Knowledge is nice, Action is Power
Arguably, the love of money is the root of all evil. This is the infrastructure America is built on. It is firmly rooted in the obsession of money and acquiring more wealth without any consideration for the destruction of people, property, or the environment in the process. Capitalism is king and Greed its queen. We have a presidential puppet who prizes wealth over life and liberty and is blatantly overstepping the checks and balances established in the Constitution so he and the wealthy class can profit as much as possible. He put on a sheepskin cloak of Christianity to do the devils bidding.The only thing righteous about that fool is the righteous indignation he is stirring in the 99%. While he has yet to be reined in we are not without power in combating corporate greed and wealth supremacy. We hit them where it hurts, we grab ‘em by the pursy.
A boycott is child’s play, this calls for a permanent restructuring of what our needs truly are and where we spend our money to fulfill them. This is where we quit supporting big business and stop funding billionaires. Don’t buy their products, shop from their stores, eat at their establishments, rent or buy their properties, gamble in their casino’s or attend their events. Money talks and when it’s taken away nothing speaks louder.
Unsubscribe
Corporations want us living in a vacuum of need. Need that can never be exhausted so we’re constantly buying things to try and fill the void. This is hyper capitalism, and it’s detrimental to our society, well-being, and the environment. Every time we get online or go on socials we are constantly inundated with ads and influencers telling us that we are not fulfilled, and we need to buy whatever they’re selling or marketing. The rise of influencers has been built on the fall of our self-worth and self-fulfillment. The only way out of the vacuum is to stop taking the click bait. Hit unsubscribe or STOP to every marketing email or text. Unfollow all influencers. Yes, I said it. Move those paper mailers from the mailbox straight to the trash. Companies have gone from marketing the four seasons to marketing every holiday as a season, and even “seasons” for a new film, show, or album release. The hyper consumption system is operating on micro seasons and it’s working winningly. But ultimately, we can control what we need by controlling what we expose ourselves to so shut that shit down.
Unplug and reboot
The phone that was once created to connect us “evolved” into a smart phone that isolates us. Put your phone down, turn the streaming off and get outdoors. Connect with nature and connect with yourself. Go on a walk, a hike, sit at a park, get your shoeless feet on grass. Give your mind space to relax. Our minds are exhausted from the overload and bottomless pit of advertising. Even if we can’t see it outright, that’s why we keep clicking “buy now” to make the ads go away and get a moment of reprieve. But the joy of the purchase is fleeting. It never lasts. Instead, Marie Kondo your mind and try to remember the things that sparked joy for you as a kid. Do those things. Play, dance, create, imagine, daydream. Is there something in that that awakens an interest in you? We are creatures of connection and creation that need to reconnect with that childlike part of ourselves. It doesn’t have to become your work or job but something that can exist outside of that, so you feel fulfilled and less likely to look outward for temporary fulfillment.
Build community
Get to know your neighbors and not in the gossiping I spy kind of way. Really get to know them. Share your story and listen to theirs. Maybe you’ll be surprised at how many things you have in common or maybe you’ll be touched by the differences. Capitalism needs the feeling of community dead because community gives us purpose, connects us and keeps us from feeling isolated and alone. Isolation is the breeding ground for need so what we really need is to get out of isolation mode. Find programs and gatherings through your local community rec centers or Facebook groups. Join sports leagues, clubs, or hobby groups. There is literally something for every interest and if there isn’t one then start it. Try volunteering or donating your time or talents. Join or start a community garden. Community can be easily built if you just look for the connections. For all the faults and negative repercussions of social media, the one thing it’s good for is finding those resources.
Buy less
Trust that you don’t need that Prime Deal, they just need you to believe you do. I think most would agree we buy too much crap so we’re then storing all this crap until we donate it. Seasonal products and apparel are being produced at an astounding rate most of which will end up in landfills producing greenhouse gasses or burned releasing CO2 into the air. And a lot of the apparel and accessories that we donate are shipped overseas becoming pollution on other shores. The volume is so excessively high it far outweighs the need. There are alternatives to this if you want to scratch the itch for something “new”. Get in your local Facebook “Buy Nothing” group where neighbors give things they no longer want and ask for things they need instead of purchasing them. There are even free clothing, accessories, and toy swaps where people trade instead of purchasing new items because we have all purchased more than enough. It’s not just about one man’s trash being another man’s treasure, it’s also about keeping things from becoming trash. This pollution is changing our climate. Yes, climate change is real and very detrimental to our survival. It’s not something made up by liberals or green tree hugging hippies. It’s only labeled as fake news by the companies producing all the trash or shareholders with a vested interest at stake. If they acknowledge it’s real, they’d have to change production practices and produce less and more mindfully. And that doesn’t work for raising the bottom dollar or lining the pockets of shareholders. If media or social personalities are belittling something by labeling it liberal snowflake hullabaloo do a little digging, and you’ll find that they stand to lose out with financial investments if we know the truth.
Buy more mindfully
For the ever loving love of God, stop buying fast fashion. It used to be contained to H&M, Zara, and Forever 21, but now it’s everywhere infiltrating from overseas via Shien, Cider, Temu, Boohoo, ASOS and in the US through Fashion Nova, Edikted, and Nasty Gal just to name a small handful. The quality and lifetime use of these garments is so poor. And when these items are donated, they’ll likely end up in a landfill, incinerated, or shipped overseas to the textile wastelands in Chile or Ghana. There is a high price to pay for making things so cheaply. If we stop driving the demand they’ll have to slow down the supply. And remember they are driving the demand in us through their marketing and advertising. This is the vicious loop cycle of capitalist greed. Imagine a rat on a wheel forever chasing that cheese. That’s us, but we can easily step off the wheel. And you better believe that scares the crap out of them, because without us they don’t have their multi millions or billions in revenue or stock appreciation. Thankfully we have countless alternatives with thrift stores and reseller stores and sites. Leave it to the wealthy people to buy the goods and we can buy it off of them for a fraction of the price.
Quit Amazon and every Amazon owned property. Sorry not sorry, Whole Foods and Zappos
If there was one corporation that has had the most devastating effects on consumerism, small business and the environment it’s Amazon. They’ve driven countless small businesses out of operation in addition to the poor wages and working conditions of their employees and the devastating impacts on the environment from all their delivery trucks and packaging that isn’t or can’t be recycled. 80 percent of Amazon employees make less than $20/hour while Jeff Bezos makes nearly $8 million/hour. $8 million/hour. This can’t seem real, but it is. They’ve strategically moved into selling groceries by buying Whole Foods and opening Amazon Fresh grocery stores. In addition, they’ve moved into medicine to profit off our pharmaceutical needs and are now offering healthcare. Their end game is to destroy options for providing our necessities so they can own us and drive whatever prices they see fit. What seems like a convenient one stop shopping experience will likely become our only option. When you search online for any particular product you need, very little comes up outside of Amazon, Walmart, or Target. They’re very cleverly operating outside of regulation to keep them from becoming monopolies and instead of buying up the competition they’re out pricing them and driving them out of business. Only now it’s not just the smaller businesses they’ve obliterated, they’re taking out brick and mortar chains. Macy’s, Rite Aid, Walgreens, CVS, Joann’s, and next week another one bites the dust. The instant gratification hyper-consumerism Amazon created is arguably the worst thing to happen to the US and the world over. Instead shop local, small business, and support woman owned and/or businesses of color every opportunity you can. Invest in your community instead of continuously lining their trillion-dollar pocketbooks.
Vote like your life depends on it
Vote working class people in to power that will level the playing field and give us affordable access to food, housing, healthcare, and medicine. These are our basic human rights and not something the wealthy should be allowed to control and privatize. We don’t have to abide by their sliding scale where the less money you have the less rights you deserve and the less your life is worth. Private equity firms are buying up businesses, real estate, and housing further pushing us to the outskirts of what we can own or afford. Regulations need to be but into place to limit what they can purchase especially in the housing market.
The CliffsNotes
Reconnect with your childlike self to find lasting fulfillment. Shut down any marketing that’s telling you otherwise. Build meaningful connections through community. Buy less and more mindfully. It’s imperative we stop buying from the handful of corporations that are monopolizing meeting our basic needs and put that money into our communities instead. Money talks and when it’s taken away nothing speaks louder. Hit them where it hurts, grab ‘em by the pursy.
Footnote
Superiority is a rich man’s construct. It’s a pyramid scheme where no matter how high you think you’ve climbed they’re still at the top making money off of you while you do all the legwork. In the end you only lose while making them obscenely rich. The 99% far outnumber the wealthy which is why they established these false constructs of race, religious, and gender superiority to mobilize people for their end game. Their superiority over us makes us far more alike than the enemies they need us to believe we are. Denounce the imaginary battles the wealthy ruling class invented to divide us and claims that any person is superior to another in race, religion, gender, orientation, identity, age or ability. MAGA is total bullshit. America was never great, but it had potential and was a work in progress. The only way we progress and move forward is if we mobilize against the wealthy.
