Here is another quote from Jason Hickel I absolutely agree with:
The idea that every industry should grow, every year, regardless of whether or not we actually need it, is an irrational and ecologically incoherent way to run an economy.
We need to finally get rid of the foolish notion that our well-being depends on “infinite economic growth”. This is not just a foolish notion but a blatant lie and believing in it is a dangerous concept that ultimately ends with our demise.
Instead of trying to perpetually grow our GDP year after year we need to start adopting the principles of #degrowth#freedomdividend
Here is an interesting reaction thought by Adam Cook:
Literally the first thing taught us in business school is “In the end, we’re all dead. So get rich while you can.” We need to stop idolizing wealth and the wealthy. Many of us can’t see beyond ourselves, much less empathize with future generations.
Indeed, this is also the big trouble with capitalism. It harnesses science for profit, and we’re told chasing profit is the only way to stimulate economies. Growth is seen as the panacea for all things. In effect, we only consume recklessly. Economics focuses on rational action – in particular what makes economic decisions rational and irrational (See: Economics Today and Tomorrow), and most of the time students–and even professors–construe rationality as profit-enhancing behavior. Rationality is a diverse thing, however. Any call for mindful consumption (let alone frugality) is seen as a commie tactic.
You are absolutely right and apparently you care about the future of our planet. Are you familiar with the publications and ideas of Jason Hickel? Also, what do you think of the principles of ‘degrowth’? Thank you very much for sharing your thoughts with us, together we can make a difference and have an impact on the way we live.
I Googled Jason Hickel and “degrowth” just yesterday after running into this thread. Though I’ve read many critiques of the dominant growth-oriented model, degrowth was a new word to me. I haven’t read Hickel either.
Like you say, I certainly think we can make a difference, but it will require a lot of work. After all, we live in a world where people waste food even at buffets. One would think that a buffet is the perfect system to avoid over- or undereating. Yet, people routinely take more food than they can eat and proceed to waste food with no hesitation at all. That this happens at buffets baffles me. The same attitude predominates everywhere else. Thanks for the introduction to Hickel – looks really engaging from what little I’ve seen on the internet.
By the way, below you’ll find a simplified version of the article:
Most economists believe we should keep growing our economy. But, is that a good idea? After a virus killed a lot of people, a lot of rich people signed a letter saying that we shouldn’t keep growing our economy. Instead, we should focus on making sure that life is at the center of our economic systems. To do this, rich countries would have to reduce inequality by providing jobs for everyone, reducing the amount of time people work each week and giving everyone enough money to survive. Rich countries would also have to dramatically scale down their energy consumption.