Consumers and Commitment to a Cause
how committed are you to your ideals?
Posted Feb 8, 08:07 am in consumerism, environment, human nature
This week had an interesting article in the New York Times about environmentally-conscious people ditching their refrigerators, and living their lives without chilling their food. That’s real commitment; our society is not really structured to make a lifestyle change like this easy. Grocery stores are usually far from peoples’ houses, and going there regularly is not convenient. There are any number of reasons that making a change like this would be very difficult. Yet, as I’ve argued before, these difficult changes are the ones that actually make a difference; these are the types of conscious choices that if we took to en masse, would make strong steps towards making serious environmental impacts. But most people still believe that the best way they can change their impacts and lifestyles is by buying recycled toilet paper.
Here is a very telling quote from the article (emphases are mine):
“The refrigerator was a smart advance for society,” said Gretchen Willis, 37, an environmentally conscious mother of four in Arlington, Tex., who recently read about the practice [of living without refrigerators] on a popular eco-themed blog. “I never would have thought of it,” Ms. Willis said, explaining that although she’s committed to recycling and using fluorescent bulbs, she draws the line at any environmental practice that will result in great expense or inconvenience.
It may be worth considering: if you are unwilling to make personal sacrifices, and will only consider changes that are convenient or that won’t cause you any discomfort, are you really committed?