Against Wal-Mart, for example
The basic point problem I have with Wal-mart is that it encourages us to sin. I guess Wal-mart serves as a convenient symbol because they are so unapologetic in their practices.
I don't want to sell WM's good points short... sure they provide plenty of part time jobs to people who want a part time job. Sure they hire developmentally disabled people. Pity more companies don't hire more so-called disadvantaged workers.
But...
We have been sold a bill of goods that it is better to buy more things cheaply. Once upon a time we were taught how to be thrifty. I remember the shock we all experienced when our home ec teachers introduced the subject of planned obsolescence. I remember being taught that the when it comes right down to it the cheapest thing to buy was the best best quality that would last a life time.
And this is where Wal-Mart comes in. Seems to me practically everything we buy at Wal-mart is disposable. whatever it is, we use it up and get rid of it. shoes, clothing, vacuum cleaners, furniture.
How about other labor practices than the lack of health insurance? Again, Wal-Mart is a symbol here, but since they have such an aggressive marketing and building strategy, they do become the natural target.
Once upon a time WM advertised that everything they sold was made in the USA. And then we found out that was a great big lie. Is WM paying fair wages in third world companies or are we by buying goods there supporting the slave conditions of the sweat shop? We can be sure it is the latter.
The sin WM seduces us into is that it is ok to think only about ourselves and our perceived needs and that we need not think about the needs of our neighbor. I strongly maintain that some of the things we perceive as needs are really only things we want that we could very well do without.
It bothers me when someone maintains that they can't afford to shop anywhere else and then to discover that they have several premium channels on their cable system, paying $30 a month extra a month which times 12 months is $360. We none of us **need** TV.
Yes yes, I watch TV. I am as much as part of the TV generation as any other boomer. I remember when TV used to broadcast 4 or so hours a day. We managed to amuse ourselves without it. And what happens to me now? At least 3 out of 7 evenings I will forget to pray Compline because I am so absorbed in a TV show. Where are my priorities, I have to ask myself.
How many of us have bought stuff simply because "it's so cheap, it would be a sin not to buy it?" That's something I hear a lot. Sounds like a justification to me. Sounds like we have been sold down the river and we cooperated with it. If we buy it for no other reason than that it is cheap, I think we have lost sight or our neighbor.
Corporations spend millions of dollars to create a sense of need within us. Once upon a time the cell phone was touted as perfect for emergencies. And look what has become of that. It's a whole industry now that has very little to do with being able to reach out or be reached in an emergency.
Yes, I have a cell phone. I have 35 minutes on it and I pay $7.99 a month to keep my phone activated. I never turn it on except to call it in an emergency. If I had kids and were away from home all the time, I'd probably turn it on so they or the school nurse could call me.
Sure here in the USA we now need cars because we allowed our previously pretty good urban public transportation systems fall into disuse. But buying a car has very little to do with basic transportation these days, it seems. I simply don;t get the sort of thinking that has a person paying $450 a month in a car loan when they could have adequate transportation for $300 a month. If I have done my my math correctly, that would be a savings of $1800 a year. And when we add to it the $360 from the premium cable channels, that's over $2000.00.
Yes, I realize that some of us live in rugged isolated places, but they are in the minority overall in the USA. Most of us in the USA live in urban and suburban ares and we don't have special needs with our vehicles. And yes, I know there are exceptions thereto for the handicapped and the disabled. I am talking about most of us.
I realize that talking this way will put many people into defensive mode and some will want to say "I am the exception because..." I know all about getting defensive. I do it myself a lot. If there is one thing my years In therapy have taught me, it is that when I get defensive about something I really really need to examine why. And i usually discover that i am grasping on to some cherished and beloved totally wrong idea.
Do we as Christians really have the right to buy buy buy when we know there are people in the world in want? Yes, I know Jesus said the poor would always be with us but I take that as urging to always be doing something about it, not shrugging my shoulders and saying "as soon as i have taken care of myself" because we are never done taking care of ourselves. and in the meantime, our neighbor remains neglected.
--
-
May the Holy Spirit dance in your heart!
Sr. Gloriamarie Amalfitano
http://knitternun.blogspot.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SanDiegoFiberFolk
If there are people who refuse to work, that is for the authorities to deal with. My duty is to assist and relieve those who come to my door. St. Thomas of Villanova ( 1488-1555)
God said to Mother Teresa of Calcutta: "You are, I know, the most incapable person, weak and sinful. But just because you are that, I want to use you for My glory. Will you refuse?"
I don't want to sell WM's good points short... sure they provide plenty of part time jobs to people who want a part time job. Sure they hire developmentally disabled people. Pity more companies don't hire more so-called disadvantaged workers.
But...
We have been sold a bill of goods that it is better to buy more things cheaply. Once upon a time we were taught how to be thrifty. I remember the shock we all experienced when our home ec teachers introduced the subject of planned obsolescence. I remember being taught that the when it comes right down to it the cheapest thing to buy was the best best quality that would last a life time.
And this is where Wal-Mart comes in. Seems to me practically everything we buy at Wal-mart is disposable. whatever it is, we use it up and get rid of it. shoes, clothing, vacuum cleaners, furniture.
How about other labor practices than the lack of health insurance? Again, Wal-Mart is a symbol here, but since they have such an aggressive marketing and building strategy, they do become the natural target.
Once upon a time WM advertised that everything they sold was made in the USA. And then we found out that was a great big lie. Is WM paying fair wages in third world companies or are we by buying goods there supporting the slave conditions of the sweat shop? We can be sure it is the latter.
The sin WM seduces us into is that it is ok to think only about ourselves and our perceived needs and that we need not think about the needs of our neighbor. I strongly maintain that some of the things we perceive as needs are really only things we want that we could very well do without.
It bothers me when someone maintains that they can't afford to shop anywhere else and then to discover that they have several premium channels on their cable system, paying $30 a month extra a month which times 12 months is $360. We none of us **need** TV.
Yes yes, I watch TV. I am as much as part of the TV generation as any other boomer. I remember when TV used to broadcast 4 or so hours a day. We managed to amuse ourselves without it. And what happens to me now? At least 3 out of 7 evenings I will forget to pray Compline because I am so absorbed in a TV show. Where are my priorities, I have to ask myself.
How many of us have bought stuff simply because "it's so cheap, it would be a sin not to buy it?" That's something I hear a lot. Sounds like a justification to me. Sounds like we have been sold down the river and we cooperated with it. If we buy it for no other reason than that it is cheap, I think we have lost sight or our neighbor.
Corporations spend millions of dollars to create a sense of need within us. Once upon a time the cell phone was touted as perfect for emergencies. And look what has become of that. It's a whole industry now that has very little to do with being able to reach out or be reached in an emergency.
Yes, I have a cell phone. I have 35 minutes on it and I pay $7.99 a month to keep my phone activated. I never turn it on except to call it in an emergency. If I had kids and were away from home all the time, I'd probably turn it on so they or the school nurse could call me.
Sure here in the USA we now need cars because we allowed our previously pretty good urban public transportation systems fall into disuse. But buying a car has very little to do with basic transportation these days, it seems. I simply don;t get the sort of thinking that has a person paying $450 a month in a car loan when they could have adequate transportation for $300 a month. If I have done my my math correctly, that would be a savings of $1800 a year. And when we add to it the $360 from the premium cable channels, that's over $2000.00.
Yes, I realize that some of us live in rugged isolated places, but they are in the minority overall in the USA. Most of us in the USA live in urban and suburban ares and we don't have special needs with our vehicles. And yes, I know there are exceptions thereto for the handicapped and the disabled. I am talking about most of us.
I realize that talking this way will put many people into defensive mode and some will want to say "I am the exception because..." I know all about getting defensive. I do it myself a lot. If there is one thing my years In therapy have taught me, it is that when I get defensive about something I really really need to examine why. And i usually discover that i am grasping on to some cherished and beloved totally wrong idea.
Do we as Christians really have the right to buy buy buy when we know there are people in the world in want? Yes, I know Jesus said the poor would always be with us but I take that as urging to always be doing something about it, not shrugging my shoulders and saying "as soon as i have taken care of myself" because we are never done taking care of ourselves. and in the meantime, our neighbor remains neglected.
--
-
May the Holy Spirit dance in your heart!
Sr. Gloriamarie Amalfitano
http://knitternun.blogspot.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SanDiegoFiberFolk
If there are people who refuse to work, that is for the authorities to deal with. My duty is to assist and relieve those who come to my door. St. Thomas of Villanova ( 1488-1555)
God said to Mother Teresa of Calcutta: "You are, I know, the most incapable person, weak and sinful. But just because you are that, I want to use you for My glory. Will you refuse?"
posted by Gloriamarie Amalfitano @ 10:59 AM
2 Comments:
At 1:49 PM,
Anonymous said…
You said: "Yes, I realize that some of us live in rugged isolated places, but they are in the minority overall in the USA. Most of us in the USA live in urban and suburban ares and we don't have special needs with our vehicles. And yes, I know there are exceptions thereto for the handicapped and the disabled. I am talking about most of us."
Dear soul, I live in Phoenix, AZ, and the public transit is a joke. Light Rail is something that may happen in 2010, but that is five years away. +Basil and I don't have a car for the reasons that you listed, starting with CAN'T AFFORD the gas or insurance (which is sky high here in Phoenix), much less the payments for a resonably good car.
I have to get around using public transit and Dial-A-Ride, but that leaves me staring at the TV at night instead of being able to get out and do things. +Basil wants us to join PFLAG, but as the only meeting is in Scottsdale, with no busses anywhere near it... Well, you get the idea.
Don't think that just because someone lives in an urban area they can get by without a car. Only works in Chicago and New York, as far as I know, but I could be wrong.
Not railing at you, personally, dear soul, just letting a bit of reality leak in.
At 3:13 PM,
Gloriamarie Amalfitano said…
Dear Fr. Brendan-Benedict,
Thank you so much for reading my blog. I didn't know that you were.
As for your comment, would you consider yourself representative of **most** people? I did attempt to stress that I was talking about most people.
The thing is, everyone thinks themself an exception. So if there is a way to write an essay of this type without a bit of generalization, well, I don't know how to do it. I wish I did.
I can only hope that while I got something wrong, my overall message is not canceled out.
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