, and over 200 million pounds each year. i Whereas on a sustainable farm animal waste can be a tool, in factory-farm amounts it becomes a major pollutant” (2011).
To provide enough meat to the world’s economy the industry has moved to huge factory settings. To produce eight ounces of beef, 6,600 gallons of water is needed (Mayell, 2004). Between just these two examples, long-lasting and devastating environmental concerns are being called out. On top of this, filled with appetites for everything that can be bought and consumed, the waste produced by Americans can be astounding. Kulman notes that, “Americans shell out more for garbage bags than 90 of the world’s 210 countries spend for everything” (2004). Every day these processes go on is one more day that society may not be able to take back the ill-effects of its consumption. After taking a look at how Consumerism reflects many negative human attributes and its increase is adversely affecting American culture, societal equalities, and the environment, one hopes to shed light on its solution. A near constant counter-culture dating back even before American existence is still trying to send a message on the ill-conceived notion of consumerisms foundations. One has to ask when personal wants will heed chase to the bottom line of what is actually needed. As a nation, America must start to realize the importance of laying materialistic gains to rest and start focusing on leading the country through future millennia to come.

References
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http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/01/0111_040112_consumerism.html

Sustainable Table. (2011). The issues environment. Retrieved from http://www.sustainabletable.org/issues/environment/
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(Shah, 2010)