A question about consumerism

[AmberCdCutie]

yeah, i know the topic is not what most people
would consider a good time to read/talk about...
but i have never really seen it mentioned by CD's
...and i was wondering if anyone has dealt with the
issue inside themselves like i have.

personally, i have a hard time with the idea of dressing
in one respect because by dressing you are buying into
the idea that we need to purchase things to represent
who we are. like all of you i personally love having new
or used, nice clothes and things that make me feel good
about my physical appearance...so i'm not trying to say
it is 'such an awful thing...but i guess i'm just wondering
if anyone else has thought about this subject.


~Amber

[kerrianna]

Yeah, I think about it from time to time. I think about the sweatshops some of the stuff I buy might be from.

That's why I prefer to buy second hand and from thrift stores. Besides you can get great deals and finds there!

I won't always be buying stuff, but my cupboards are, ok, were, bare so what's a girl supposed to do?

*turns her attention to the mindless consumerism of new shoes!*

[Chrysoprase]

personally, i have a hard time with the idea of dressing
in one respect because by dressing you are buying into
the idea that we need to purchase things to represent
who we are. like all of you i personally love having new
or used, nice clothes and things that make me feel good
about my physical appearance...so i'm not trying to say
it is 'such an awful thing...but i guess i'm just wondering
if anyone else has thought about this subject.


~Amber

There is no leaving modern society.I have to wear clothes to go outside, I might as well buy clothes I like and am comfortable in.
Of course, people can end "consumerism" by sending me free stuff.

[Toyah]

Hmmmm what can I say should I stop living because some parts of the world have it bad. The problem with the worls is partly wealth distribution I cannot see any way out of that one but is also overpopulation tribalism religion corruption especially in the poorest countries and many more problems that I am afraid I can do nothing about

[Marla S]

personally, i have a hard time with the idea of dressing
in one respect because by dressing you are buying into
the idea that we need to purchase things to represent
who we are.

I think this idea is charming for label junkies ... doesn't matter how it looks like, but it has to be expensive and the label has to be cool.

We need something to represent who we are, we can't go naked (at least not in the northern hemisphere).
This need is fundamental and probably was born with the first fur a caveman pulled on. His friend wants one too, but it has to be better/nicer ---> tribe goes hunting for fur.

Today we purchase clothes. That's the only difference.

Like with everything else you can do this excessive, mature, you can consider childrens work involved, or that people in India, China, Indonesia, Pakistan etc. have a job (that's where most of our clothes come from) etc. but you hardly can avoid purchasing clothes.

[Phyliss]

Perhaps the blouse I bought was made in some 4th world country, the name of which I can't pronounce, and some "designer" label was sewn into it by a 9 yr old child making $.05 cents a weeks. After the item has been shipped here and put on the display rack the "mark down" sale price is only $99.95. But it's so pretty and it fits so nicely, I simply MUST have it.
If I don't buy the blouse that 9 yr old child will be out of work. I'm just doing my small part.

[Dasein9]

I've been coming out over the past year. I'm a grad student, which means I haven't much money, so this has concerned me. Mostly, I do buy from responsible merchants, but for some things I have little choice. I wish I could buy more outright Fair Trade clothing, but sometimes I just have to settle for the Gap or Land's End, where I know the worst abuses aren't happening.

[AmberCdCutie]

hey everybody, thanks for commenting so fast on the subject,
i'm glad to have all the input...but i think maybe i wasn't especially
clear. i wasn't really refering to sweat shops,...or even worried about
how much i pay for the clothes i get (as long as i really like them).

i agree (obviously) that we can't all go butt naked around
but i guess i was just trying to express my unease with the idea
that i can switch into a more comfortable feeling by means of
changeing my wardrobe (which is more what i meant by consumerism).

once again, this is not to say that i don't agree with dressing, because
i obviously do, but i was just seeing if anyone had felt the same unease.

i hope that clears up my point a bit.

thanks again.

[Chrysoprase]

once again, this is not to say that i don't agree with dressing, because
i obviously do, but i was just seeing if anyone had felt the same unease.

.

Nope, not at all.

[Valerie]

After many years of just contemplating silently and with positive envy the wonderful shoes, clothes and accessories that women had available, and dressing in drab for decade after decade, I have indulged these recent months Valerie's wishes, with the wonderful guidance of my wife: ah the dress from Talbots, and the skirt, and the bracelet of pearls, and the three pairs of shoes... They have made me so happy... No guilt, really. I see myself as helping the economy, rewarding good design, and giving Valerie what she merits and needs... I have learned from my wife, though, to look for sales... Cheers,
Valerie

[Marla S]

i agree (obviously) that we can't all go butt naked around
but i guess i was just trying to express my unease with the idea
that i can switch into a more comfortable feeling by means of
changeing my wardrobe (which is more what i meant by consumerism).

What would be the alternative ?

Fine feathers make fine birds.

Clothes are not only for warming anymore.

They are a language.
A language that tells you about the position in the hierarchy, power (i. e. police uniforms), job (i.e. doctor), personality (i. e. extrovert or not) etc. etc. and last but not least they tell about gender ... for yourself and others.

That's why you feel different in different clothes, because they mean something different.

I've learned chemistry, but I become a chemist when I pull on my chemist's smock and the protection glasses (people speak differently with me, I act differently ... silly, but it just happens, because of different clothes.).

[Dasein9]

hey everybody, thanks for commenting so fast on the subject,
i'm glad to have all the input...but i think maybe i wasn't especially
clear. i wasn't really refering to sweat shops,...or even worried about
how much i pay for the clothes i get (as long as i really like them).

i agree (obviously) that we can't all go butt naked around
but i guess i was just trying to express my unease with the idea
that i can switch into a more comfortable feeling by means of
changeing my wardrobe (which is more what i meant by consumerism).

once again, this is not to say that i don't agree with dressing, because
i obviously do, but i was just seeing if anyone had felt the same unease.

i hope that clears up my point a bit.

thanks again.

Maybe you mean "materialism?" (Sorry, the prof in me is coming out.) Are you saying you're feeling some discomfort over the notion that we are altering our outsides, when it's what's inside that counts?

If so, I think it's valid. We are embodied beings, not just souls trapped in bodies. Our bodies have a great deal to do with how we encounter the world. In fact, they're how we encounter the world.

So, the way we present our bodies is one thing that determines how others will encounter us, as part of their world and ours.

[AmberCdCutie]

Dasein, i think that is more the angle i was going with, thank you
for phrasing it better than i could. and i think possibly (actually, surely)
my situation differs because i do not interact when dressed at all...

so i have not had the experience of people interacting with me differently
because of it. that must be an amazing feeling,...

(thanks for everybodys input)

[Chantelle CD]

I can turn and bring my femme self to the surface no matter what i am wearing at the time, ladies clothing or mens. But have to say that the ladies clothing makes me feel a deeper conection to my femme self, so much so that i think it is well worth the effort

Chantelle

[battybattybats]

I've heard some interesting science comparing shopping desire to hunter-gatherer instincts.
I try to be as ethical as I can with food and clothing, but I think that there needs to be an increased public awareness and quality of information on the use of sweatshops so we can make more informed choices.

[gulliver]

what other people do is up them - it's their karma.
personally, i buy most of my clothes in charity shops or on ebay.
i don't buy into consumerism (aka capitalism) because it doesn't work - it's basically a rip off: make something as cheaply as possible and then sell it for as much as possible, while exploiting the workforce and the planet in the process.

everyone is entitled to earn a living, no-one is entitled to be greedy - and those who get paid excessive salaries are just greedy.

[EricaCD]

Hate to admit it but I'm a pretty materialistic person. So this does not really bother me.

[jessie_cal]

Nope, no guilt at all. People voluntarily work to make clothes in 3rd world countries beacause it's better than the alternatives. If I don't buy their clothes, they would have to get less desirables and often more dangerous jobs or no job at all. I would hate for some family to starve to death, because of my misplaced guilt in exploiting them over their own decision to work for a clothing manufacture. Just as I hope that people won't avoid my industry and cause my familiy to starve for my own good. So when I buy a nice dress, it's not for me, it's for the poor

[danielle_from_cal]

No guilt here either. I need what I need. I recycle and do all the "green" stuff, even though I am not a tree hugger. My old clothes go the charity. I am practically a saint.

[mysteryhorn57]

I am very conflicted about this issue. Although I support capitalism, I know that rampant greed and corporate influence over politics is destroying the USA.
Are any of you familiar with the magazine "Adbusters", published in Canada?
I don't agree with a lot of their extreme-enviromentalist-patholical-hatred-of-republicans-socialist political agenda. However, I do agree that all-pervasive advertising is severly polluting the "mental environment".
I despise the music, entertainment and fashion industries, and the news media for their constant dumbing-down, flavor-of-the-month mindset.
I love the "Urban Outfitter" store, but recently sent them these comments:

"Love the store, hate the outrageous prices.
Love the styles and selection, hate that you discriminate against larger size people and older people.
How about embracing DIVERSITY and adding some larger sizes? Fat people shop too, despite what the advertising industry says."

I enjoy using the language of the left to point out discrimination, hypocrisy, and just plain dumb stuff.

RANT OVER. Enjoy your week.

V.

[Alice B]

Only from the standpoint that I had to hide how I made purchases so my wife would not find out. Could not use my checkbook or credit card because she does my books. Had to save money on the side. I like the commercial aspect because buying things that made me feel good and that looked good on me is OK. Now I can make purchases openly, so it is a lot easier. We are all materistic in one way or another.