Consumerism Disguised as Concern

As the green "trend" catches on with more than the Birkenstock-wearing, tree-hugging, reefer crowd, there seems to be a push for an expressive outlet among the affluent, who have recently acquired an eco-conscience. But because those on the higher rungs of the social ladder can't possibly surrender their lifestyles for environmental changes, the green movement has molded to the consumer needs of most Americans.

As The New York Times put it, these individuals, sparked by a spontaneous concern for the world, "roll out from under the sumptuous hemp-fiber sheets on their bed in the morning and pull on a pair of $245 organic cotton Levi’s and an Armani biodegradable knit shirt. Stroll from the bedroom in their eco-McMansion, with its photovoltaic solar panels, into the kitchen remodeled with reclaimed lumber. Enter the three-car garage lighted by energy-sipping fluorescent bulbs and slip behind the wheel of their $104,000 Lexus hybrid."

Now I'm not saying that their efforts are wasted, or that these changes are meaningless. I'd just like to argue that the biggest way to conserve resources (which is, believe it or not, a main goal of the movement) is to consume less! Sure, your shiny new hybrid may inspire your friends to buy one, taking a few more gas-guzzlers off the road... but the abandoned bicycle in your garage uses even less energy than that trendy electro/hydrogen super-car. (Hydrogen actually takes more energy to create than it puts out, and that's not including the assembly of the car itself!) Can't ride your bike on the twenty-mile commute to work every day? Well, get the hell out of the suburbs.

And the thrift store clothes- though perhaps not as stylish as the Armani knit- are actually a more efficient choice, seeing as how they don't involve the increased production of anything (including organic cotton.) And that recycleable plastic bottle (which may or may not achieve reuse, depending on the ambitiousness of the individual drinking from it) is actually less efficient than the glass in your kitchen cabinet. Let go of this infatuation with spending- the weekly trip to WalMart for discount shit has got to end.

Our blind consumerism keeps us ignorant to the real message of global environmental changes- that of buying less, and thus using less energy to produce (however efficient the commodity may be.) What drives our economy is the uninformed dumping of resources and money into things that don't need to exist in the first place. The solution isn't new commodities but a complete removal of that materialism from our lives- a graduation from our entitled society to one of awareness, simplicity, and satisfaction.