Consumerism

Tommy Becker

English 10

April 23, 2012

Improving Life

Consumerism interferes with the working of society by replacing the normal common-sense desire for an adequate supply of life’s necessities, community life, a stable family, and healthy relationships with an artificial ongoing and insatiable quest for things and money to buy them with little knowledge for the true understanding of what is bought. It is a pattern of behavior that helps to destroy the environmental, personal financial health, the common good of individuals and human institutions. People are being robbed by the high prices of new things, the cost of credit to buy them, and the less obvious expenses such as, increased registration for cars, insurance, repair and maintenance costs. People have been the victims of companies by falling for their scams and misleading advertising every day. Today people live beyond their means and have not learned to manage their money properly. People need to live a life that can save money and raising the value of what they own, improve their community, and gain time for their family and friends.

Consumerism developed in the eighteenth century. Companies came up with different ways to advertise goods and new ways of marketing developed such as window displays, discounts, and bargains. This type of marketing has over half of all Americans without any savings and has destroyed the financial health of people “Last week [February 2008], Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress that the most recent survey of loan officers at banks found further tightening of loan standards” (Sherer 36-40). The tighter credit gets the possibility of a recession and a recovery is less possible. The access to a higher education could become more restricted, and it may become harder to house people.

Companies have always used different ways to get the attention of the people. And most people have not learned how to manage their money properly and live beyond their means. One...