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charley0796's review against another edition
4.0
This was such an important and interesting read! It made me think deeply about the deeper impact of consumerism and the way society has set itself to be driven by this. Whilst parts are outdated now - for example some companies have changed etc, it is still spot on and relevant in so many ways (which is depressing on so many levels!). I normally spend a lot of time reading fiction dystopian style novels, this gave a scary reality check by making me realise how the world is already in many ways a dystopian setting. I was appalled by the many things big companies have done and are still doing to exploit minority groups and third world countries! It has made me want to read more, to really think through alternatives for shopping and make me more aware of how influenced one can be to shop.
The reason it is 4/5 stars was because at times I did get 'oh it's the paranoid mum again' vibe at times (such as the repetition of organic foods and anti PVC). I understand that both are important things, it was just quite repetitive which meant I did struggle to engage with some areas of the book.
The reason it is 4/5 stars was because at times I did get 'oh it's the paranoid mum again' vibe at times (such as the repetition of organic foods and anti PVC). I understand that both are important things, it was just quite repetitive which meant I did struggle to engage with some areas of the book.
cheesetits's review against another edition
5.0
Great book for someone that's a novice to sustainability or interested in waste. Good, general overview and read.
annie_peterson's review against another edition
4.0
this book is SO important! such an eye opener for becoming a more conscious consumer.
iamthelizardqueen's review against another edition
3.0
Not terrible. Lots of information. Very long and ok narrator.
rricchio's review against another edition
5.0
One of the best, well-researched, informative, mind-boggling and inspiring books I've ever read.
If you want to really learn about our environment, and how it impacts our economy, this book is a must-read. I would argue, it's a must-read for everyone.
If you want to really learn about our environment, and how it impacts our economy, this book is a must-read. I would argue, it's a must-read for everyone.
dylanmariah's review against another edition
4.0
This was a great (albeit depressing) read on the impacts of overconsumption. And considering the fact that this book is ten years old, I shudder to think of how much worse the statistics would look now. I read a physical copy of the book so I don’t have highlights to post, but I’m adding my notes/thoughts to this review for future reference.
-Our mindset regarding economic growth needs to be updated. Instead of using GDP as a measure of success, we should be focused on fundamental goals such as making sure basic needs are satisfied, creating healthier communities, greater equality, cleaner energy, etc. The GDP doesn’t distinguish between economic activities that make life better and those that make it worse. This was also tied into the fact that greater economic growth country-wide historically does not equal happier citizens. Increased unhappiness results from our deteriorating social relationship. Yet we are working more than ever to afford and maintain all this ~stuff~ and spending more time alone and less time with family and friends and our community.
-Even though I am familiar with water scarcity as a concept, I have not been taking it as seriously as it should be. Unfortunately, it’s been one of those ‘out of sight, out of mind’ things that I take for granted. After reading the section on water scarcity and thinking about how unethical corporations may take advantage of that, I started looking up companies that are focused on sourcing water globally. And wow, water stocks are growing so fast as the issue becomes worse. Michael Burry (the first person to recognize and profit from the mortgage crisis) is now focusing on investing in water. It is crazy and disturbing that people are profiting from this tragedy.
-A lot of this just made me feel guilty. Like the section on the amount of paper that goes into making books. :( And the process of mining and creating jewelry. :( And the horrible working conditions and environmental impact of making just one simple t-shirt. :( And Disney in general. :( I am trying not to regret every single thing I have ever bought, but instead attempting to get motivated to really examine future purchases, and look into how and where the product is made, and by whom, and using what materials.
-Based on a mention in the book, I joined my neighborhood’s Buy Nothing group. And it is active and awesome! I am looking forward to meeting people and getting more involved with the community.
-I wrote down this quote, mostly just due to some Oberlin hometown pride: “As Oberlin College professor David Orr writes, ‘The emergence of the consumer society was neither inevitable nor accidental. Rather, it resulted from the convergence of four forces: a body of ideas saying that the earth is ours for the taking; the rise of modern capitalism; technological cleverness; and the extraordinary bounty of North America, where the model of mass consumption first took root. More directly, our consumptive behavior is the result of seductive advertising, entrapment by easy credit, ignorance about the hazardous content of much of what we consume, the breakdown of community, a disregard for the future, political corruption and the atrophy of alternative means by which we might provision ourselves.’”
-It is so hard to get away from the toxins in, well, everything. The fact that so many toxins are being found even in breast milk now is so disturbing. Also, PVC is the worst and the US really needs to hop on board with other countries in restricting its use. This is another one that I googled, thinking that maybe in the last ten years things have changed, but nope.
-In general, thinking about overconsumption as more than just a personal lifestyle choice stood out to me as being so important. It is a health threat, and causes human rights violations, and poverty, and other injustices. It seems almost impossible to fight without some major policy changes. But I did enjoy the short appendices to provide slight optimism at the end. The first appendix notes promising policies on the areas mentioned in the book (extraction, production, distribution, consumption, and disposal.) And the second appendix offers ideas for individual action. So while the majority of this book may read like a dystopian novel, it is also encouraging to try and stretch my citizen muscle for once and work towards a better future. 4.5
-Our mindset regarding economic growth needs to be updated. Instead of using GDP as a measure of success, we should be focused on fundamental goals such as making sure basic needs are satisfied, creating healthier communities, greater equality, cleaner energy, etc. The GDP doesn’t distinguish between economic activities that make life better and those that make it worse. This was also tied into the fact that greater economic growth country-wide historically does not equal happier citizens. Increased unhappiness results from our deteriorating social relationship. Yet we are working more than ever to afford and maintain all this ~stuff~ and spending more time alone and less time with family and friends and our community.
-Even though I am familiar with water scarcity as a concept, I have not been taking it as seriously as it should be. Unfortunately, it’s been one of those ‘out of sight, out of mind’ things that I take for granted. After reading the section on water scarcity and thinking about how unethical corporations may take advantage of that, I started looking up companies that are focused on sourcing water globally. And wow, water stocks are growing so fast as the issue becomes worse. Michael Burry (the first person to recognize and profit from the mortgage crisis) is now focusing on investing in water. It is crazy and disturbing that people are profiting from this tragedy.
-A lot of this just made me feel guilty. Like the section on the amount of paper that goes into making books. :( And the process of mining and creating jewelry. :( And the horrible working conditions and environmental impact of making just one simple t-shirt. :( And Disney in general. :( I am trying not to regret every single thing I have ever bought, but instead attempting to get motivated to really examine future purchases, and look into how and where the product is made, and by whom, and using what materials.
-Based on a mention in the book, I joined my neighborhood’s Buy Nothing group. And it is active and awesome! I am looking forward to meeting people and getting more involved with the community.
-I wrote down this quote, mostly just due to some Oberlin hometown pride: “As Oberlin College professor David Orr writes, ‘The emergence of the consumer society was neither inevitable nor accidental. Rather, it resulted from the convergence of four forces: a body of ideas saying that the earth is ours for the taking; the rise of modern capitalism; technological cleverness; and the extraordinary bounty of North America, where the model of mass consumption first took root. More directly, our consumptive behavior is the result of seductive advertising, entrapment by easy credit, ignorance about the hazardous content of much of what we consume, the breakdown of community, a disregard for the future, political corruption and the atrophy of alternative means by which we might provision ourselves.’”
-It is so hard to get away from the toxins in, well, everything. The fact that so many toxins are being found even in breast milk now is so disturbing. Also, PVC is the worst and the US really needs to hop on board with other countries in restricting its use. This is another one that I googled, thinking that maybe in the last ten years things have changed, but nope.
-In general, thinking about overconsumption as more than just a personal lifestyle choice stood out to me as being so important. It is a health threat, and causes human rights violations, and poverty, and other injustices. It seems almost impossible to fight without some major policy changes. But I did enjoy the short appendices to provide slight optimism at the end. The first appendix notes promising policies on the areas mentioned in the book (extraction, production, distribution, consumption, and disposal.) And the second appendix offers ideas for individual action. So while the majority of this book may read like a dystopian novel, it is also encouraging to try and stretch my citizen muscle for once and work towards a better future. 4.5
knit_purrrl's review against another edition
challenging
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
4.0
Would love to read an updated version! things have changed a lot since it was published and I want to know the author's thoughts