Wake Up! 99% of gifts will not be in use in 6 months. We must find a better way to love.

[IndyOp]

Love. Isn't that what the season is about? Expressing our love for our families, friends, and communities, and being loving towards ourselves?

If so, how in the world has it come to this: 99% of the gifts exchanged will not be in use within 6 months.

"Our enormously productive economy demands that we make consumption our way of life, that we convert the buying and using of goods into rituals, that we seek our spiritual satisfaction, our ego satisfaction in consumption... We need things consumed, burned up, replaced and discarded at an ever-accelerating rate."

- Retailing Analyst Victor LeBeau just after World War II

What is ego satisfaction? Being proud of yourself. Are you are good friend? A good parent? A good child? Do your clothes express your personality? Do you "feel better" when you buy that new iPhone, iPod? (You may not need it, but you'll feel better if you have it.) If your ego satisfaction is derived from material possessions, it isn't safe. Your ego isn't safe in your iPod or your shoes, or your car, or your house.

Click on the word "Consumption" in the menu bar at the top of this page The Story of Stuff with Annie Leonard

Spending this Christmas season is the same or greater than in previous years.

We cannot, we must not, ever again have a holiday season like this one!

Are we really so uncreative, so thoughtless that we cannot find another way to express our love?

What am I doing about it? I gave one material object to a friend this Christmas - a CD of "Listening is an Act of Love" - to everyone else I gave gift certificates they can redeem to give to a charity. I don't have kids. If I did I would consider giving one gift to each child or giving only personally-made gifts -- which could be gifts of my time or talents that would be distributed throughout the year. I know that a lot of people explain their consumptive habits at Christmas by saying that they buy clothes and shoes and other things that people need anyway - I think that we wind up buying too much or buying the wrong thing when we do this.

I challenge you to write down all of the material goods you gave and received for the holidays and to decide now by how much you can reduce this amount next year -- by 50%? 75%? 90%?

99% of the gifts exchanged will not be in use within 6 months - that is a wake up call.

Redefine Christmas http://www.redefinechristmas.org/

Kiva - Loans that change lives http://www.kiva.org/

Heifer International http://www.heifer.org/site/c.edJRKQNiFiG/b.901767/

[napi21]

1. I watched a show on cspan yesterday where the guest was talking

about the insanity of what products are manufactured now. He said companies are making "stuff" and convincing us that we HAVE TI HAVE IT, instead of making things that we need! Capitalism run amouck! It was a great show and I agreed with that guest completely!

[tavalon]

75. I recently saw something that made me laugh out loud,

but the laugh sounded a lot like a strangled scream. It was a pair of heavy duty scissors/clippers specifically designed to open the impossible clamshell plastic packages that so many things come in these days. And yes, it was encased in just such a package. Create a problem, create a solution and the merry go round just keeps on turning.

I apparently love no one as I don't celebrate Christmas. I had the joyous experience today of being alone in my house without the TV on, no music playing, lounging the day away, reading a book, doing logic puzzles and puttering. I love puttering.

Now actually, I love many people and they me, but we've decided that the way to show that is by being loving to one another throughout the year and in a non consumer way.

[bluerum]

2. But, corpomerica says buy a gift to show your love,,, so we buy gifts

hoping to fill the crater sized holes in our hearts. And all it fills is the corpomerica bank accounts.

How can that be?

[alfredo]

3. I gave good wine. Let's hope it is gone in six months.

[liberalnurse]

53. A couple could practice making a baby

while sipping that wine. If they make a baby...that gift will keep on giving.

So, I say...................have lots of sex this Christmas Day!

If a couple is gay....I hope they got a new puppy or kitten, which by this time next year, that gift could have more puppies and/or kittens...Regardles, sip that wine and have lots of frolicking sex.

[alfredo]

62. They say that wine is proof God loves us.

[bagrman]

90. I thought that it was beer, but not that wimpy stuff. motor oil lookin stuff.

[alfredo]

91. Corporate beer does nothing for me. Give me some Samuel Smith

or some of the Good stuff out of Great Lakes Brewery. I'm currently drinking their Holy Moses White Ale.

Mackeson XXX Stout is a good choice. I like it a lot better than Guinness. It's more complex.

http://www.ratebeer.com/Beer/mackeson-xxx-stout/3766/


Give me a bourbon or an American Rye.

[cali]

4. I hope the gifts I'm giving won't be in use 6 months from

I made pancake mix and paired them with a half pint of maple syrup. Also made loofah soaps (no billo jokes please) and brandied plum and walnut preserves as well as chutney. I did buy a few gifts from a neat used/collectibles shop, including a first edition of a Marie Corelli novel for $1. I also bought my son, a new and beautiful, and yes, expensive ski jacket and long underwear.

[asdjrocky]

27. Cal-

Have I given you my address?

[Hippo_Tron]

5. I enjoy wearing clothes that make me look nice

If that makes me a shallow person then I'm shallow. I plan on making the sweaters I got for Christmas last a lot longer than 6 months.

[Sarah Ibarruri]

6. This year some of my family from Europe came to visit...

Last nite we got together for Christmas Eve for a huge, gigantic, wonderful meal we all loved. However, some of us have gotten into the cultural habit of the American gift exchange between adults. They were a bit peeved and I could tell they thought it was beyond tacky and unnecessary. Finally, one of them (a woman) said (smiling), "This is terrible what happens in this country isn't it? All this gift buying and gift giving and wasting time shopping for things people don't need." It was a tad rude by American standards but you know what? The commercialism of Christmas was begun by corporations, and THAT is why it is terrible, unnecessary and a waste. We need to stop it. Let's take all that money and give it to people who are suffering with cancer and who have very little time left to live, so they can maybe enjoy a last wish. Better than picture frames, candles, gift cards and other things which the gift receiver was not needing to begin with.

[IndyOp]

11. Wow. I just love people who are honest to the point of being blunt.

I seriously did not know that gift giving between adults is limited primarily to America. You said your family is from Europe - which countries? I ask so that if I share this bit of information with others I can let them know that the person who said this is from a country with a healthy, middle-class economy -- not a country that does not exchange gifts because the economy is depressed.

:hi:

[Sarah Ibarruri]

15. Christmas gifts are for kids. Corporations invented the adult gift giving and the U.S.

jumped on the bandwagon as this country does with everything else. France and Spain. Now, people do give gifts, but this marathon gift-giving between adults for Christmas is a typical American thing.

This year alone, I've heard about the ridiculous waste of this from a Russian man, a Chinese man, and my European relatives.

[asdjrocky]

28. Is it any wonder I always see you saying good things about Edwards?

You sound like a wonderful person to me.

[sandnsea]

34. Some people do need it

and some adults would never have special things if they didn't get them as gifts at Christmas. I think some of what I see is excessive, especially in a family where everybody has everything already anyway. But that's not true for most people. I really don't understand the resentment in giving a nice gift. Most of the favorite things that I treasure now, I've gotten as Christmas gifts. Then again, I lost everything in a fire at one point, so maybe I treasure the little personal momentoes more than most people. When you look around your home, it's all those special little gifts that make it your home, your life. I manage to give charitably and give gifts too. If I can find the money, anybody can.

[KittyWampus]

7. well, in 6 months those scarves/sweaters/coats will be out of season. The candy/cookies/fruit eaten

etc

[IndyOp]

13. Many consumer goods are meant to be consumed - food, cleaning products

and such. Winter clothing that will be used again next winter is not in the trash. The animation to which I linked in my OP says that 99% of consumer products are IN THE TRASH within 6 months -- clothes, etcetera. That is the crying shame.

[treestar]

92. True, but it lasts a long time and so once you get it, you don't need more

I've worn the same winter coat for years - and winter seems to get shorter and shorter around here. I have more winter clothes than summer, which is funny, because one ends up needing more summer clothes than winter, but no one gives summer clothes for Christmas. Though of course the retailers don't mind that.

[wake.up.america]

8. I asked for and received a pair of gloves. The kids? That is a different story.

Toys, toys and more toys.

[burythehatchet]

9. unfortunately, our entire culture is based upon consumption

and changing that mindset is the key to our survival.

[IndyOp]

12. I agree with you completely. I would say that change our materialistic mindset

is key to everything I want to see happen - social and economic justice and an end to war. Dr. King said that materialism, racism and militarism are triplets. The way we rid the world of racism and militarism is to end the materialism.

:hi:

[burythehatchet]

22. There seems to be another, more insidious, aspect of the consumer culture that

one might call "homogenization". Diversity in expression is driven out and replaced with a homogenized instruction manual of how you should be living your life. Why this is a danger to us is that it allows the social scientists to craft messages that keep us uninformed and apathetic.

[IndyOp]

26. And conforming... always conforming...

uninformed and apathetic and conforming.

How do I know what things I want, how I want to spend my time, where I want to travel, how I will participate in society? Conform to what others around me are doing.

The corporate culture is a giant machine and we can serve as nameless, faceless, replaceable cogs or we can do everything possible to get out of this homogenized existence.

[Uben]

10. I got some recycled plastic cups and ......

.......a burka made from an old diaper! I couldn't be happier! God Bless us every one!

[mr_hat]

18. Luxury!

[fed-up]

14. food is the best gift-I used to make food care packages w/all sorts of specialty items

Great way to have family and friends try out those things one does not ordinarily buy!

and you may even get an invite to dinner when they are used :)

[MindPilot]

16. Already done at my house

I gave my son a new camera--his old one was broken and the new one should give him several years of service. He gave me me a few little tools/gadgets I can use at work...probably didn't spend over $20. One was a kit to convert my flashlight to LED. No more bulb replacements and longer battery life. A couple of DVDs, and the rest of the gifts given or received were food.

All in all a very frugal christmas...probably the most wasteful thing was the wrapping paper and that's already in the recycle bin.

[Irishonly]

17. Some of the gifts I give will, some won't

A few years back my family decided enough was enough. Now we have make sure our Christmas stays simple. My dagger receives gifts from us and so do the dogs (Santa Claus Dog) but my husband and I gave up gifts. Instead we donate to a charity of our choice in each other's name. Two years ago my daughter decided to give up a few gifts also. For family and friends we give home made gifts. We enjoy Christmas more. We sit each night by candle light. It's become one of the most least stressful holidays.

[BlackVelvet04]

19. Not the gifts I gave to my husband....

new floor mats and seat covers for his truck. They will be in use for a long time.

[Whisp]

20. great post! important reminder about Gift Cards...

if you recieve any this season, BE SURE TO CASH THEM IN! and read the fine print for expiry dates, service costs, etc.

I heard on a news show yesterday that a whopping 25% don't get cashed in! In Canada that is as much as 20+ some million bucks! I was floored.That's free money for the stores - which would be okay if retailers paid their staff a good wage - but most don't, they just pocket that extra juicy profit for themselves.

chocolates, coffee, coacoa and cash was all we gave away this year (maybe next year it will be 'B' gifts ;). Extra expenses went into food and drink for dinners, that's all - no crazed eye last minute shopping for useless gadgets, no parking lot traumas - it's a beautiful thing.

[bananas]

21. Easy solution: Christmas in July

Wrap them up and give them to someone else!

[IndyOp]

38. I am with you completely in regards to giving away things that I don't

need or use. If we did that really consistently we would be much better off, no doubt.

Still we have an acquisitive society that needs to make some major adjustments in terms of how we live.

I agree with Garrett Hardin - the ecologist who wrote about the Tragedy of the Commons in 1968 - he said that we, as a society, are facing problems that cannot be solved by technological means, they can only be solved by a change in human moral values.

I see two moral values that must change ASAP -- materialism and sexism.

Dr. King said that materialism, racism, and militarism are triplets -- racism and militarism would cease if materialism ceased.

Societies that devalue women have population growth, societies that value women have stable populations.

Conquer the materialism and the sexism and we might just be able to deal with the climate crisis. We have about 5 years until the polar ice cap will be melted entirely during the summer -- 5 years. 5 years to turn this world around.

Starting by redefining Christmas and all other religious/spiritual occasions as anti-materialistic events would be a very, very good start.

[comradebillyboy]

23. thank you for telling how we should live our lives

I am an atheist and I like Christmas, I like exchanging gifts, I like a little time off, I like having an excuse to over eat and drink too much. If you would like to do something else feel free, but,.... stop Bill-think blood pressure

[IndyOp]

69. We, as a society, have a responsibility to make decisions together about

what is in our communal best interests. For too long we've been sold a bill of goods that personal choice is the be-all-and-end-all of a happy life. Some choices we must make together and I believe that a lot of the choices that will be necessary to combat the climate crisis will involve reducing our hyper-consumptive ways. We all - you and I and everyone else - get to make personal decisions as we see fit within the context of a larger social compact. Right now I think we need to challenge each other to think in very dramatic ways about how we are going to accomplish the major changes required of us to address the climate crisis and create a just world. Dr. King said that materialism, racism, and militarism are triplets. We must reduce the materialism to reduce the other horrors.

Peace.

[nolabels]

71. I have noticed the bigger problem is the people who listen and do as they are told

The most refreshing people i have met are those who refuse to go to the back of the bus. Viva la Revolution and out with the stale and weak

[TheFriendlyAnarchist]

24. I just got a 5.1 surround sound, 650 Watt theater system.

I'm using this fucker forever.

[burythehatchet]

29. wanna bet?

If you purchased a new 5.1 stereo prepackaged by Sony or JVC or any other mass producer, it is very likely that the equipment will malfunction in some critical way within a year.

As an example, in 1984 I purchased my first VCR (google it if you don't know what a VCR is). It was an NEC. It weighed about 25 lbs and was quite large. I still have this piece of electronic eq. It still works just like the day I took it out of the box. Never needed any repair whatsoever. Of course it was new technology at the time and it was expensive; my VCR was $440.

Compare that with the THREE dvd players that I have discarded because they were inoperable, and repairing them costs more than a new one. In total I've probably spent 600 on dvd players and still don't have a solid one. Meanwhile, all the materials and production resources that went into making the cheap stuff is not manifest in the junkyard. This is just wrong.

[IndyOp]

40. They build them to break down - did you watch "The Story of Stuff"...?

Annie Leonard talks about how companies discuss how they can design equipment so that it will break down, but not so quickly that the person will lose faith and refuse to go buy another.

In Mark Twain's realm of plain lies, damn lies, and statistics -- manufacturing and marketing are DAMN LIES.

http://www.storyofstuff.com/

[Touchdown]

44. You're not buying the right DVD players.

You need to buy the top of the lines. Panasonic, Toshiba and Mitsubishi all make durable top of the line DVD players. They sell for more than $600 though. You buy a cheap product, you get one, and as a bonus, the landfill gets one too. My $1000 Panasonic (the first with progressive scan) was bought in 2000. It's going on it's 8th year now.

[ShaneGR]

57. I refuse to buy a $1000 DVD player, and I spend money on electronics....

I think the most I've ever spent was $200 on a 3 disc changer that eventually broke, but I've got several DVD players and I've never had an issue. I don't have the nice Bluerays though.

[Hippo_Tron]

47. Well my $50 APEX DVD player has lasted for 4 years now

Guess I'm just lucky.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

82. I have a $39 Apex 13" tv... 4 years this month.

and a Toshiba $49 DVD player, bought the same day.

:shrug:

[ShaneGR]

56. No offense, but I've had the same 5.1 stereo from Sony for 7 years now....

Never had one single problem. Now, I did have a problem with a 5disc dvd changer once, but that's the only DVD I ever had an issue with and I own like 6.

[TheFriendlyAnarchist]

58. It is an Onkyio.

But you're right, some manufacturing practices are downright criminal.

[burythehatchet]

61. Cool. My 30 year old Onkyo Receiver/Amp (60 WPC) is still powering my tunes.

[JCMach1]

77. I just threw one out before Xmas... died after two years and completely

useless//

[L0oniX]

25. christmas is for ignorant suckers

Go to the library sometime and read up on where christmas came from and what the motives were. and --- Where in the bible does it say that any believers celebrated yearly the physical birthday of the Messiah? and --- Give a gift if you will when it is not expected so the person knows you are giving because you really want to and not because of some corporate agenda.

[Lex]

31. My family actually enjoys the day to spend time with one another.

Telling family stories, catching up with each other, sharing a good meal, and watching the cousins play together.

Perhaps we are ignorant suckers for loving & enjoying one another so.

[L0oniX]

48. Too bad you have to use a lame holiday as the reason to get together with family.

I would think family would want to get together because they love each other not because it's the only time they can't go to work or be in school. What does it say? "I can't or won't get together with those I love unless there is some other reason besides love, to do so". Suckers applies to those who are forced to go drive with other maniacs to get cheap Chinese crap to give to one another. Ignorant applies to those who do think that God actually wants people to celebrate -yearly- a so called Holy day that is not in the bible. If you are not celebrating Christmas but are celebrating solstice, that I can appreciate. In any case, buying more crap when everyone in this country needs to save and conserve is not in our own best interests.

[Lex]

50. LOL. We get together often. Leap to conclusions much?

Your family must be overjoyed to have you around.

[L0oniX]

51. They were.

We used to get together about once a month and cook out in my grand parents back yard. I had 4 uncles which made for a huge family with lots of cousins.

[Skittles]

65. strange isn't it?

how some people need a special day/time of the year to get gifts and get together with family

[Lex]

30. Books? Cookies & cakes I baked?

2 of my favorite gifts to give.

:hi:

[IndyOp]

35. I am still eager to have books available in a really comfortable electronic format -

So I never have to contribute to the deaths of trees again. I don't want to sit at my computer to read a book and I looked at Amazon's Kindle, but I don't want to be stuck buying publications only from Amazon and affiliated newspapers and magazines. I don't mind paying for the publisher's and author's efforts to produce the document, but I don't want to have to purchase the book itself.

To make eBook gift giving really easy then we need to get to a point where many, many people have a really comfortable piece of equipment that can download material from any publisher.

Cookies and cakes are always in good taste. :D

[Lex]

36. I always say "read it and pass it on"

and I do the same with my own books.

[IndyOp]

39. I do read books and pass them on --

on to the local library for the book sale that they use to raise funds for special projects, on to the local women's shelter, and on to the local secondhand bookseller who then gives the money he would otherwise pay me to a local group that provides reading materials to prisoners.

Still -- if you and I did the research to find out the amount of materials used to print books each year we would most likely be appalled to see how many virgin trees are destroyed, how many chemical additives are used to make the paper and print the books, and how much pollution is created by shipping the books to the sellers. I would bet that of all of the books sold at least 20% to 30% more are printed and destroyed because no one bought them. I recently heard Thom Hartmann say that a majority of books that are purchased are never read. The waste in the system is horrendous.

I think that books printed on paper or hemp or what-have-you need to go the way of the dodo bird -- we need to go to a comfortable electronic format ASAP. The Amazon Kindle has some great features -- you can highlight text and write notes in the margin and dog-ear pages -- if we could then pass that on to friends to read then that would be terrific.

Amazon Kindle -> http://www.amazon.com/Kindle-Amazons-Wireless-Reading-Device/dp/B000FI73MA

* Revolutionary electronic-paper display provides a sharp, high-resolution screen that looks and reads like real paper.
* Simple to use: no computer, no cables, no syncing.
* Wireless connectivity enables you to shop the Kindle Store directly from your Kindle—whether you’re in the back of a taxi, at the airport, or in bed.
* Buy a book and it is auto-delivered wirelessly in less than one minute.
* More than 90,000 books available, including more than 95 of 112 current New York Times® Best Sellers.
* New York Times® Best Sellers and all New Releases $9.99, unless marked otherwise.
* Free book samples. Download and read first chapters for free before you decide to buy.
* Top U.S. newspapers including The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post; top magazines including TIME, Atlantic Monthly, and Forbes—all auto-delivered wirelessly.
* Top international newspapers from France, Germany, and Ireland; Le Monde, Frankfurter Allgemeine, and The Irish Times—all auto-delivered wirelessly.
* More than 250 top blogs from the worlds of business, technology, sports, entertainment, and politics, including BoingBoing, Slashdot, TechCrunch, ESPN's Bill Simmons, The Onion, Michelle Malkin, and The Huffington Post—all updated wirelessly throughout the day.
* Lighter and thinner than a typical paperback; weighs only 10.3 ounces.
* Holds over 200 titles.
* Long battery life. Leave wireless on and recharge approximately every other day. Turn wireless off and read for a week or more before recharging. Fully recharges in 2 hours.
* Unlike WiFi, Kindle utilizes the same high-speed data network (EVDO) as advanced cell phones—so you never have to locate a hotspot.
* No monthly wireless bills, service plans, or commitments—we take care of the wireless delivery so you can simply click, buy, and read.
* Includes free wireless access to the planet's most exhaustive and up-to-date encyclopedia—Wikipedia.org.
* Email your Word documents and pictures (.JPG, .GIF, .BMP, .PNG) to Kindle for easy on-the-go viewing.
* Included in the box: Kindle wireless reader, Book cover, Power adapter, USB 2.0 cable

[girl gone mad]

84. At least unwanted books...

will biodegrade. The last thing this earth needs is more electronic waste. There are millions of books whose format simply can't be duplicated, even on the most advanced gadget. Many people don't have access to the hours of energy required to read e-books. Not to mention that a textbook which can't be resold is every publisher's dream and most students' nightmare. Be careful what you wish for.

[IndyOp]

85. I teach at a University - textbooks available as eBooks cost less than used hard copies.

I encourage my students to buy eBooks instead of hard copy textbooks. College textbooks companies print "new" editions every couple of years so that used textbooks can only be resold for 2-3 semesters.

The textbook for my Introductory Psychology class next semester is available at the campus bookstore -
New $128.00
Used if available $96.00

If students can sell their book back at the end of the semester they will probably get $30 - though I am not sure of that.

The same book can be downloaded as an eBook onto your computer -or- you can view a copy online from any computer for $66. If you download it onto your computer, then you can print as many copies of the assigned chapters as you wish. <- This means that 2 or 3 students could purchase a copy for download and then print copies for each person.

The cost of an eBook and of a used textbook that can be resold is comparable, so I disagree that eBooks that can't be resold is most students' nightmare.

As for hours of energy required to read an eBook, you have a very valid point. Over the long haul, powered by solar energy, and long-lasting eBook unit will be an ecological plus rather than a minus.

As for "Be careful what you wish for" <- that is a scolding I don't think I need, as least not in that tone.

[John Q. Citizen]

74. Easy - Bleached hemp paper books. I'm not sure e-books are ecologically

superior to printed books. Most of the worlds electricity is produced by burning hydro carbon based fuels to turn electrical turbines.

And the need to produce, and distribute a brand new product to make use of e-books sounds like a consumerist's dream.

I can see the there are also potential postives with e-books as well, from determining the font and font size to instant worldwide distribution, at least to those among the 6 billion of us who are lucky enough to own such a device and have access to a connected e-reader machine.

I see Christmas as a kind of modern potlatch ritual, similar in some ways to those practiced among some of the Northwestern Coastal tribes in the US. The social scientists who have applied the data to marketing have certainly helped shape it's modern practices here in corporate media saturated America.

[superduperfarleft]

32. It sounds corny, but charitable donation is exactly what I did this year.

I gave donations in the names of my mom, my wife, and a couple of good friends, each to a charity that represented a cause that each of them personally care about and/or worked in, and I was truly surprised at the reactions I got. They went from extremely grateful to being almost in tears.

For the record, I loathe Christmas. Even the Grinch himself would tell me to lighten up. This was a way for me to casually participate in this horrible holiday and actually make a point about WHY I hate it. Despite the different situations of many people, we are better off than someone else, and even if you don't think about it the rest of the year, it never hurts to really think about how relatively fortunate you are at least once in a while.

Anyway, this was the first year I did this, and it definitely won't be the least. I think everyone should try this next xmas, and I bet you'll be surprised at the reactions.

[Akoto]

33. I enjoy giving and receiving gifts for Christmas.

I'm evil, I guess. :(

[IndyOp]

37. I've enjoyed giving and receiving gifts for Christmas in past, but I am

far too concerned about the deep changes we need to make in our culture and economy to head off ecological collapse to see what happens in America as acceptable any longer.

We can still give and receive - something other than material possessions.

How satisfying is it to think that 99% of what we give and receive will be in the trash within 6 months?

[Akoto]

42. That's usually not true for me, so I can't really answer. n/t

[Touchdown]

41. Off point but... Why is the iPod always the Devil of choice in these...

rants about meaningless consumerism? I use mine every day at work. I've had one since 2004, and have a hard time thinking of one other product that has give me as much enjoyment in more than a decade. It's a music player. Music is part of our lives. Everybody has their own unique emotional experience with music. I just don't get the hatred of something that's actually useful. I can think of many other things that are truly insipid.

SUVs
Playstation Portables
Salad Shooters
Windows Vista
Stiletto healed shoes
Evening gowns
TIES!!!!
Nintendo Wii
The Will Farrell movie DVD box set.:puke:
Exotic cheese trays
Danish cookie tins
Cellphone-PDAs
The Tornado Vacuum cleaner
Sonic Care toothbrush
The list goes on.

Why bag on iPod, which that CD you gave may get downloaded to, and listened to everywhere? Wasn't that the point of giving it in the first place?

[IndyOp]

43. I don't hate the iPod. I am typing this on my iMac, which I love and use

daily for 8-12 hours. The iPod wound up on my list because:

First, Annie Leonard shows her iPod at the start of the animation and uses it as a starting point to talk about how we can get obsessed about our stuff -- and people can get obsessed about their iPods.

iPod fits the definition of consumer goods that are consistently made obsolete by allowing them to go out of style. If you've had yours since 2004, then you haven't fallen for commercials that try to convince you that you need a new one with MORE memory or you need one in a new color or whatever... I teach at a Big 10 University and personal reputation among college students (and younger teens) rises and falls based on how "new" and awesome ones electronic devices are or aren't. See for example Teenage Affluenza

Colten (sp?) -- Annie Leonard mentions in the video that 30% of teenagers in the Congo have dropped out of school to mine the mineral needed to produce inexpensive consumer electronics.

I think the iPod gets picked on because it is trendy. It is an ecological plus if people buy an iPod and hold on to it for a good long time; if people purchase their music by downloading it so that they never have to purchase a CD that has to be manufactured and shipped; if people have to pay the full cost of producing that iPod that includes fair wages for the workers who manufacture it and an ecologically sound method of manufacturing them.

[Touchdown]

46. Well, I guess you have a point. Popularity of it and all.

I didn't tell you what I'm doing. I've been printing up some of my best photography in 8X10s and making albums for my family members. It uses ink, but that's the only big expense for me. I asked for a magazine subscription from my sister, and for my Mom to make me a new bath robe. She's a whiz at sewing, always has been, and I don't need another watch or billfold. She loves to sew too, so I get clothes with love right in the seams.:hi:

I got mint condition used model train set for $60 for my nephew at an auction that was held at work, so I didn't even have to leave the building!

I'm on my second iPod now. The old B&W one I had fell on the pavement and split in 4 or 5 pieces last fall, so yeah, I had to break down and buy a new one.:blush:

[Hippo_Tron]

49. I'm going to take issue with a couple of these

1) I like ties but I don't buy them as gifts because it's hard to tell what somebody will like and if they don't like the tie, it just sits there and doesn't get use. Ties are one of the few accessories that men get to have and I enjoy being able to have that choice in my outfits.

2) My mother who is a dentist insists that I use an electric toothbrush instead of a manual one. She says that they work better.

3) I got my Super Nintendo in 1994 and my Nintendo 64 in 1998 and I still use both systems because older video games are still a lot of fun to play. I own a Wii but I'm starting to think that it doesn't have the classic value that the older systems have. Once there is a better model out, it may just be an obsolete piece of hardware. Either way, I'm probably not buying a video game system every again because they just take up too much time.

4) Danish cookies are damn good. The fancy packaging is probably not necessary, though.

[Touchdown]

87. I have an old Super Nintendo in my closet.

Every now and then, I'll get it down, hook it up and play for a few days. Metroid is my fave. Metroid Prime for GC was not as fun, even though it was more flashy. I guess I'm getting too old for the new fancy games. The last one I actually finished was the N64 Zelda, and I needed a $20 book for that. I take that back, I finished Pikmin on GC, which was a great original game! But, I still like my old early 90s 2D games better.

My dentist wants me to spend $100 on a Sonicare too. If it was that important, then why the expense?

Ties are the bane of my existence. I don't go to work in them, so maybe that's why.

Cookies are good to share, but not to give. I enjoy company when eating.

[Lilith Velkor]

45. Love has nothing to do with it.

I wonder why children can figure this out easily, but not grownups.

[Raksha]

52. That has GOT to be the sickest thing I ever read!

"Our enormously productive economy demands that we make consumption our way of life, that we convert the buying and using of goods into rituals, that we seek our spiritual satisfaction, our ego satisfaction in consumption... We need things consumed, burned up, replaced and discarded at an ever-accelerating rate."

- Retailing Analyst Victor LeBeau just after World War II

And what's truly sickening about it is how well this strategy worked, and how long it worked too. Now the majority of Americans flat-out can't afford it, so maybe things will finally start to change.

[pitohui]

54. think about this a little bit

most of the gifts i gave this xmas were food and liquor, obviously, yeah they won't be in use in 6 months, they will have been consumed == two items i gave that were NOT a consumable were purchased in a very poor country in africa and i suspect that buying these made a difference to the independent vendor selling them, a lot more difference than donating the money from a distance in the usa and hoping somehow the money actually reaches a working person in africa rather than a skimmer or a scammer

many of the other gifts that people give are cash and gift cards, again, by june, they will have been used

just don't see how it's useful to say, OMG, by june, 99 of gifts will not be in use, so many gifts are food etc that it's only natural for this to be the case

[IndyOp]

59. The 99% statistic is from the animation "The Story of Stuff" that is linked in the OP

If you go to the resources pages on the Story of Stuff website and click on "Annotated Script (PDF)" on page 9 you will find:

Paul Hawken, Natural Capitalism, (1999) p. 81.
Note: Since so many viewers have asked about this fact, I’ll include the whole paragraph from Natural Capitalism to provide more explanation: “In short, the whole concept of industry’s dependence on ever faster once-through flow of materials from depletion to pollution is turning from a hallmark of progress into a nagging signal of uncompetitiveness. It’s dismaying enough that compared with their theoretical potential, even the most energy-efficient countries are only a few percent energy-efficient. It’s even worse that only one percent of the total North American materials flow ends up in, and is still being used within, products six months after their sale. That roughly one percent materials efficiency is looking more and more like a vast business opportunity. But this opportunity extends far beyond just recycling bottles and paper, for it involves nothing less than the fundamental redesign of industrial production and the myriad uses for its products. The next business frontier is rethinking everything we consume; what is does, where it comes from, where it goes, and how we can keep on getting its service from a net flow of very nearly nothing at all – but ideas.”

This is Paul Hawken's website: http://www.paulhawken.com/

Author Paul Hawken on “Blessed Unrest: How the Largest Movement in the World Came into Being and Why No One Saw It Coming”
http://www.democracynow.org/2007/5/23/author_paul_hawken_on_blessed_unrest

Best-Selling Author Paul Hawken On Renewable Energy, Sustainable Living, and Reigning in Multinational Corporations
http://www.democracynow.org/2002/9/3/best_selling_author_paul_hawken_on

[pitohui]

79. sorry but i don't click on animated "scripts"

but i can look around me and know for a surety that this statistic is bogus

sleep on it, think about what most people really buy for gifts, and you'll realize the same

most gifts are SMALL things like home-baked cookies for the office, an envelope with cash in it for a favorite bartender or hair stylist, gift cards for family members you can't shop for -- it goes on and on and by far most gifts are consumables that are MEANT to be consumed before 6 months are out

every xmas can't be about giving her the big diamond or giving him a new convertible, that's a fantasy for teevee, not real life, most xmas gifts are modest and meant to be used

[dysfunctional press]

86. how is paul hawken able to pull these numbers out of his ass, when his head is lodged do far up it?

"It’s even worse that only one percent of the total North American materials flow ends up in, and is still being used within, products six months after their sale."

:rofl:

it doesn't take long at all to realize what utter bullshit a statistic like that is.

do 99% of the items you purchase end up being disposed of within 6 months? :shrug:

do you know ANYBODY who disposes 99% of their stuff within 6 months?

paul hawken = hugh moran

[IndyOp]

60. One more thought -- yes, of course, it is natural for food and cleaning products

and such to be used up. It isn't natural for toys and clothes and entertainment items and tools and all of the packaging to be in the trash within 6 months -- that 99% includes ALL materials required to manufacture and deliver the item.

Taking into account the fact that some consumer goods are meant to be used up then a good figure for still in use 6 months later might be 50% -- or 60% -- but 1% is a low, low figure.

[ShaneGR]

55. When people ask me what to get, I always say artwork, kitchenware, or clothes

Stuff that tends to be used for a long time.

[spinbaby]

63. Ours will be used up in six months

We gave home heating oil.

[Marrah_G]

64. People just need to think before they spend

Everything I received will be used. Everything I gave will be used. I think that is because the people I exchange Yule gifts with are thoughtful in what they choose.

I can't speak for others, but I enjoy the Holidays and I enjoy picking out things for the ones I love.

[IndyOp]

67. Think before we spend, yes. Ask others what they need, what they will use...

All good. As a nation, we must drastically reduce our materialism to be a moral nation. Individuals who are already thoughtful consumers and thrifty and so forth won't have a much changing to do as those who aren't.

[CorpGovActivist]

66. K & R for Unorthodox Thinking!

Thank you for sharing these links, and a very simple message: the distilled meaning of love for one's fellow humans.

- Dave

[rucky]

68. K&R - and thanks for the intro to Kiva!

I always learn something new from you.

[IndyOp]

70. Thanks Rucky! There is a feature about Kiva on Frontline -

It airs tonight, tomorrow and the next day on PBS and you can watch it online here:

Uganda: A Little Goes a Long Way
http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/uganda601/video_index.html

Frontline: A World of Good
http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/702_world_of_good/

[lonestarnot]

72. I will use everything I received for Christmas,

and I have learned the art of careful shopping. Only buy what one needs is the secret.

[burrowowl]

73. What I love about Corporatist

Capitalism is that I get a choice of hundreds of kinds and colors of for example shoes I don't want, I want a pair of leather with leather sole penny loafers and unless I can afford at least $300 for a pair they are unavailable and don't mention a combination last (AA and AAA or the heel gets rubbed raw), used to be could get such shoes at department store or local shoe seller for a reasonable price, no longer. etc.

[dysfunctional press]

76. where do you get the 99% figure from?

is it derived from actual data- or just pulled out of your ass?

:shrug:

[pitohui]

80. it appears to be pulled out of paul hawken's ass not the OPs

however i agree with you that it's completely unbelievable

i bet MOST gifts are food, alcohol, gift cards, and money -- items that are not wasted when consumed, in fact, consuming them is what they are for

[Ellen Forradalom]

78. My son and I did Heifer International for my mother

We bought small gifts for the in-laws
We kept it very low-key in our family.

I did get a new MacBook for Christmas. But that's going to see a LOT of use.

[kineneb]

81. but most of the gifts I got were practical- tool roll-away, painting easel, wind up radio

Mom won the roll-away at some party, the easel was her idea (I do oil painting), and the wind-up radio has all sorts of emergency goodies- light, siren, and most important: a cell phone charger.

The gifts I gave: A stuffed unicorn puppet from the Hospice thrift store ($1.50+ $1.50 for decorative ribbon), a lamp for a friend, a hand-knitted shawl for Sis-IL, a pile of redwood burl for Brother, and a hand-knitted hat for Step-father. We live on a fixed income.

[Lorien]

83. My family and I have always been big into practical gifts

usually something reused; books, CDs, appliances, cookware, etc. This year I'm giving my mother my old-but cleaned up-iMac to replace her 15 year old Dell which has given her nothing but a headache.The Mac will be a huge help to her. We often exchange services instead of gifts; cleaning out a garage for the person, or offering to paint a room or weed a garden. Those are the type that I really appreciate as a single home owner.This year while I was kitten sitting for my neighbors I cleaned and organized their home. They are journalists and just don't think much about housekeeping or decorating, so I took some of what they already had, plus baskets and other extras I found in my own attic and spruced up the whole place. They had always been embarrassed to have guests at their home, but after I did what I could they had a huge Christmas party! Doing such a thing for just anyone wouldn't work in many cases, but they were thrilled with their newly organized and decorated living areas and kitchen.It really just comes down to knowing a person well enough to know what would really be meaningful to them. My mother gave charitable donations one year as Christmas gifts, but they were to a Christian evangelical charity. Something like World Wildlife Fund or UNICEF would have worked for me, but a missionary group didn't fit with my own set of beliefs, so it wasn't the right match.

[gollygee]

88. I love to buy gifts at Christmas, but I am careful with what I buy

I first try to find as much as I can from local craftspeople and artisans.

The rest (assuming bought new) has to be made somewhere where people make reasonable wages and where there are good environmental laws. (I have a kid so this is tricky but I managed. No point buying her garbage that's poisonous or will break anyway).

Bonus points for anything made of recycled materials, anything used (I don't buy icky used stuff but my niece can play with used DS games as easily as new ones, and I can afford to buy her nicer games if I buy used).

So, what did I find for my daughter?

A metal loom (made in the US) and loops (scraps from sock industry that would be garbage otherwise) to make people potholders. We can cut up the ankle parts of scrap socks to make potholders and what-not out of too. I guess you can weave the squares together to make blankets even if we make enough squares.
Books (made in US)
US-produced art supplies
Nesting dolls (Russian but used)
Puzzles (made in Germany)
Legos (made in Europe and US)
Scarf, hat, mittens, and sweater (made by local artist and friend who uses recycled yard from scrap sweaters)
Jewelry box (made by local artist)

In my family, the adults don't generally get each other things, although we do get our parents things. The few things I got for adults were made by local artists (jewelry, scarves, etc.)

Anyway, it is possible to choose to buy things that aren't so bad and still have stuff under your tree for the kids.

[LWolf]

89. I guess it depends on how you spend.

For adults, most of what I spent is consumable: theater tickets, a movie gift card, a book gift card.

I did give some books and dvds, which I'm betting will be around and still in use this time next year.

I also bought a couple of pairs of winter gloves for people who didn't have any.

For the child, of course, it was toys. Some of the toys will no longer be in use this time next year; kids grow out of toys. Looking in the kids' room, though, I see that he is still using all the stuff I gave him last year, so perhaps this years' stuff will have a good long life. We did clean out all the stuff he wasn't using any more a few weeks ago, and donate it to a local family action network. That includes clothes as well, so that whatever he has outgrown will be handed down, since he has no siblings to hand down to.

I understand your point, and agree with it, to a certain extent. We don't give elaborate gifts in my family, at least not on a regular basis. My mom got theater tickets and gloves. My sons got movie gift cards and a couple of books. From one son I got a couple of CDs, from another I got some tea, an ice scraper for my windshield, and a Barnes & Noble gift card. From my mom I got a sleep shirt and a coffee cup. All of the time and expense was spent on the one child in the family, my grandson, and other than a few small things he got books and games and things that require adult interaction.

He also made gifts for everyone in the family. His offering to the family Christmas meal was the cookies I baked with him, and he made ornaments, calendars, and clay bowls, etc., as gifts for the rest of the family.

For us it's about sharing, and about giving something we KNOW the other will enjoy. It's not about bankruptcy, shopping, or greed.

[Egalitariat]

93. I kind of like knowing that the people who make that junk have jobs

thanks to the fact that I bought it.