The Story of Stuff

[(((Fergus)))]

Thought I'd share this interesting video on the consumerist system.

Too simplified? Green propaganda? Collective insanity?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLBE5QAYXp8

[Mon Dieu4]

Thought I'd share this interesting video on the consumerist system.

Too simplified? Green propaganda? Collective insanity?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLBE5QAYXp8

I will let you know when I get home and can watch it, whats it about Beards?

[hibsbollah]

i can watch it but cant listen, my speakers are knackered:boo hoo:
I must buy some:greengrin

[(((Fergus)))]

I will let you know when I get home and can watch it, whats it about Beards?

It's a simple narrated animation about the (mad) process of how all stuff gets produced, distributed, consumed and disposed of. Some unbelievable statistics in it, e.g., 99% of goods bought in North America are in the bin within 6 months of purchase (e.g., razor blades :wink:). Bit of an eye-opener for me if true. I thought I'd submit it to the Hibs.net jury for debunking.

[Mon Dieu4]

It's a simple narrated animation about the (mad) process of how all stuff gets produced, distributed, consumed and disposed of. Some unbelievable statistics in it, e.g., 99% of goods bought in North America are in the bin within 6 months of purchase (e.g., razor blades :wink:). Bit of an eye-opener for me if true. I thought I'd submit it to the Hibs.net jury for debunking.

Ah ok

They've done studies, you know. 60% of the time it works, every time

[hibsbollah]

Ah ok

They've done studies, you know. 60% of the time it works, every time

I read that study, but I just chucked it away afterwards. Plenty more where that came from:agree:

[Twa Cairpets]

Thought I'd share this interesting video on the consumerist system.

Too simplified? Green propaganda? Collective insanity?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLBE5QAYXp8

An interesting video that lets itself down.

If the basic message is "Rampant and excessive consumerism in the US leads to pollution and unecessary waste", then its hard to argue against that, because it is self evidently true.

What irritated me were the pseudoscience interludes, the unreferenced claims and the misleading and/or deliberately vague statistics.

To give three examples:

Claims that over 50% of the US budget is spent on the military. This source (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:U.S._Federal_Spending_-_FY_2007.png), from wikipedia but taken from the US congressional Budget Office says 21%. it appears therefore the quoted figure is massively flawed, which has to cast doubt on the veracity of other claims.

The Bromide fire retadents bit. The clear implication is that if you sleep on a pillow in the US, and breast feed your baby, you are deliverately feeding them neurotoxins. Puh-lease. Show me the science. Show me the evidence. otherwise its scaremongering.

"Only 1% of consumer purchases are still in use 6 months later" The inference that this is due to designed obsolescence or designed failure. Depending on where they get their (unreferenced) stats from, this is surely misleading. if you ignore mortgage/rent, council charges, etc, then actual consumer purchasing must include a huge precentage of food and drink, which is meant to be consumed. Major capital purchase slike Houses, car, TVs last much more than 6 months, so I think their figures are both flawed, and frankly rather sneaky.

It always worries me when interest groups have to resort to underhand methods to bolster their argument. if it is not good enough to stand up on its own merits, then there is an issue. I'm not antagonistic to the central tenet that people should consume more ethically, but i wish they had tried to get their point over in a less clumsy, dishonest way.

Thanks for the link though, got the old grey matter working

[dHFCe]

Something really needs to be done about our consumption and the way we recycle asap. I was reading the link below about a garbage patch floating in the pacific thats twice the size of Texas :bitchy:

http://www.freedomsphoenix.com/News/054849-2009-08-04-researchers-set-sail-for-the-great-pacific-garbage-patch.htm

[RyeSloan]

An interesting video that lets itself down.

If the basic message is "Rampant and excessive consumerism in the US leads to pollution and unecessary waste", then its hard to argue against that, because it is self evidently true.

What irritated me were the pseudoscience interludes, the unreferenced claims and the misleading and/or deliberately vague statistics.

To give three examples:

Claims that over 50% of the US budget is spent on the military. This source (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:U.S._Federal_Spending_-_FY_2007.png), from wikipedia but taken from the US congressional Budget Office says 21%. it appears therefore the quoted figure is massively flawed, which has to cast doubt on the veracity of other claims.

The Bromide fire retadents bit. The clear implication is that if you sleep on a pillow in the US, and breast feed your baby, you are deliverately feeding them neurotoxins. Puh-lease. Show me the science. Show me the evidence. otherwise its scaremongering.

"Only 1% of consumer purchases are still in use 6 months later" The inference that this is due to designed obsolescence or designed failure. Depending on where they get their (unreferenced) stats from, this is surely misleading. if you ignore mortgage/rent, council charges, etc, then actual consumer purchasing must include a huge precentage of food and drink, which is meant to be consumed. Major capital purchase slike Houses, car, TVs last much more than 6 months, so I think their figures are both flawed, and frankly rather sneaky.

It always worries me when interest groups have to resort to underhand methods to bolster their argument. if it is not good enough to stand up on its own merits, then there is an issue. I'm not antagonistic to the central tenet that people should consume more ethically, but i wish they had tried to get their point over in a less clumsy, dishonest way.

Thanks for the link though, got the old grey matter working

:agree::agree:

Bit like every bit of bad weather being blamed on Global Warming.

Do I think green and re-newable energy is a good idea? Of course I do...do I need someone making up scare stories about every bit of bad weather to make me believe that, no.

Fact is scare mongering and bad facts will do little to change the direction of the world, they need to engage in the fact that there is a consumer society and change that from the top. California is a great example of where macro ideas regarding pollution and energy use has seen massive steps forward in promoting a green agenda without the need to make everyone feel guilty when they turn on their 'bad' oven, eat meat (methane from animals!) or decide they want to watch a bit of TV......

It's probably also fair to say that this hasn't come at the huge great cost or at massive loss of personal choice, making tv manufacturers produce 50% more efficient TV's is much more effective than trying to scare people into making 'hard choices'

[Twa Cairpets]

Something really needs to be done about our consumption and the way we recycle asap. I was reading the link below about a garbage patch floating in the pacific thats twice the size of Texas :bitchy:

http://www.freedomsphoenix.com/News/054849-2009-08-04-researchers-set-sail-for-the-great-pacific-garbage-patch.htm

It doesnt exist. Link (http://skeptoid.com/episodes/4132#)