Consumerism as religion

My apologies if this is a dupe.

From the Washington Post:

Acquiring Minds: Inside America's All-Consuming Passion>

By April Witt
Sunday, December 14, 2003; Page W14

A blonde with a perfect blow-dry flips through the pages of Us magazine on the morning shuttle to New York. She's not interested in reading about celebrities; she just wants to check out what they're wearing. "I have this dress," she says, pointing to a photograph of actress Jada Pinkett Smith wearing a $2,300 bronze-toned satin Gucci cocktail dress with a wide belt shaped like a corset.

Worth a read. This writer really nails the idea of consumerism as the true American religion.

What a deeply shallow article!

What is the matter with people? The more you own the more it owns you. Didn't anyone learn anything from Fight Club?

and the Church of Stop Shopping?

http://revbilly.com/index.php

<snip from their LTTE>

"What kind of Gospel is it that you preach? I am writing in response to the article in the N.Y. Times about you and it got my curiosity up. Do you really preach a gospel or is it only a message against consumerism? I believe the only hope for the world is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. If anti- consumerism is a means to the end of preaching that Gospel, then you have my blessing. But if it doesn't include The Gospel, then it is a waste of time." -- Don and Donna

**THE REV REPLIES: "Brother Donald: Jesus wasn't a Christian, and he never preached in a church. He was also a drinker, and liked to hang out with sinners. We think of him very highly in the Church of Stop Shopping. We put him right up there with Lenny Bruce." (click here for more confessions and god sightings)

arendt

the cheapness of popular culture. Not all of them, but some. Maybe there's potential for an alliance between them and those of us on the Left who hate consumerism. Far-fetched, maybe, but imagine what you could do with a broad coalition against consumerism.

These people should be paying higher taxes. No human being deserves such obscene luxuries.

to think this is all this woman can think of to do with her good fortune. Very, very sad.

I think it was done by Scott Simon, who now does the Weekend Morning Edition show on NPR.

Anyway, it was a really good documentary, made in 1996, I think. It was all about consumerism as religion in this country, and how they market to your kids so they "own their eyeballs", etc.

It's worth watching, if you haven't seen it.

Thanks.

The Pop Group's
WE ARE ALL PROSTITUTES

EVERYONE HAS THEIR PRICE
AND YOU TOO WILL LEARN
TO LIVE THE LIE
AGGRESSION
COMPETITION
AMBITION
CONSUMER FASCISM

CAPITALISM IS THE MOST BARBARIC OF ALL RELIGIONS
DEPARTMENT STORES ARE OUR NEW CATHEDRALS
OUR CARS ARE MARTYRS TO THE CAUSE

WE ARE ALL PROSTITUTES

OUR CHILDREN SHALL RISE UP AGAINST US
BECAUSE WE ARE THE ONES TO BLAME
WE ARE THE ONES TO BLAME
THEY WILL GIVE US A NEW NAME
WE SHALL BE
HYPOCRITES HYPOCRITES HYPOCRITES

A Nice Christmas Tune if there ever was one...
Ho Ho Ho

entitled, "Bizarre 'Bazaar'", about the magazine of the same name for our college literary magazine. It touched upon a similar theme. That was more than forty years ago. Nothing is seems has changed.