Easy Peasy ?

Today at work we're collaboratin with a store in town to hold a "shopping benefit." These kinds of events are pretty common; it's the bake sale idea taken to the wider (and more powerful) world of commerce.

Ten Thousand Villages is letting us set up a table in their store, and for four hours we'll talk up Center for New Americans, and shoppers will have the chance to make purchases that will partially support CNA, as well as Ten Thousand Villages, which itself supports local artisans around the globe.

The concept of shopping to support a good cause is a funny one. I wonder if it's uniquely American? It fits seamlessly into our culture of consumerism, and panders to a guilty conscience that wants the right choices to coincide with the easy ones. Hey, looky here--all I have to do is buy something pretty, and my purchase puts money inthe pocket of poor people (or in todays case, subsidizes poor people are CNA trying to help even poorer people who come to them looking for help).

It's a flawed model, because it assuages a conscience that doesn't really deserve it. The problems are still there, and more and more people are pointing out that easy and convenient solutions usually aren't solutions at all. The "greening" of America is a blaring example of the commercialization of environmentalism, and there are other instances as well. Diet fads claim "all you have to do!" and you fill in the blank with some silly restriction or pill or meditation which promises to shed the pounds, without the pain. No one wants to admit that lifestyle changes are required to sucessfully maintain weightloss and develop a sustainably healthy lifestyle.

I recently read an article pointing to Americans' lack ofself-control as a reason behind many of the problems our society is facing today. Our over indulgence in consumption, from gasoline to cheap clothing to food, are themonsters behind disasters like the GUlf oil spill, economic instability, and growing obesity. We can't control our appettites in so many ways, and the only fixes we're willing to vote for are the ones which don't take us off the path we were planning to take anyways. The path to the mall, that long road to be driven to a vacation spot, and the walkway through the doors of Applebee's.

Ten Thousand Villages is convenietly located in downtown Northampton, the purchase of a unique handcraftedguft will satisfy your urge to splurge, and help make the world a better place. Dependingon your definition of "better."

(But seriously--CNA and Ten Thousand VIllages are great organizations. People should support them, even if it's by purchasing a placemat made out of recycled shoes. But I just hope that people realize that this kind of support is far from sufficient, and that real change costs more than a housewarming gift for your sister-in-law.)