15 june 2023
"There is no ethical consumption under capitalism"
This phrase bothers me. The implied ", therefore" that follows seems to be universally be "so I may as well do as I please". I know that many people say this to warn against the futility of changing how you shop as a substitute for society-sized changes that have to be made, but it seems like it rarely plays out that way.
Unfortunately telling people that ask me to change their diet, stop flying so damn much, and (most importantly) quit your day job that encourages and enables consumption isn't popular. Alienation from my peers isn't great, but it's honestly better than sitting in someone's backyard while they grill burgers and talk about their up-comming world travel. Don't tell me you'll stop eating me when they invent a lab grown streak. Don't tell me you care about the environment so much that you've decided to replace your 2yr old car with an electric SUV. It's like being in a burning room and your host is bragging that they've decided to stop throwing kindling on the ground starting next week.
I understand the psychology of this and it scares me. My life has been a health crisis for so long that "you're going to die unless x happens" doesn't hit me the way it does for people who have been relatively comfortable and healthy for the past few years. If it were possible to protect my happiness with denial I probably would to.
But I can't, so the reality of the situation we face is something I can't ignore even though there would be many social and financial benefits to do so.