That's what I thought....oh well, *someone* has to keep you on your toes, so here we go!
con·sum·er·ism (kən-sōō'mə-rĭz'əm) n.
1. The movement seeking to protect and inform consumers by requiring such practices as honest packaging and advertising, product guarantees, and improved safety standards.
2. The theory that a progressively greater consumption of goods is economically beneficial.
3. Attachment to materialistic values or possessions: deplored the rampant consumerism of contemporary society.
Source: American Heritage Dictionary
Now lets look again at your original post:
Originally Posted by Boof-head:
Western consumerism is a culture of exploitation and greed, with little or no regard for the consequences, such as those which short-term gains have on the environment: whaling, overfishing, forest destruction, deterioration of water catchments, greenhouse gases ... or that they have on indigenous societies with little available means to exploit local resources.
It is solely a culture of Imperialism, in which the richest gain the most immediate access to exploitation of resources regardless. The only visible dynamic, is the creation of extreme wealth for a few individuals, and of many societies who are thereby impoverished eventually and denied access to those resources.[/i]
First and foremost, at the highest level this definition clearly aligns solely with the third definition given by the dictionary. As a result it can be considered "less that the truth" since it defines the term without acknowledgment of the other definitions, which by virtue of their order are indicated by the dictionary as being *more common*.
Next, note the underlined words: these are all stative verbs/adverbs, that are declarative and absolute, allowing only the exact interpretation and no other. You know, rigid in a Maoist sorta way!
Then note the underlined words: these are all superlative adjectives that have either very explicit negative definitions or "dog-whistle" connotations. Pejorative? Well, that's probably dependent on your point of view on the topic!
Lastly there's that lovely italicized part which is a somewhat hackneyed update of Gen. Jack D. Ripper's screed on Communist Subversion....which of course is either elegantly ironic indicating that the author intends exactly the opposite of the surface meaning of the statement, or clear proof of how cluelessly blind the author is to the embarrassing extremity of the opinions expressed!
I know, I know, you're gonna complain about it being about "Western Consumerism," but before you go down that route too far, think: You're saying the "west" has some sort of franchise on greed? That pretty much blows apart any argument that the statement isn't intended to be accusatory or inflammatory.
Now to be complete, my opinion about "consumerism" is concentrated on the first definition above: I've actually been quite active in initiatives that promote the interests of the consumer over the interests of business.
So to those who might agree with the sense of the original post, I'd ask, is it really "greedy" to be involved in ensuring that the food you buy isn't polluted or the cars you drive are safe?
See? Not so bad! Now you go!
It is a kind of spiritual snobbery that makes people think they can be happy without money,
Buffy
