Why Americans Love To Shop And What It's Doing To The Planet

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🗓️ 2 December 2021

⏱️ 13 minutes

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Summary

Buying stuff is a part of this country's DNA. It's a tradition that really took off near the end of World War II, when the American economy was thriving and the market exploded with products Americans didn't even know they wanted. And even in an economy rocked by a pandemic, buying is on track to exceed 2020 levels this holiday season.

The result of all that spending means consumption drives 70% of our country's GDP, but it's also the leading driver of nearly every environmental issue our planet faces.

Journalist J.B. MacKinnon, who also wrote "The Day the World Stops Shopping, How Ending Consumerism Saves the Environment and Ourselves," discusses how curbing consumption could positively affect a warming planet.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	It is December. The festive season, twinkling lights, gathering with family and friends.
0:06.0	Find the perfect gift for every gamer at GameStop's holiday sale.
0:09.0	It's the JST Penny's biggest home sale.
0:12.0	And shopping. Being urged to buy a year round is something Americans have been subjected to since World War II was coming to an end.
0:20.0	The reconversion of war plans to peacetime pursuits is going ahead at full speed.
0:26.0	And once more, the automobile factories are humming.
0:29.0	After enduring the Great Depression and a war, Americans welcomed a thriving economy. More jobs, better pay.
0:36.0	Prices on these 1946 models will be slightly higher. But with all priorities lifted, America will be on wheels once more.
0:44.0	Gone were the days when it was a civilian's duty to ration and conserve supplies.
0:49.0	In post-war times, it became an Americans duty to buy.
0:53.0	A caption from a 1947 Life Magazine photo spread, read,
0:58.0	Family status must improve. It should buy more for itself to better the living of others.
1:03.0	So, to meet this new demand and enthusiasm, the market exploded. All kinds of new products.
1:09.0	Products Americans didn't even know they wanted.
1:12.0	You can phrase it. Stack it. Any which way. It won't leave your spill.
1:19.0	Double wear keeps the Roma and flavor locked in.
1:23.0	Its proctor and gambles golden flopples. The first all-new shortening in 40 years.
1:29.0	The cleanest queen under the sun is tied clean. New.
1:37.0	Fast forward, way forward. From the days after World War II to the 21st century and to another national crisis,
1:44.0	the September 11th attacks. Then President George W. Bush told the country and the world.
1:49.0	We cannot let the terrorists achieve the objective of frightening our nation to the point where we don't conduct business.
1:57.0	Where people don't shahap. That's their intention.
	...

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