Buy only 1 or less "want" a month (week 21)
Have you every seen The Story of Stuff? If you haven't, STOP READING AND WATCH NOW! If you have, STOP READING AND WATCH AGAIN! Then please continue reading my blog :)
"The Story of Stuff Project’s journey began with a 20-minute online movie about the way we make, use and throw away all the Stuff in our lives. Five years and 40 million views later, we’re a Community of 750,000 changemakers worldwide, working to build a more healthy and just planet." http://storyofstuff.org/
Want vs. Need: Basic Economics
A need is something you have to have, something you can't do without. A good example is food. If you don't eat, you won't survive for long. Many people have gone days without eating, but they eventually ate a lot of food. You might not need a whole lot of food, but you do need to eat.
A want is something you would like to have. It is not absolutely necessary, but it would be a good thing to have. A good example is music. Now, some people might argue that music is a need because they think they can't do without it. But you don't need music to survive. You do need to eat.
The average person living in the United States uses 300 shopping bags worth of raw materials every week - weighing as much as a large luxury car. We would need the resources of three planets for everyone on Earth to live as people in the United States do. World Resources Insitute, Center for a New American Dream
We are targeted by over 1,500 commercial messages a day, up from 560 per day in the 1960s. Advertisers are increasingly targeting young people. Companies spend more than $200 billion on advertising in the U.S. each year (and $435 billion worldwide). Less than $50 billion a year could provide adequate food, clean water, and basic education for the world's poorest. People around the world spend much more than this amount on makeup, perfumes, pet food, ocean cruises, and ice cream Center for a New American Dream, Worldwatch Institute
The world's richest countries make up only one-fifth of global population but account for 45% of all meat consumption, 58% of total energy use, 84% of paper use, and 87% of vehicle ownership. At the other end of the spectrum, the poorest fifth of the world's population - more than one billion people - still lack food, shelter, housing, water and sanitation, and access to electricity. United Nations Development Programme
I read this amazing book called The 100 Thing Challenge. The author, Dave Bruno, spoke beautiful words on our American consumer culture. Some quotes I found inspiring:
"What is we all stopped making foolish credit card purchases that placed us in debtors prison? What if, as a result of making do with fewer things, we prioritized buying BETTER things that were a little more expensive and make by tradesmen instead of factory workers? What if we stopped using our homes as storage facilities and de-cluttered the places which we live so they can become SANCTUARIES from the daily grind?"
"The crux of American-style consumerism is that our common lives lack provision. Somehow we have come to believe that there is always a purchase that will transform what is ridiculously amazing into what is perfect... as if a sunset is more beautiful when I'm watching it while wearing the "right" brand clothing. As if owning the right things would clarify my faith and make my hopes more real. As if possessions, instead of love, were the force that could knit my relationships together more tightly. As if the accomplishments of my life were largely about the stuff I used to get things done."
Because of the above reasons/thoughts, and so many more, I decided to limit the wants in my life to 1 new "want" purchase a month. My January purchase? Jasmine Essential Oil
Documentary Recommendation:
"Consuming Kids throws desperately needed light on the practices of a relentless multi-billion dollar marketing machine that now sells kids and their parents everything from junk food and violent video games to bogus educational products and the family car. The film focuses on the explosive growth of child marketing in the wake of deregulation, showing how youth marketers have used the latest advances in psychology, anthropology, and neuroscience to transform American children into one of the most powerful and profitable consumer demographics in the world."