The Story of Stuff

After another emotional conversation about why buying local and recycled is so important one of the ladies at Pandora's Trunk turned me on to this website: www.thestoryofstuff.com. I finally took a look at it and it blew me away!

Story of Stuff with Annie Leon takes a very user friendly and in-depth look at the destructive cycle of mass production and step-by-step dissects it to show you how it all works, why we do it, and what we can do to make a change.

A lot of information she provides is stuff I already knew or suspected, but having it spelled out in economic and psychological terms really hit home. One of the most interesting parts is when Annie talks about how the U.S. became so collectively wasteful in the first place. Here is an excerpt from the film:

Shortly after the World War 2, these guys were figuring out how to ramp up the [U.S.] economy. Retailing analyst Victor Lebow articulated the solution that has become the norm for the whole system. He said: “Our enormously productive economy . . . demands that we make consumption our way of life, that we convert the buying and use of goods into rituals, that we seek our spiritual satisfaction, our ego satisfaction, in consumption . . . we need things consumed, burned up, replaced and discarded at an ever-accelerating rate.”46

And President Eisenhower’s Council of Economic Advisers Chairman said that “The American economy’s ultimate purpose is to produce more consumer goods.”

Did you know that? I bet you didn't. And this excerpt is just one of many excellent points that should be well known. Another fact they talk about is how today Americans consume twice of what we did fifty years ago but our overall satisfaction has been ever decreasing since 1950s. Hmmmmm.........you mean my new ipod nano does not equal ever-lasting bliss? ;-)

I could go on and on, but overall The Story of Stuff asserts my own passion and urgency for education about the perils of over consumption and purchasing "cheap" items. As you will learn in the film the real-life cost is not factored into many of the things we buy. And I know it is daunting to try and figure out if our purchases are environmentally and socially friendly. Fortunately, the website has lists of resources that can help guide you toward ideas and products that are good for you and the planet.

So watch it, and send it to everyone you know. And come by the store and tell me what you thought of it!
Pandora's Trunk
544 Haight St.
SF
Wed. 2-8pm, Thursdays 11am-3pm