Buy Nothing Day 2009
polycounter lvl 18
Let it be known. 27th US, 28th International.
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Replies
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Care to state your case in your own words?
That instead of the focus being on another we must outdo one another with purchases. That unless we have X we aren't as good as another.
That we are seen as simply bits of data on a marketers sheet as to how and where to promote sales for items we never would want or need otherwise.
That in order to get the cheapest price over the competitor, we sacrifice quality and have items produced in countries with less human rights and environmental controls. So we can sit back and say how much we have improved, whiles others make our crap half the world away.
The BIG answer is.
Entropy. We cannot dig/use/throw away. We also cannot recycle indefinitely. The earth is a limited resource.
Another answer would be read "Brave New World". Where other than take Soma, all the upper class people do is spend. I would argue that we use the euphoria feeling of initial ownership (no matter if it exists for such a short time) as the substitue for Soma in our reality.
Good idea. Instead of going out Friday, you do such instead?
I'm all for supporting local businesses and locally-produced goods and services, but these anti-globalization, anti-consumerist rants don't accomplish anything other than to highlight how futile 'events' like this really are.
Yep. So is Black Friday. So unless you want to call for the ending of both?
danshewan: Here is one, having something made overseas with cheaper labor to make at lower cost so puts labor in country out of job. But really. Does not this recession that was caused by our banking practices not show you flaws? Convinced to buy houses we can not afford? This fallout is making more homeless. And now, we have to supposedly rely on the same system that got us into this, to save us.
The Irony.
Refusing to purchase things isn't going to stop manufacturers having all their products made in China, or basing their call center personnel in India. If people really bought into this shit beyond paying lip service like this 'event' encourages, they'd boycott any manufacturer that didn't produce goods domestically, using domestic labor. But then, they'd be sitting in a virtually empty house.
Heh. You need to see my place then.*
*Oh, Im not innocent by no means. I do when I get the choice, choose more locally.
Educate people to make better life choices, not pick a certain day to observe as if it was important. Same reason that bullshit 'charitable' attitude people have around Christmas pisses me off. "Oh, it's Christmas, I should be less of a dick and maybe give a dollar to the Salvation Army....then go right back to not giving a fuck Dec 26."
Yeah, its not so much fun when it directly affects people you know in an industry you care about, so why would you want to do the same to others in other industries? Clearly you're not going to call for a boycot on videogames, so why would you want even more people unemployed because of another year of poor holiday says?
This whole thing is criminally misguided, thinking any of this "helps" people, especially in this economy.
Black friday is fucking awesome. Everything is cheap as hell, and tons of people go out and buy all sorts of various items giving the economy and businesses a much needed boost in this recession.
Criminal.
This is true, however, it could be said by at least if nothing else, shuffling people so they all do not go at once, there is less chance of accidents and people being crushed by crowds.
Your also correct about charitable seasonal giving.
So take something away from my 4 year old son that would have no idea in the world why he didn't get that special gift from Santa for Xmas to "better" a homeless persons day? YEAH FUCK THAT!
We all have tough situations. We all have had the shit fall down around us but I am not going to stop my lifestyle for a bum. Now I say this because I have had an experience with this in the past.
Living in San Diego I was walking into a 7-11 when a dude was begging for money so he could get something to eat. I just walked by and didn't say a thing. Instead I bought the dude a sandwich when I was inside and when I gave it to him. You know what he did. He threw it on the ground and said I should have just given him the money. Oh ok. So he could buy booze with it. So yeah fuck that.
The trouble with this solution though, is that it's completely unsexy. It's not the type of solution you make Youtube videos about and tell your friends about and make forum posts about. But more often than not, it's how change actually takes place. When we so extremely compartmentalize our behavior into single days, all we're really doing is giving ourselves an excuse to not make the right choice the other 364 days of the year (see: New Year's resolutions), so when we load up our shopping carts come Nov 28th, we can feel a little less shame as we proceed to checkout.
You know what I like? Days I can buy stuff 80% off.
Adam: Mechanically it's more like saying we should save fat people's feelings by destroying all food so nobody will ever have to eat again, and they wont be judged anymore.
oh, i can see you have all the answers about obesity. why don't you go educate a fat person about living healthy, and see how much it actually does?
NOTHING. its like trying to get a drug-addict off heroin. you can't simply walk over to a drug-addict, talk to him for 2 hours about how bad drugs are for him, and walk away, thinking you've changed this persons life. because you haven't. most fat people already know EVERYTHING about all the health risks, and more importantly FEEL them on their bodies every single day of their life.
and those who don't, won't change their habits, even if you tell them.
practically the only way to get drug-addicts off drugs, and fat people to slim down, is to stay in their homes, keep them off their drugs/over-eating, force them to train with you three times a week minimum.
Actually, most people on this earth seem to be in a downward spiral of self-destruction.
they smoke, they drink, they over-eat, they don't eat at all, they take drugs or they simply don't give a shit about themselves, or other people. the best thing you could hope to do for someone
else, is actually what companies does for people. give them a job, give them some self-confidence, friends and something to do. make them happy with who they are.
i think, if you're happy with who you are, you'll take care of yourself.
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HAHAHHAHAHAA
How about.... post random youtube videos day?
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I'm for it
This country is funny
The part that bothers me most about your replies oXYnary, is that you end everything with a wink. I'm not sure whether you are just joking or are trying to minimise the blow of your arguement.
So people don't buy groceries or luxury items that day. I'm pretty sure they're still going to want it the day before or after. The thing about days like this is they are wasted because most people will still buy what they desire. Who cares what day of the week it falls on?
A better idea would be to have some type of charity or lobbyists that support helping the homeless with halfway houses or shelters and donating to their cause.
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Yes, but lets be reasonable here, not sensational. What does being dramatic and sensational ever do for these sorts of causes? All you're doing here is preaching to the choir, the only people who participate in these sort of "movements" are the people who are already doing their part, doing what they can to buy local, support quality companies etc. So the only thing that happens from a "buy nothing day" is that the companies that should be getting supported lose sales for a day.
Being sensational like this just makes the reasonable people who are doing their part look like crazy whackjobs. You're not reaching out or informing the people who really need to be informed, all you're doing is creating a LARGER divide by showing the world how fucking retarded insane you are, and making the entire movement look bad in the process.
Be reasonable, do your part, and stop PETA'ing up the place, because you just make us look bad here.
Congratulations, you've convinced a bunch of vegans to stop eating meat for a day!
And how about you realize that some silly one-day boycott doesn't do jack shit for you cause and makes about as much difference as a online petition?!
Yes, well Joe, insanity could work both ways.
But the above deserved response since it was reasoned.
Per this idea only attracting people who wouldn't be spending the money anyways. You cannot have your cake and eat it too when saying that only X will participate, when X would have done so even without. Then go and say this will hurt everyone. That's a no go there. If X has no effect in the first place, then how is it hurting everyone?
You do jump the gun though when you assume people will just wait a day. First not always. Again, given your own logic that only certain people would partake anyways. These certain people. Can you say for certain they all will just wait for the next day?
Then you leave out causes beyond consumerism. Even waiting a day is good, for as one of the videos states, Black Friday is the deadliest day of the year for accidents. Spreading it out versus crushing everyone in for luxury crap would help alleviate some of this. Not to mention the pollution being less a factor.
Per effecting local companies over global with this and hurting those "we" are supposedly trying to support. I would require some data on this other than your opinion. My own opinion is I don't see the Mom and Pop shops opening up at 5:00am with deals they could only get from massive bulk buys from cheap overseas labor. All I see are big box conglomerates. Another dead end argument.
So now, we are left with since your arguments you give you have invalidated yourself. Whats your real issue then? You don't like the POV? That's cool. I don't like the POV of bragging about crap being bought at these, and how happy we all should be, but I wont go and make judgments about the sanity level or intelligence (ignorance, yes) of these people.
Now sensationalism. Attracts attention. We will have to agree to disagree on this, but there is the school of thought that any PR is PR, I could argue that you even bothering to have this discussion is a sign this has effected you. That its in your conscious now. Its like being observed changes the observed response.
Finally, I think there is much misconception with the principle, or at least my interpretation. I can only speak for me, but life is balance and compromise. The idea is to get more balance. To possibly yes, reach an accord with capitalist consumerism having its place, but not to the degree that we in a way worship it these days.
PS, Dont use PETA and me in the same sentence. Your jumping way ahead of the gun. That would be like me calling you a hippie per some of your old pictures.
Also buy sensible, practical items people will use.
Please don't buy games this holiday season, we need more studio closures and people looking for work.
Please don't buy things that enable other people to buy games.
We need an economy if we're going to remake it. If it keeps people from breaking into my house by giving them a job, then I'm for it. We can work on getting them a better job that aligns more with the values I would like society to have later, but they gotta stay dry and they gotta stay sane until we get to that point.
I don't think the day is suppose to make a difference on that day. Its suppose to educate people about their purchases and whether or not they really need this shit. Instead of buying stuff cause the commercial says its cool or its the latest fad item. The amount of hate towards this is mind boggling.
Lets also forget the fact that pretty much every damn store in the known universe increases its product prices before large mark downs. Obviously there is no way anyone would dream of doing this on black Friday.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with having a day to point out to people they should be more educated on a subject. Why have any day, lets say screw Remembrance Day. Screw Women s Rights day. Everyone just gonna go back to beating women the next day anyways.
People seriously need to relax
1. You just bought something you don't care about or need or you never use.
2. That whole value chain producing the item has created alot of waste and done damage to the environment and/or people.
Now that you bought the item and two days later your happiness is gone. What happened? You bought a useless item but you saved peoples jobs.
When I think about that, I question the system that makes it this way because that just seems STUPID. Too bad capitalism is the best thing we could come up with.