9.16.2010

Double Dip Recession? Don't Worry, Be Happy

Recession and happy are seldom seen in the same sentance but maybe they will more often in the future. Humans appear incapable of containing their consumption of shiny new gagets and useless crap until the credit card bounces and the repo-man visits. Even when a shopping junkie tries to quit they are so bombarded by culture and media they quickly end up back at the mall filling the up SUV. People like stuff, stuff makes most folks feel secure, when times are tough people feel less secure so they'll keep buying more crap until somebody turns off the tap, somebody like Mr. Recession.

If 'ol Mr. DD Recression does manage to close the tap on consumerism what a wonderful world it might be. A huge second dip might cripple the industrial world thereby relaxing a bit of the stress nature is under from its relentless demands. During a long deep recession folks might be able to see the virtues of having and wanting less, might be to see the beauty of simplicity, might change.

Searching the news its easy to find hundreds of articles about a double dip from all sides of the issue. Few though touch the topic of how a deep recession could save us from the kind of near biblical collapse that otherwise, if we don't turn away from consuming the earth faster every day, might mean extinction for millions of species including homo sapiens.

Double Dip Recession, i'm not worried, i'm happy, i'm hopeful that turning off the tap might mean turning the tide of the consmptive paradigm long enough-far enough so that the light of real security has a chance to shine through the fog of fear, so that our grandchildren might have a still bountiful world to hand on to their's, and their's...