There is nothing wrong with the fact that today’s consumer society provides abundant goods for everyone. Such abundance is in itself good and necessary for society to function properly. Uphold Marriage and the Family; Uphold Society: Sign the Return to Order Petition What can be criticized are the philosophical roots of consumer society. Notre Dame’s … Read more
The concept of satisfying material and spiritual needs extended into all fields in pre-industrial times. James J. Walsh writes: Is Technology Ruining Your Life? Take A Quick Quiz To Find Out By Clicking Here. “This mingling of the useful and the beautiful is of itself a supreme difference between the thirteenth century generations and our … Read more
Sociologist Richard Stivers makes an interesting observation about the choices given to consumers. He writes: Is Technology Ruining Your Life? Take A Quick Quiz To Find Out By Clicking Here. “There is nothing voluntary about consumption in modern societies. Advertising provides the commands to consume under the guise of the freedom to achieve material well-being: … Read more
Psychiatry professor Peter Whybrow comments that what Henry Ford did for cars, McDonald’s did for fast food. It industrialized eating. The original intention of fast food was fast service. However, the end result has been fast eating. Everything about McDonald’s in particular and fast-food in general is about speed. Eleven minutes is the average time … Read more
With literally trillions of dollars in personal debt now hanging over the American consumer, the question might be asked as to where all this debt came from. It has a long history. Buying on credit started at the turn of the twentieth century. Buying dreams on credit was an American invention that served to create … Read more
It is interesting to note the different perceptions of how people perceive what they do for a living. Finance professor Bernard Lietaer makes the distinction by noting the original meanings of the words ‘job’ and ‘work.’ He writes: The word ‘Job’ is recent; it dates from the Industrial Revolution. It was initially defined as a … Read more
Though often cited as inventing the concept of planned obsolescence, American industrial designer Brooks Stevens actually only popularized the term. The expression is generally understood to mean the practice of artificially shortening product lifecycle with the intention of getting people to buy new replacement products sooner. A product with a limited useful life soon becomes … Read more
The idea of craftsmanship has long languished as the standard of quantity has prevailed. Products are more often judged by how many can be produced in a given time rather than the quality of the product and the excellence of the skills employed. Sociologist Richard Weaver writes that it was the concept of perfect execution … Read more
An exciting new video has just been released that gives an in depth explanation of the book, Return to Order: From a Frenzied Economy to an Organic Christian Society—Where We’ve Been, How We Got Here and Where We Need to Go. The April 2 release provides extensive interviews with author John Horvat II, who explains how the book was … Read more
In the ever-increasing frenzy to increase purchases, Amazon.com has announced that it now wants to ship packages before they are ordered. The Seattle retail giant is developing a patented process known as “anticipatory shipping,” which aims to start the delivery of packages based on previous orders, product searches, shopping-cart choices, wish lists and even how … Read more
