Recently, I was challenged on my last post - There's more to life than this..
It was devil's advocate - as the person that challenged me is my best friend, and in fact is the gentleman I was referring to that has just bought his first home with his partner.
He wrote a quick email to share his thoughts - which I will quote here:
"Many of us engage in the material aspects of our society, for they become "means to an end". When we go to Petcetera, it allows us to enjoy and love our pet. When we shop at Walmart, it can allow for savings to take our children out to a festival. When we buy a new faucet at Home Depot, it allows us to grow our home, and to grow in the love of accomplishing something together. When you buy a home, it is a wonderful celebration of love, for now you have a place of permanent habitation, and place to land and relax. I know it all has aspects of shallow consumerism, but it can also allow for so much more".
Now - first let me say - don't rip on him for his comment if you don't agree - that's not my intention of quoting him. ... and this is a blog of my writing to invoke comments/constructive criticism, etc... not his.
I quoted him, so I didn't paraphrase wrong, and I wanted to share these thoughts... which admittedly - some of you may have.
So... having said that... what do I think about his comment?
Well... I'm having mixed opinions about it.
First and foremost, I do agree - yes, these mega-store-big-box places have been put into our society for this very concept. Easy, cheap, convenient, etc...
What gets up my nose are the following;
1) These massive big-box corporations are killing the independent store owner. They are squashing the little guy. Due to them ordering on a massive scale, they are able to buy the product at a lower cost, which in turn allows them to sell them to us at a lower price.
Now, I do remember that the aforementioned friend was years ago, looking for a house-plant for his new apt. He first went to the smaller local store... where he was met with dead plants, poor customer service (if any), and left feeling frustrated and upset with his experience there. It so happened that a Walmart was around the corner of the smaller store, and the plants there were thriving, well maintained, and there was a person on staff *just* for the plant dept, who was knowledgeable, friendly, and prompt. I suppose I don't have to tell you how that story ended. My friend bought a plant from Wallmart - that was lush, green, and he also came away with a solid understanding of how to care for the plant, that was imparted on him by the great clerk there.
I remember at the time, we both were saddened by this reality.
The little guy needs to step up their customer service, and offer a service that is personal, and really sets them above the competition.
2) Anytime I'm in one of these stores, I always have the overwhelming sense of the Wizard behind the curtain - like in the Wizard of Oz. In this version, the Wizard behind the curtain has piles of money overflowing and spilling out from his pockets. In these big-box stores, they generally pay min. wages to their workers, while corporations, and the heads of these companies are rolling in the big money.
I feel they prey on the lower to middle class - take their hard-earned money, while laughing all the way to the bank... on goods they paid a fraction of the cost for in the first place.
*and this one REALLY REALLY bugs me!*
... the thing that scares me was a comment my high school teacher made in a World issues class. He said - "Big corporations and the government are trying to abolish the middle class." At first I balked at this notion. "How is that even possible?!" I asked. I couldn't wrap my teenage head around it. I was still looking at the world through rose tinted glasses, and didn't want to believe something so malicious and sinister was afoot.
But, as life marched on, I suddenly looked around and have witnessed more and more corporations paying lower wages, asking longer hours, and the media constantly bombarding us with - BUY BUY BUY -
...and like lemmings, we are all jumping off that cliff - so we can have whiter teeth, designer clothes, and look years younger with some goop we pile onto our face at night.
I'm not saying we shouldn't purchase things... not at all...
What I'm challenging everyone (and this includes me - as I'm far from perfect, and sadly have a bad addiction with whitening strips) is to *THINK* before you purchase. Be conscious of your spending, and your eating.
We live in a society of big-box stores, fast-food restaurants - all to make our hectic lives 'easier'.
But what if we slow things down a bit, and take our time?
Take pleasure in the small joys in the world... what if we realize that having these new gadgets might not be 'just cuz we deserve a break today' ... but maybe it's trying to fill a void in us somewhere? What if we discovered that, and then stopped the over-consumption?
We are constantly bombarded with slogans that fuel that consumption fire - "You deserve a break today", "Because you are worth it" "Have it your way" "Breakfast of Champions"
It plays on the fact that we are overworked, and feel we DO deserve something for our efforts.
This always catapults me into the thought of - I deserve a break today?? Um... I live in a country where I'm free, can voice my opinion, can drive up to a window for my calorie ladden dinner - and somewhere sometimes not too far away... someone is hungry, someone doesn't have water in thier town... and *I* deserve a break today??!! Harumph!
Of course, we don't like to think about that do we?
Corporations don't want us to think about these things... (at least not until Christmas, and then we are overrun with Save the World/Hunger Site commercials - because it's the season of giving, and can't you give 35 cents a day to save a life?)
Again, I'm not standing here on my soapbox telling anyone what to do... I'm far from perfect, and have a loooooooooooong way to go... but maybe if enough of us question are "facts of life" in the western world... maybe we can change things... Maybe we can get to a place where over consumption isn't the norm, and to be expected...
Maybe we can get to a place of empathy, and start thinking beyond our big house, and car... and remember that we are far far more interconnected with each other than we think...
Monday, February 23, 2009
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I dunno... one thing I noticed about old people is that many still have had the same dinning set they bought when they were 30. Even as trends come and go, they stick with the things that give them comfort or that speak of a time period.
ReplyDeleteI love my furniture. Does that make me a consumer whore? I don't think so, because now, I wouldn't want anything else, even after three years. It isn't much, but I don't feel guilty about the IKEA couch. Sure, the umbra chairs are mass produced, but I want to keep them for my lifetime, if they last that long. They're fabulous!
I like color. This beige and brown trend we're going through is driving me INSANE. I suspect I'll always be stuck in the 90s like my Grandmother was stuck in the 60s, etc.
As for local, I wish I could afford the $5000 leather couch on Queen St. The used couch at another shop was the same cost as the new IKEA one, but it was fugly and worn, and possibily ridden with bed bugs. I searched local for months before giving into IKEA.
For big ticket items, I usually do have to travel to the burbs, but there's quite a few bars, restaurants, and shops that know me locally. It's far more convienient to go to Home Hardware for a light bulb.
Oh.. and did I mention there's the Work Room? A place where you can rent a sewing machine by the hour? Once I have time....
Boxes will have their specialty, but if you live in an urban area, chances are you spend your money locally, but can't buy everything around the block.
PS: I did stop going to McDs after they started knowing my order by heart. Besides, the Philippino food place is far better.
PPS: I would have inherited my Grandmother's couch if I had a bigger apartment. It was a fabulous 50s cressent-shapped couch that was newly reupholstered in green. Honestly, I was thinking of moving just so I could take it. {cries}.
PPPS: Did this rant make any sense? I'm going to bed.
I struggle with big box stores because yeah, I have a family and I know that for the most part, stores like Wally Mart will have items priced lower than a small store. Also, I am wasting less gas driving around because most of the items I need will be housed in one store.
ReplyDeleteOn the flip side, it makes me sick that the staff at Wally Mart are paid so little and a lot of times are still having to collect food stamps. The working poor is such a sad and wrong thought.
Flip it over again and be reminded that places like Wally Mart hire folks who are likely quite unemployable in other stores. They hire the old, the disabled, the dim light bulbs, etc. This can give people who wouldn't normally be given a chance to earn a living, the opportunity to feel a sense of independence.
Why do we care if the 'little guy' goes out of business? This is not meant to be a rhetorical question. I'd really like to know the answer.
How do we beat this?
At the risk of sounding like a conspiracy theorist, I think the more the big corporations succeed, the worse off our society will be.
ReplyDeleteThere is value in the little guy, as it allows for people to still own a business.
As far as beating this, it would probably take a large-scale boycott, or dare I say, getting places like these big boxes to be Unionized. I would love to know the statistic on how many of these mega-stores have a union.
As far as the boycott is concerned... I wish I had a dollar for every time I heard someone say - I'm just one person, how can just me not going to these places make a difference??
ReplyDeleteIt can act like a domino effect... get enough people to boycott, then it catches on...
Its like the saying - every 1000 mile journey starts with one step.
Every 1000 mile boycott starts with one person.