Log in
Register
Search
Search titles only
By:
Search titles only
By:
Forums
New posts
Forum list
Search forums
Leaderboards
Games
Our Blog
Blogs
New entries
New comments
Blog list
Search blogs
Credits
Transactions
Shop
Blessings: ✟0.00
Tickets
Open new ticket
Watched
Donate
Log in
Register
Search
Search titles only
By:
Search titles only
By:
More options
Toggle width
Share this page
Share this page
Share
Reddit
Pinterest
Tumblr
WhatsApp
Email
Share
Link
Menu
Install the app
Install
Forums
Discussion and Debate
Discussion and Debate
Ethics & Morality
The most immoral thing today
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Jade Margery" data-source="post: 67274339" data-attributes="member: 234149"><p>I don't know about immoral, but I do agree that it's a serious problem. </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>I think it's weird that you're excluding extremely wealthy people from responsibility here. If we're looking at this on a per-person basis, wealthy people consume far more than others, often by owning more than one or two of an object or upgrading said objects frequently. How many automobiles does a movie star need? Honestly none, they could probably get someone else to drive them around if they wanted, whereas a middle class family might legitimately need two cars for both parents to get to work. </p><p></p><p>And I don't think poor people can be excluded from this either. Yes, the value of the things they consume is lower, but the amount is higher because those items are more cheaply made and wear out faster. On the food side, when your choice for a meal is one dollar for an apple or one dollar for a hamburger, you're going to go with the hamburger, even though there's much more packaging and waste behind its creation and the only reason it's so cheap is because the ingredients are mass produced and low quality. </p><p></p><p>Now, I'm not saying the middle class isn't part of the problem too - I'm just saying I find it odd that you're singling them out. </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Give <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Robert_Malthus" target="_blank">Thomas Malthus</a> my regards.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>There are actually many Americans trying to be sustainable and less consumptive. Unfortunately they (we) are often characterized as ultra-liberal anti-capitalist tree-huggers. Sustainability is something I would really like to see become more of a bi-partisan value, but it is undeniably an anti-business attitude. </p><p></p><p>Our entire economy is built on consumption. Cover everyone's houses with solar panels that require very little maintenance and supply 90% of the power we need? Out goes our coal and natural gas industries. Encourage hydroponic gardens and locally sourced foodstuffs? There goes your food processing companies. Create a culture where everyone doesn't feel like they need a wider, flatter, higher resolution TV or phone? Goodbye Apple, Samsung, Android. Make people content with the the clothes and belongings they already have? No more Walmart, Target, or Khol's. </p><p></p><p>Except for a mattress, I haven't bought a new piece of furniture or clothing in over two years and I try to minimize my energy consumption. On the other hand, my job right now it to design and produce cheap pool toys and camping gear, stuff that is often thrown away after just one summer of use. I don't like it, but if I didn't have this job... if other people weren't willing to wastefully consume this crap... I wouldn't be able to eat or pay my (very modest) rent.</p><p></p><p>So maybe consumption is like an addiction our society has. We've been on the drug so long, we can't survive without it. I would like to kick the habit as much as anyone, but the withdrawal could literally destroy our economy and wreak havoc on our society. </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>I'm curious, what steps do you take to minimize your contribution?</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Jade Margery, post: 67274339, member: 234149"] I don't know about immoral, but I do agree that it's a serious problem. I think it's weird that you're excluding extremely wealthy people from responsibility here. If we're looking at this on a per-person basis, wealthy people consume far more than others, often by owning more than one or two of an object or upgrading said objects frequently. How many automobiles does a movie star need? Honestly none, they could probably get someone else to drive them around if they wanted, whereas a middle class family might legitimately need two cars for both parents to get to work. And I don't think poor people can be excluded from this either. Yes, the value of the things they consume is lower, but the amount is higher because those items are more cheaply made and wear out faster. On the food side, when your choice for a meal is one dollar for an apple or one dollar for a hamburger, you're going to go with the hamburger, even though there's much more packaging and waste behind its creation and the only reason it's so cheap is because the ingredients are mass produced and low quality. Now, I'm not saying the middle class isn't part of the problem too - I'm just saying I find it odd that you're singling them out. Give [URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Robert_Malthus"]Thomas Malthus[/URL] my regards. There are actually many Americans trying to be sustainable and less consumptive. Unfortunately they (we) are often characterized as ultra-liberal anti-capitalist tree-huggers. Sustainability is something I would really like to see become more of a bi-partisan value, but it is undeniably an anti-business attitude. Our entire economy is built on consumption. Cover everyone's houses with solar panels that require very little maintenance and supply 90% of the power we need? Out goes our coal and natural gas industries. Encourage hydroponic gardens and locally sourced foodstuffs? There goes your food processing companies. Create a culture where everyone doesn't feel like they need a wider, flatter, higher resolution TV or phone? Goodbye Apple, Samsung, Android. Make people content with the the clothes and belongings they already have? No more Walmart, Target, or Khol's. Except for a mattress, I haven't bought a new piece of furniture or clothing in over two years and I try to minimize my energy consumption. On the other hand, my job right now it to design and produce cheap pool toys and camping gear, stuff that is often thrown away after just one summer of use. I don't like it, but if I didn't have this job... if other people weren't willing to wastefully consume this crap... I wouldn't be able to eat or pay my (very modest) rent. So maybe consumption is like an addiction our society has. We've been on the drug so long, we can't survive without it. I would like to kick the habit as much as anyone, but the withdrawal could literally destroy our economy and wreak havoc on our society. I'm curious, what steps do you take to minimize your contribution? [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Forums
Discussion and Debate
Discussion and Debate
Ethics & Morality
The most immoral thing today
Top
Bottom