The Consumer Society

We are encouraged to consume, consume, consume, in fact our country's economic well being is largely measured by how much we are consuming.  If our spending slows too much, the economic gurus become alarmed.

We are bombarded by powerful advertising messages that tell us how we should look, how we should act, what we should buy etc., etc.  Our children are probably under greater pressures than ever to wear the right brand labels.  While we spend our days almost like slaves trying to achieve the goals that are largely set for us by Madison Avenue ad agencies.

As the song says we, "spend our days in some high-rise and vacation at the Gulf of Mexico."  Not bad if you can do it without becoming a serf to your corporate owner. It's a shame to get up at 6:00 AM, fight the traffic, endure your job and come home Friday evening to wait in line at the drive through for half an hour to pick up the dollars needed to satisfy you weekend needs.

We are in some ways  an enslaved people and the kids have it not better.  Young girls see magazine covers in the checkout line with explicit sexual messages, "learn how to turn your boyfriend on", "how to do it to him better than the other girl" etc.  At the same time they look at computer enhanced air brushed super models that 99.99% of women don't look like. 

Young girls get the message that looking like a Barbie doll is the ideal, while in truth there probably aren't 8 women out of the 3 billion in the world that look that way.

Boys are taught they must be macho, they must not be too sensitive. The high school boys call each other and anything that doesn't measure up to their WWF image of life "fag."  It's plain to see they are trying to conceal their own natural adolescent insecurities, but the advertising behemoth of our conspicuous consumptive society just won't let kids be kids.

I wonder who is imperiled more, the girls who are taught they should be cute and submissive on the one hand and super career women on the other or the boys who are taught they should be tough as nails as well as sensitive and understanding.

Is it the fault of Howard Stern, Cosmopolitan Magazine, Madison Avenue  or society at large?  SRSR think's it's a little bit of each.  We should spend time watching the shows and reading the advertising our kids are bombarded with and without being too overbearing, let them know how we feel, ask them how they feel and hope for the best.

Most boys and girls don't have a responsible adult sitting next to them to add a little perspective to what they are exposed to.

Teach your kids to exercise their power of choice, vote with your remote and change the channel!

Related Links

Why women and girls must fight the addictive power of advertising

No one is even remotely omnipotent,

No one is closer to perfection than light years,

No one is equipped to decide for anyone but themself and their children,

We all miss the mark, so liberate You, I'll liberate Me!