However, I keep thinking about the other repercussions of a Buy Nothing day. What would happen to the economy if a large part of the population actually bought nothing? I have friends who own small retail businesses, and friends who supply those businesses with goods, and the effect on them would be catastrophic. Retail businesses depend on the holiday season to sustain them the rest of the year. Again, there’s a line. On one end are shoppers getting to WalMart at 3 in the morning to be first on line to trample down anyone who gets in the way of their $15 DVD player. On the other end it’s a little trickier. Is it a person who doesn’t celebrate by giving or receiving gifts at all? Or someone who makes gifts out of items around the house and in the woods?
Personally I’d fall closer to the “no gift” end of the line, but I can see why some people would fall to the other side. If I was really poor and wanted to treat my family to some nice things for the holidays, Black Friday might be the only chance I get to stretch my dollars as far as they can go. Even as a conscious consumer, I fall prey to the discounts and deals that the bigger chains are able to offer. I certainly can’t afford to shop exclusively at local indie boutiques (though I would like to.) And as far as children’s clothing and shoes are concerned, why on earth would you spend more than you had to? They’ll grow out of it in a few months!
Like everything else, I think the answer lies in the happy medium. We should be taking some time for reflection and honoring our loved one with experiences and memories, not just gifts. Ethical consumerism, by definition, implies consuming. Something must be purchased. So at this point in history, I think the best we can do is just stop and think before we open our wallets. Shop, but with purpose and meaning. When you’re buying gifts this season, make sure you feel good about your purchasing decisions when you leave the store.
Do you think if we bought nothing on Black Friday the actual shopping would not simply shift to the weekend and spread itself out over a few more days? Is Black Friday a self fulfilling prophesy because we all keep generating the image that it is the most important shopping day of the year?
ReplyDeleteWe've tried to do the whole buy nothing day mostly because of the insane crowd stampede at various places. How much of the mob scene at Walmart is for stuff people really wouldn't purchase otherwise?
ReplyDeleteHow much of a real bargain is that $15 DVD player if it winds up in the landfill in 6 months?
Going back to Story of Stuff 99% of what we buy winds up there. This stat still amazes me.
As far as gifts, we've been trying to do gifts of experience. Making something or sharing an experience and thus creating shared memories seems more meaningful.
Right before Thanksgiving I was able to fix our garage door so we could park the car inside. Laura is extremely happy about this and so was I. No ice for me to scrape in the morning. :-)