Buy Nothing Day: Over Consumption
In the whole one month I have been in Guelph, I have spent over $1500. If your thinking “on what?” you wouldn’t be the only one. I can’t seem to justify spending such an insane amount of money. The sad truth is: I like to spend money. I am a spend-like-crazy consumer in our spend-like-crazy economy.
We are always buying things, however useful or unnecessary they may be. Did you know that less than 20% of the world purchases over 80% of the produced goods made? We have a lot of stuff, and the only way we’ll slow down is when we run out of money.
Over-consumption is a huge problem in our economy. We just can’t resist spending money—if we have it, we want to spend it. Even when we don’t have money, we still want to spend it! There’s the problem in the US housing industry: people took out huge mortgages at low rates so they could buy bigger houses! More of what they don’t need—just to live the lavish life. But what happens when the rates start to go up? They can’t afford to pay those huge fees because they DON’T HAVE THE MONEY TO PAY. Now you have thousands of people who have had to foreclose or sell their homes because they couldn’t afford them. There’s the proof!
We just refuse to learn that we buy too much. We aren’t consumers, we’re over-consumers. The other day, I checked out the balance in my bank account: it sat at around $20. Looks like I learned my lesson the hard way, but once there’s money back in the bank, will I be spend-crazy once again?
Monday, October 6, 2008
Did it change your vote?
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I had a bit of a moment with this picture. At first it made me laugh, and then I realized how powerful this image could be. I came across it as I was reading the news on the Toronto Star’s website—a website where typically educated, potential voters would turn to for the latest news.
Now, let’s be blunt for a second. We all know how much Canadians, and even some Americans, hate George W. Bush. And then here we see a picture of George Bush with... who else could it be other than our Prime Minister, Steven Harper? Right at voting time—now we’ve got the voters’ attention. One man we hate, the other is in charge of our country. But, it’s the tag line that gets us: “Bush-Harper.” Hold on a second. This hyphenated title changes the entire picture. It has the ability to impose a new thought onto us: do we want our Prime Minister to be like George Bush, Mr. “I-Love-War” himself? With even one word, the meaning of the image is changed. You could interpret this image as a peace-keeping gesture between Canada and the US, but instead it’s been used as an attack ad against the Conservative Party.
It’s like the old saying, “A picture speaks a thousand words.” With an image, you have the power to make a statement. But a picture with a title suggests even more power over the statement it’s making to the viewer. You can manipulate emotions and ideas all with the use of a few words and an image to support it. The question is: did it manipulate your vote?
Where would we be without the Internet?
How the internet changed my life...
Sometimes I wonder what it would be like without the internet—without quick answers and easy communication tools like email and instant messenger—then I picture my mother: a completely technology deprived woman. My mother has never used a computer competently and without assistance in her life. I frequently refer to her as computer illiterate. My grandmother can easily send us picture and emails, and yet my mom has a hard time finding the “on” switch. If she needs instructions to get somewhere: she asks me. If she needs an answer or definition: she asks me. If she needs anything information-related: she asks me. She could use a map or dictionary, but she doesn’t. Instead, she asks me, and it’s not because she loves to chat. My mom, who may not know how to turn a computer on, knows that it is faster for me to use the internet to find the answers to her questions than it is for her to find a map or dictionary around our house—a lot faster.
Growing up in our society, it would be taboo for me to not know how to use a computer. It is assumed in today’s society that everyone can use a computer. If you don’t own a computer, then it’s time to get into the 21st century. This is the information age! Without all the technology we have today, how would we communicate with each other? What would it be like in a world without cell phones, computers, iPods, and television? Sometimes I think that’s where my mother would be the one to ask.
Sometimes I wonder what it would be like without the internet—without quick answers and easy communication tools like email and instant messenger—then I picture my mother: a completely technology deprived woman. My mother has never used a computer competently and without assistance in her life. I frequently refer to her as computer illiterate. My grandmother can easily send us picture and emails, and yet my mom has a hard time finding the “on” switch. If she needs instructions to get somewhere: she asks me. If she needs an answer or definition: she asks me. If she needs anything information-related: she asks me. She could use a map or dictionary, but she doesn’t. Instead, she asks me, and it’s not because she loves to chat. My mom, who may not know how to turn a computer on, knows that it is faster for me to use the internet to find the answers to her questions than it is for her to find a map or dictionary around our house—a lot faster.
Growing up in our society, it would be taboo for me to not know how to use a computer. It is assumed in today’s society that everyone can use a computer. If you don’t own a computer, then it’s time to get into the 21st century. This is the information age! Without all the technology we have today, how would we communicate with each other? What would it be like in a world without cell phones, computers, iPods, and television? Sometimes I think that’s where my mother would be the one to ask.
A Media Log: The Sad Story of a Slightly Media Deprived Student
A Day in the Life
Today, I have not read a single magazine or newspaper, nor have I watched a minute of television. I did, however briefly it was, graze by the University of Guelph website to check my email. Now, as I write this on the computer, I sit solely dedicated to writing this piece. My entire day’s worth of media exposure boils down to briefly checking my email and doing homework, and may I just say that I feel completely out of the media loop. I can’t say that I have any knowledge of what is happening in the world outside the University—and man is it unsettling.
As however small a part of the media economy I was, my contributions must have plummeted since I came to Guelph. No longer does Roger’s get my sky-high cell phone and cable bills. In one sense, I’m relieved to know that big media companies like Roger’s are no longer making as much money off me as they were before. More money in my pocket... or going towards school I guess I should say. Then again, to be uninformed and without media is almost as unsettling as having your hair cut with the hairdresser blindfolded—and spinning the chair. It’s so easy to get attached to the media—to be able to know everything that’s going on, simply by going to a website, reading a newspaper, or watching a news program. Thank God Guelph has internet, or I’d go insane.
Today, I have not read a single magazine or newspaper, nor have I watched a minute of television. I did, however briefly it was, graze by the University of Guelph website to check my email. Now, as I write this on the computer, I sit solely dedicated to writing this piece. My entire day’s worth of media exposure boils down to briefly checking my email and doing homework, and may I just say that I feel completely out of the media loop. I can’t say that I have any knowledge of what is happening in the world outside the University—and man is it unsettling.
As however small a part of the media economy I was, my contributions must have plummeted since I came to Guelph. No longer does Roger’s get my sky-high cell phone and cable bills. In one sense, I’m relieved to know that big media companies like Roger’s are no longer making as much money off me as they were before. More money in my pocket... or going towards school I guess I should say. Then again, to be uninformed and without media is almost as unsettling as having your hair cut with the hairdresser blindfolded—and spinning the chair. It’s so easy to get attached to the media—to be able to know everything that’s going on, simply by going to a website, reading a newspaper, or watching a news program. Thank God Guelph has internet, or I’d go insane.
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