"Normal is getting dressed in clothes that you buy for work and driving through traffic in a car that you are still paying for, in order to get to the job you need to pay for the clothes and the car, and the house you leave vacant all day so you can afford to live in it." (Ellen Goodman)

To me, this quote is very powerful. It questions the whole purpose of our every day lives. Does our culture revolve too much around material wealth? Do Americans focus too much on acquiring 'stuff' which has monetary value but nothing beyond that? Do we spend our lives striving to eliminate problems and stresses in order to live a happier life and only end up creating more stresses through the whole process? What is the actual purpose of a job? What is the actual purpose of clothes, cars, houses? These seem like silly questions, but if you investigate and take a closer look at one of these every day aspects of society that we take for granted, you might be surprised.

For example, George Carlin, my favorite comedian of all time, did a stand up about "stuff" and houses in American society:

“a house is just a pile of stuff with a cover on it”

“that’s all you need in life, a little place for your stuff”

“if you didn’t have so much goddamn stuff you wouldn’t need a house, you could just walk around all the time”

Personal Note

America’s obsession with material ‘stuff' is something that personally bothers me. I have experience with this because my parents both tend to hoard items and never want to throw anything away. Our house is a mess and we have too much ‘stuff’. Also, (and this applies to most families anyways), growing up I've always noticed that my parents stress so much about making enough money to keep me and my siblings happy through buying toys, clothes, and other items for us. Many times it actually caused more hassle within the family than happiness. It led me to question if the idea of money and items that American culture so greatly pushes is in fact a good thing for our society as a whole.

After watching Carlin's video for the first time it made me question fundamental things that we take for granted such as clothes, cars, and houses.

American consumerism summed up in a picture

Black Friday

Perhaps the epitome of American consumerism, Black Friday is an unofficial holiday which takes place on the first Friday following Thanksgiving Day. This year it will take place on November 28 and you can be sure to see hordes of people lining up in front of large retail stores in order to get cheap items being sold that night. Over the years, big retailers such as Target, Khol's, Macy's and Best Buy have moved their opening times from 6 am to midnight in 2011. Some stores such as Walmart even took it to a new extreme and opened at 8 pm on Thanksgiving Day, which is an official US federal holiday!

Many stores throughout America experience violence during Black Friday. Shoppers who are eager to save money stampede into the stores when they open in hopes of being the first ones to buy. Many fights break out every year and some people get seriously injured or even die.

In 2008, a Walmart worker died after being trampled by customers who burst through the doors at the 5 am opening. (NY Times)
Jdimytai Damour, a 34 year old, was helping his other co-workers hold the doors closed as the weight of the giant mob outside eventually broke the glass doors and the 2,000 person crowd stampeded in.
His co-workers attempted to help him but there was no way, given how crowded the scene was.
He was pronounced dead an hour later at a local hospital after doctors maintained that his wounds were fatal.

This shocking story should put into perspective the gravity of our consumer culture. Humans act like total wild animals with no regard for their fellow humans, such as Mr. Damour. In my opinion, Black Friday should be outlawed, as every year it gets bigger and more violent. Mr. Damour might have been the first person to die from such a silly and meaningless event, but he surely won't be the last. Americans must take caution from this story.

This video truly depicts the horrors of Black Friday. Shoppers push and shove each other like animals in order to get the items they want. People yell, curse, scream and fight each other over the stuff being sold.

Pakistani woman seeks 'American Dream' in America

Shanzeh Khurram, a Pakistani woman age 18, moved from "collectivist" Pakistan to "individual" America in hopes of starting a different life (Khurram). Her view of America was different than what she actually experienced when she arrived here.

"Previously, people aspired to have a nice house in the suburbs with a couple of cars. Now, there is no end to the products that people want: the latest iPhone, expensive cars, designer bags--the list is endless. The American dream revolves around luxury goods for most people."

Basically, she is saying that American consumerism has reached an all time high. It has increased from one house and one car to multiple luxury vehicles, estates, beach houses, etc. Her description that "Shopping is not a problem on its own; It's the obsessive accumulation of unnecessary products, along with the hope that buying a Chanel bag will somehow make you happier that is problematic." exactly reflects what George Carlin said in his stand up a few decades before.

Her thesis in her article is that the things that we own often end up owning us instead and we are controlled by the material world around us.

What do the experts think? (Terry Clark, "Is Materialism Rising in America?")

Michigan political scientist Ronald Inglehart: America's technological and economic progress especially between 1945 and 1970 has satisfied many consumers of the young generation and that has allowed them to turn to other non material concerns, which are now known as post materialistic concerns.
Most industrial countries have actually seen a rise in post materialistic concerns within their societies, contrary to popular belief that countries like America are increasingly becoming item and luxury oriented.

Materialism Post Materialism

concerned with money
acquiring items
houses
cars

concerned with non material goals
democracy
love
intellectual satisfaction

3. Two University of Southern California professors, Easterlin and Crimmins, disagree with Inglehart's assertions that America and other industrial nations are becoming less materialistic.

4. Richard Easterlin and Eileen Crimmins found that "the 'goods aspirations' of American high school seniors rose dramatically from 1976 to 1986."

5. Specifically, during this time, there was about a 10% increase in the proportion of high school seniors who aspire to "own at least 2 cars" and "clothes in the latest style" and "high quality stereos" and "vacation houses" and "major labor saving appliances" such as washers, dryer, and dishwashers.

6. One of the hypotheses that rises from these studies suggests that as the economic well-being of a country declines, the culture of the society tends towards materialism. If the people of a nation are enjoying economic prosperity, on the other hand, they have more time to worry about non material aspects of life and therefore a post materialistic culture grows.

What's the bigger picture?

I'm sure many of you DO like luxury items such as iPhones, purses, nice clothes etc. In fact, I do too. My iPhone is my prize possession. For the most part, we are all at UNCC so we can secure a well-paying job in the future to have money to spend on more items. From my observations, it is true: America is increasingly becoming obsessed with material goods and an individual's status according to which goods he or she possesses. But is this a healthy lifestyle that we are all adopting?

The Dalai Lama was once asked what surprises him most about humanity.

"Man. Because he sacrifices his health in order to make money.
Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health. And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future; he lives as if he is never going to die, and then dies having never really lived.” (Dalai Lama)

My personal way of trying to avoid what the Dalai Lama is describing is through nature. I do it through hiking. There are many ways our modern society can adopt certain outdoor activities so that more people can connect with nature.

I think many people get caught up in the daily hassle of modern life and forget that humans are animals too and need to experience mountains, rivers, lakes, forests, etc. Instead of clicking around on their gadgets in their spare time, Americans and other industrial nations should get out of their houses more often try to find a beautiful lake to fish on or a long and mysterious trail to hike. I'm not trying to sound condescending or anything, this is my opinion. I think it could make our society a better place.