I stroll into my Critical Media Studies classroom, drinking an icy bottle of Pepsi and wearing a Nike baseball cap. A few of my students glance up from their cell phones and iPods long enough to notice me.

“Um, nice hat,” someone comments.

“Thank you,” I say. “Today’s class is proudly sponsored by Nike, a strong advocate of education. When it comes to education, Nike says, ‘Just do it!’” I take a swig of my Pepsi. “Can you guess who else is sponsoring our class today?” The few students who have actually done the reading chuckle, because they know that today’s class is about the pervasiveness of consumerism in schools and in popular culture.

Over the years, I’ve resorted to lots of gimmicks like these in my quest to teach students about consumerism. I try to make my students more aware of how the media naturalize consumerism through advertisements, product placement, and especially through advertiser-friendly programming. You might be surprised to hear that I find this to be the single most difficult topic to teach. I teach about many controversial media issues – ownership, violence, race and gender representation – and students contemplate these topics enthusiastically. But when it comes to consumerism, it’s a brick wall. Five minutes into any such discussion, I brace myself for the inevitable chorus of, “Oh, come on. It’s just a bunch of ads.”

Corporations and advertising executives should rejoice, as this reticence of young people to think critically about the role of consumerism is money in their pockets. Advertisers have always coveted the 18-34 year old group – the legions of the so-called “Age of Acquisition” who have few established brand loyalties and lots of pocket change. Today’s Generation Y youth, born roughly between 1977 and 1997, are especially desirable because they are the children of Baby Boomers, and therefore represent a population explosion. Run the term “Generation Y” through a search engine, and you’ll find dozens of sites with information about how companies can take advantage of this marketing gold mine. Multinationals are deeply invested in the collective consumer choices of my students. When my students fail to show concern, these corporations become all the more powerful.

To demonstrate to my students how media content itself naturalizes consumerism, I used to show my students a clip from the 1991 movie Father of the Bride. In this clip, the father is horrified that his daughter wants him to spend about $130,000 on her wedding. He would prefer to have a simple wedding reception at the local Steak Pit, but the whole family rejects this idea. Even the adolescent son understands this is “unacceptable”; he comments, “I don’t think you want the word ‘pit’ on a wedding invitation.” When the father complains that his first car cost less than the wedding cake, the wedding coordinator bursts into laughter and says, “Welcome to the ‘90s.” After the daughter agrees to downsize the wedding, her father discovers her, asleep, reading a magazine article with tips on how to throw a budget wedding. Suddenly ashamed of himself, he agrees to fund the extravagant wedding. Dad learns his lesson: consumerism-fueled expectations may be outrageous, but they are necessary, and failure to adhere to these expectations is silly, miserly, and downright unloving.

I quit showing this clip. It didn’t work. Oh, they got the point, that media content often promotes the agenda of advertisers. Unfortunately, the clip would inevitably lead to a version of the following:

A female student raises her hand shyly and says, “I understand why this is bad, but I want a big wedding.” A dozen ponytailed heads nod in harmony.

“I mean, not as big as the one in the movie,” someone responds, “but you know, the flowers, the cake, the dress, the ring, all that stuff. I’ve daydreamed about my wedding since I was a little girl.”

“Me too,” the first student says, and frowns. “Does that make me a bad person?”

Therein lies the trouble. The dreams, the memories, the rites of passage of Generation Y – all of these are intricately intertwined with consumerism. By placing wedding consumption under scrutiny, this student feels like she is being attacked personally. To this student, the suggestion there is something wrong with consumerism is akin to suggesting that there is something wrong with her.

While all of us in the post-war western world have grown up with the association between happiness and consumption, this association is all the more powerful with Generation Y. They have been reared with unlimited advertising and limited models of social consciousness or activism. Let’s look at the experiences of my students, a fairly typical US sample of Generation Y. They were born in the 1980s under the Reagan administration, when two important trends in children’s television occurred: Reagan, ever the media deregulator, relaxed requirements for educational programming at the same time as he relaxed restrictions on advertising to children. This helped bring forth a new marketing tactic – which Tom Engelhardt has called the “Shortcake Strategy” – in which children’s TV shows were created for the exclusive purpose of marketing large collections of children’s toys. Some of the happiest, most prized childhood memories of Generation Y are filled with these shows and toys – Strawberry Shortcake, He-Man, the Care Bears. Discussing the politics of this kind of marketing with students is even harder than discussing wedding excess. A student once wrote in my teacher evaluation, “Great class, but please don’t go hating on Strawberry Shortcake.”

This is the first generation that came of age in the era of rampant advertising in the schools, as well as Channel One, the news program piped into schools complete with advertisements. As a Generation X-er who graduated from high school in 1988, I recall very few ads in school. A relatively short time later, the hallways, lunchrooms, and sports facilities of cash-strapped schools are now frequently sponsored by corporations. When I ask students if this happened in their schools, they supply never-ending examples: stadiums dotted by Nike swooshes, lunchrooms filled with Pizza Hut and Chic-Fil-A, a back-to-school party sponsored by Outback Steakhouse, even book covers underwritten by corporations. Then, of course, there’s the prom. Eschewed by some of my Gen X counterparts, the prom is back and bigger than ever, teaching future brides and grooms important lessons about gowns, limos, and flowers. Ask a Gen Y member which mall he or she grew up in, and you may well get an answer

The reality is that many young people don’t take consumerism seriously because they feel that as individuals, it does not affect them. As media activists like Jean Kilbourne have argued, this illusion that advertising affects “everybody else but me” is nothing new, but I think this is even more the case with Generation Y. Students claim violence in the media doesn’t matter because they grew up playing Doom and they didn’t turn out violent. Or they claim that unrealistic images of women in the media do matter because they know a lot of girls with eating disorders. Many young people don’t seem to have a language for understanding that the media doesn’t just affect us on an individual level – the media impacts society politically, economically, and ideologically. A student might dismiss ads in his high school by saying they did not affect him; nonetheless, I argue, the proliferation of ads in high schools have affected culture as a whole.

Again, this individualist way of looking at media effects isn’t entirely new, especially in an individualist nation like the United States, where social scientists for years have been obsessed with trying to draw links between individual behavior and the media. But Generation Y is a particularly individualist cohort. The Me Generation is back. Just like in the 1970s, young people are frightened and disgusted with current events and have retreated away from politics, with their iPods, PlayStations, and all the other isolating technology the consumer market can offer. But the ‘70s were different because the ‘60s didn’t die overnight. Me Generation or not, the language of activism was still spoken in the ‘70s, and many young people then were involved in movements such as Women’s Liberation. To what activist language has Generation Y been exposed? It’s three years into their own Vietnam, and they aren’t exactly flooding the streets with protestors. Often students tell me that they find politics to be boring and irrelevant to their own experiences.

It’s pretty hard to engage a group of young people in a discussion of the political implications of consumerism when they are not engaged in politics much at all. Consumerism is a personal choice, and most of my students cannot see beyond that. They shop at Wal-Mart because it’s cheap, and buy coffee at Starbucks because they like the mochas. Sweatshops? Globalization? It’s not so much that they don’t care about these things (though many don’t). Rather, they haven’t been taught to think of consumerism as something that extends beyond their own enjoyable trip to the mall, just as they haven’t been taught that their personal consumer decisions are political.

To me, perhaps the most frustrating argument students make about consumerism is that it shouldn’t be a societal concern because “it’s the parents’ responsibility.” Parents are responsible for refusing to buy their kids $200 basketball shoes, for making sure they eat a healthy lunch in the cafeteria, and for instilling values that, according to my students, will somehow make their children immune to the effects of advertisements. This argument disturbs me, partly because my students seem to show no compassion for kids with parents who are unwilling or unable to be this active in their kids’ development. But most of all, this disturbs me because it lets corporations off the hook for the effects they have on society. It doesn’t matter how or to whom a company markets their products; it only matters how parents raise their children. Once again, consumerism becomes the business of individual families, not society.

So, what can media activists do? I think the first step is to find ways to appeal to members of this generation on the level of the individual. Young people might not initially care about the plight of a Nike worker in Vietnam or a Wal-Mart worker in Houston. They may, however, be concerned with how credit card companies lure in college students, or how college bookstores jack up prices needlessly, or how car insurance companies charge them exorbitant amounts. When I ask students to give examples of how corporations have screwed them over personally, the room fills up with raised hands. This is a good way to show them that although consumerism has brought them happiness in their lives, it has also brought them problems.

A second activist strategy of reaching Generation Y is to find examples in popular culture. Generation Y is all about pop culture. I’ve found that my students are amenable to discussions about how advertisers and media producers consciously create media content that “trains” young people to be consumers. Young people need to know that corporations see them as a market to manipulate, and often will respond to this argument, because who wants to be manipulated? The trick is to find popular culture texts they relate to that have a strong pro-consumerism bent. I’ve had some success in the past with the “Pottery Barn” episode of Friends. In this episode, Rachel lies to her roommate Phoebe and tells her their new furniture is antique. Actually, it came from Pottery Barn, but Phoebe hates commercial furniture. Rachel is caught in her lie when the two walk by Pottery Barn and see most of the furniture in the display window. But then Phoebe sees a lamp in the window and decides she must buy it. Phoebe learns her lesson: commercial furniture is good. Another good source of pro-consumerism media is reality television, a favorite of students and chock-full of product placement.

A third strategy is simply to get young people to talk to their parents about their experiences growing up and how people “back in the day” felt about corporate power and consumerism. These are the children of Baby Boomers, after all, so even if they haven’t been around activism, their parents have. One of my favorite assignments is to get students to interview older family members about popular culture and their past experiences. Students love this assignment.

So, there’s hope. When I wear my Nike hat to class, some of the students get it, and inevitably, a student stops by my office at the end of the semester and announces she has stopped going to Starbucks. But this is no easy task, and media activists would be well advised to work hard to relate to Generation Y. The advertisers are certainly paying attention to them, and so should we.

_Naomi Rockler-Gladen is an assistant professor of media studies at Colorado State University and a freelance writer.

 

COMMENTS:

Shortly after reading this I cracked open a fortune cookie to find the shockingly proconsumerism fortune: You will get a great deal on a major purchase. I was just thinking I needed an ipod...Is there no end?! As a member of Generation Y, I've been lucky enough to become aware of all the affects of consumerism, but still feel like there is no escape. It is one thing to know it's there; change is far more difficult. The author is rather presumptious to hope for our Baby Boomer parents to instill activism in us. Generation Y has known nothing other than our disillusionment and helplessness. Our parents at least made changes in their young adulthood, but now they watch tv with us and fill the mall parking lots. Don't make this a generation thing. We are all sucked in and we are all responsible.
Lost Cause

Reading this article and others of this kind only strengthens my hatred of the media and advertising. As a 23 yr female, I feel the presssure to buy brand, to live to an ideal ("because i'm worth it"). However the sickening reality of this advertising frenzy is taking its toll, the average debt is rising, there are more suicides related to people with financial trouble, trying to maintain a life that has been fed to them in the most sneaky way from infancy. Advertising and marketing is affecting an entirely new generation of little consumers who are blissfully unaware of the way half of these must- have products are made. And still we buy and still we want... until a clamp downs on marketing are made what chance do future generations have for any individualism or to be unaffected by brand power?
Rebecca (UK)

This is a good article. I am at the end of Generation X and still trying to find me without consumerism. I teach Special Ed. Students at an elementary school and you can see how they are affected. They think ipods and michael jordan shoes will make them popular.
Iria

Firstly, I think that there is nothing immoral about propositioning someone with buying their product. Adbusters does this. Second, I don't think there's anything wrong with buying luxuries from big corporations. I'm a big believer in generousity, but I do believe that people have the right to pursue happiness. And lastly, I do believe in evolution – not from monkeys to humans, but just a general improvement from generation to generation, where the weak die out and the strong procreate. It's just a law of nature. If you feel corporations are preying on you, then prey on them. Don't play the violin for yourself: The credit card companies lured me in. I have no sympathy, even though I was one of those kids. Grow up. How about giving people that message?
Ronald

I enjoyed reading your article. I have been thinking about the role of the media. In essence, I am not against consumerism, it creates jobs. What I am against is the way is done, with no social conscience. Corporation's aim is to make obscene profits without regard of how is done. For example: The cosmetic and fashion industry portraying a false image to young girls that most will be unable to attain...does this create self hate on them? It is not about ceasing from buying things, but being selective of what we buy...we do have a voice!
Maria

Great article! I track my spending to the penny. [http://money-log.blogspot.com/] At the end of the month, I look back and see how I feel about what I've spent cash on. Before I make a purchase, I remember what I had to do to acquire the cash, often a meager amount of money for my life's time doing work I hated. I do not deprive myself of items I need and want. Seeing the lie and avoiding the traps is liberating. And, there is such a thing as a free lunch. Thanks for the free article!
Mark Stock

Antiques keep going up invalue at 5 x times the rate of inflation. My hand-painted dishes and all wood furiture keeps going up I value as I eat on and sit on them. Must be some reason.
hempy dave

Maybe alot of the students in medai studies do not get the material presented in class because they are there for different reasons, but I get it. I am working very hard so that everyone I associate with gets it. My daughter (10 years old) is turning out to be a great critic of the advertising industry. She notices ads where most adults do not see them, i.e on Tv, in kid movies and on vehicles.
BaziL

This is an absolutely frightening situation. I imagine it has probably been the goal of certain indviduals for some time. Unfortunately combating this would take such a concerted effort, I fear society as a whole is too fragmented to defend itself against corporate interests.
alex smith

I'm on the left side, but this article disturbed me. Seems like she's trying to convince her students to believe in her position, kind of like a right-wing thumper simply must open the eyes of the ignorant nonbeliever. I don't want to be told what to think, even if I happen to agree with it. A professor shouldn't wave a flag for anything. She or he should present the facts from every conceivable angle: every opinion contains its rebuttal, that's the nature of dialectics, which is the nature of all thought, right? It is a crital media studies class, which tells me the course focuses on a critique of the media. The media represents the left and the right. To critique the right (capitalism, spawner of consumerism) without addressing the left indicates that she's more concerned with infusing the kids with what she perceives to be an enlightened position, to the detriment of the much broader scope of truth in all its many guises. God, I must sound like a real curmudgeon, but the professor is just as much a consumer as the kids. Her awareness of it doesn't change the fact that everything she owns is a brand of some sort. So, yes, explore consumerism. But explore it without a destination. The results will then be untainted by personal proclivities. I guess when it comes to sticking up for the pursuit of truth unfettered by conviction's sweet allure, i am a curmudgeon. Make no mistake, I have chosen a side. But an educator who reveals her cards is bound to play a table at which half the players have already folded. And isn't it just like a conservative to assume the other side's stance is nothing more than the product of an unexamined self or deeply flawed values?
baron roberts

I noticed in the Adbusters 70 (Canadian edition) that at the end of this article you are trying to sell a product of your own (the media empowerment kit). I'm sure you recognize the irony that the system you oppose affords you the luxury to bite the hand that feeds, but no discaimer for such a mixed message only further confuses the issue.
James Pettit

I'm from generation Y and have I been conscious of the exploitation of advertising not after analysing a postwar campaign created by Johnny Walker, launched summer 06 in Lebanon and entitled "keep walking." It is a good example that shows the naturalization of the media world and illustrates how everything is nowadays an advertising opportunity, even war! Nearly no one got offended by the Johnnie Walker ads. At the contrary, it was viewed as supportive and motivational! One of the billboards showed an illustration of a broken bridge with the keep walking slogan attached. I haven't seen much objection to the ad for its obvious attempt to cash in on the tragedy to build its brand name. The ad can be easily analysed as the following: Your home just got bombed. Your relatives are dead. You have no job, little money, and a miserable future. You should drink whiskey. Lots of whiskey. It won't solve your problems but it will make you feel better about them. Is it one of the Nonstop media exposure impact? I value Naomis article because at least it is suggesting solutions!
Hala.M

Naomi, thanks for the wonderful article. As a 52 year old, I think I have a good perspective on how corporations have shaped our culture to guarantee that the next generation is a me generation full of foolish illusions about what constitutes happiness, status, prestige and American culture and normalcy. Unfortunately for them, their lessons will be learned the hard way. Wars, oil shortages, climatological changes, poverty and global political turmoil will force them to realize that they've been sold a bunch of unsustainable dreams by smiley faced corporations who see them as nothing more than cash pods, Matrix-style. It's going to be quite a collision when generation Y, having been told they are entitled to have it all, can't afford it becasue all the jobs have been shipped overseas by the same corporations.
Jimbo

Good article, but I must agree that the boomers haven't done their job in instilling activist values to its youth. I guess a lot of parents have a hard time talking about the 60's without getting into the uncomfortable subject of easy drugs and free love. It can feel sometimes as if they put the good moments and ideas of that period along with their own skeletons in the closet, and it's a pity because now we've got teens getting laid and doped up like the 60's but with the fear-addled politically oblivious attitude of the 50's. Generation Broken Record...
Alx

As a Gen Yer...I have to agree with Lucas...you think you are getting out of the consumer trap and then you find you are just replacing old consuming habits with new ones. I stopped driving a car to get away from using gas for example, so now I'm becoming a bike junkie, always handing over the old plastic at my local bike shop. I feel a little better about this because bikes are a lot more sustainable then cars and I am supporting a local business, but I am still buying cheap plastic shit from Godknowswhere and made under conditions I can only guess at. So much for becoming an anarcist and leaving the consumer culture. Yuck...I'm fed up with myself!
strider

Thanks Naomi, I too enjoyed the article. Below is a letter to the editor my husband and I sent after receiving poor service from some generation Ys that don't think consumerism affects them. Telus recently got slammed from the public for allowing porn to be downloaded on cellphones. They have since changed their minds. Our letter may not get published, and we may not change corporate practices....but we may have planted a few seeeds of doubt along the way: Best Buys lowest price guarantee is an exercise in futility for the consumer. Last weekend we tried to purchase the same brand and model of a product from Best Buy that appeared to meet all the criteria for their lowest price guarantee. The competitors price was $179; Best Buys price was $305. After waiting 15 minutes the customer service representative CSR claimed the product was an OEM product; it was not. Then the CSR claimed that we did not qualify because the competitor sold OEM products. This was not listed as one of their exemptions. When we asked to speak with the manager, we were kept waiting another 15 minutes; eventually he informed us that not all their policies are listed. We experienced a similar situation at another location two years ago. What bothers us greatly is not that the terms and conditions of the Lowest Price Guarantee are subject to change without notice; but that Best Buys policy is to train young staff members to a manufacture deception, b aggressively challenge customers, and c profess a militant loyalty to Best Buy without questioning that the customer may have a point. We have since boycotted Best Buy and their affiliate Future Shop. For greater clarity, we suggest your policy state, we guarantee you, if we can pocket over a $100 profit from an uncritical consumer; we will.
Kimberley Petersen

I feel so trapped when I ponder this topic. I want to feel connected to my generation Y for reasons other than we all drank Pepsi, watched the same reality TV shows, ate McDonalds together, etc. Unfortunately, this is how many people bond and identify themselves. I have made choices like not watching TV, not buying coffee from Starbucks, etc which nearly alienate me socially. I live in the suburbs; nevertheless, a connection to people my age and to others within society is important. Herein lies the frustrating paradox I have been faced with as a member of this generation.
Hilde

This is in response to the smartalleck who accused Adbusters of profitting just like corporations becasue they are selling the Media Empowerment Kit. I ordered the kit and I can assure you that Adbusters isn't making a whopping profit on this little gem. Smartass.
Jimmy Jet

I have so many problems simply trying to have this conversation with people. There is an automatic defensive reaction. It is the ultimate con. It is a complete drug. Thank you for this article.
library lapin

Fabulous article. I am a member of generation Y, and oftentimes find myself in the same situation as a teacher. I know that several of my peers and colleagues feel the same way about big business as I do. However, they need to be reminded of all the ill that these institutions have brought. Many times I find that simple physical advertisements (e.g. billboards) offend anyone. But the typical generation Y member feels as though it's a necessary evil, like death and taxes. So oftentimes I ask them why and wait until they become frustrated trying to figure out why companies need to pander so much. Coincidentally, this occurs right next to people who actually could use the money, the poor for example. As for selling a media empowerment kit I understand that selling tools is a better alternative than hawking advertising pages.
drew

I'm 25 yrs old and as I fight against the branding of my identity by corporate media, I keep finding all the tricks they use to keep you in even when you think you're on your way out. Great article, I actually took a class much like the one here and found it to be an eye opener but also filled with many of the same types described in the article.
Lucas Hutson

Great article. I think the reason teenagers don't complain about anything is because they are too comfortable.
Sophia

What happend in 70s and 80s in the US is happening in India. People, specially the youth, swear by their brands. Schools and colleges are slowly but steadily getting converted to brand bazaars. Big and bigger Malls are hogging our real estates. Credit card companies are ruling and ruining the Indians' spending habits. People are loosing their instincts of financial discipline. They are mortgaging their future earnings life for present luxuries. The government too has joined this brandwagon by allowing greater share of foreign capital. With the mindset developing here, the scenerio 10 years may be earlier hence, would be much worse than what it is now in US.
Jaideep Jagasia

Ronald needs help. Shame. Ignorance.
sheldon

$20,000 in credit card debt and I am committed anti brand! Consuming is addictive and it goes beyond the label. Discovering a different kind of satisfaction is the much needed new enlightenment. At least for the soul if not the economy. How many time shall the world burn before we get the right phoenix.
Graham

I'm a graphic designer, I might have worked in advertising, but I chose to work in newspaper design. I still deal with ads and such, and recently we were invited my coworkers in the design dept. to the caribe festival of advertising. Seeing commercial after commercial, I realize why I like it so much: the creativity, the brainstorming, the ideas that flow so that in the end you can create something so clever it can sell a product or a service or a message. I've seen some really good work. And then I realize I don't have that...I don't have what it takes to sell a product or a service. I realize maybe I'll never work in advertising. At least not selling products or services. Maybe I could do social campaigns; wipe of 5, play outside, speak out. That's the kind of advertising that's really worth your attention.
Vanessa

I teach Media Lit at Portland State University. Videos by the Media Education Fund, spearheaded by Sut Jhally have had a big impact on our students. Great article!
jon schroeder

Wow, this was a really good article. I'm a proud member of generation Y, and I agree. We do buy things because we see advertisements, or because we see one of our friends have something we might like or want. A while ago my computer teacher had made me see a short clip on the 'Merchants of Cool'. It was, also, about how advertisements control our pockets and our parents pockets and how it gives teens what they want on TV. I do beg my parents to buy me stuff I see on TV, but I don't over do it. I think about the bills and other more important stuff they need to pay. I don't think it was right that one of your students stopped going to Starbucks just because of what you mentioned about the ads. I give you credit for changing the way he might think, but I think he changed it in a not so posivite way. The article was still great, and made me realize how important knowing about consumerism is. Also, I think now I'll pay more attention to politics, it feels good to learn even though I completely hate it.
Katterine

Don't people realize that life is precarious? Job security does not exist and yet so many people choose to live paycheck to paycheck, giving up all their money to make corporations rich. However, I can't stop being a consumer since I can't grow food and make shoes. The important point is we need to be informed and critical of what hides behind the ads and the products. I cringe every time I see TV ads like, for example, someone spraying disinfectant spray in an infant's room. How many viewers realize that all chemical disinfectants contain pesticides, and scientifically there's absolutely no need to use disinfectants in a typical domestic household? What's even worse is when ads pretend to be something else. I've seen a TV ad that looks exactly like a news report, and magazine ads that is indistinguishable from the regular articles. It seems that we need to be on our toes at all times in order not to be deceived.
Anna

I am an 18-year-old senior in high school. I have have had amazing teacher for the past year that has opened my mind to how selfish we, as Americans, are. It's disgusting, really. I went on a missions trip this summer and saw first hand that money does not equal happiness. I work at Target and I no longer can buy from there; there is even a Starbucks inside of Target. I walk across the parking lot and go to a small coffee shop inside of a bookstore instead. Your article was amazing good info. About generation x and y!
cristinao

I'm a member of this generation Y. I've never owned a games console (well, I had a ZX Spectrum once), a pair of jeans or trainers over $100, or a designer shirt. I don't drink in Starbucks. I enjoy adverts without remembering the product, like many people my age. IPODS sell because they are a great idea, Nikes because they are comfy and Coke because it's full of sugar and caffeine, Starbucks because it is convenient and recognisable and therefore comfotable. These work because this is what people want. We want something we recognise. We want something we feel comfortable with. Well, ok, I don't, and you don't, but enough people do to make it a hugely successful business model. Just because it is not for you does not mean you should bemoan it as some corporate evil. If more people go to a shop because they recognise it, then you could infer people prefer going to shops they recognise. If people prefer going to shops they recognise, advertising benefits them by enabling them to recognise more shops. It all begins with the consumer, not the corporation. We are not being cheated, we are mearly closing our eyes and allowing ourselves to be led. If people want to see movies without adverts inserted throughout they should pay more attention to who they chose to watch. People sit back being drip fed trash from the corporate world and then blame the corporate world. Wake up. There's an infinite amount of quality movies and music, media and news that is created simply for the pleasure of art, creation and the sharing of knowledge. It is not the corporate world that is at fault. It is the consumer. We are lazy so they can be lazy.
Sanjay

I am in a college honors course that teaches Media Literacy. The author says in the article that her students were quick to pin the blame on parents. Working with children on the subject of Media Literacy can really be an eye-opening experience to students. Those in Media Literacy classes must realize that it is difficult for parents to effectively teach their children about the media because of their generation difference. Our parents did not grow up in the same media atmosphere as we did. We have to seek out the key problems with the media such as the rampant consumerism. The appearance of this article gives me hope for this cause.
Kyle Kretzer

I am 18 and in College and as long as you remember. As long as you know the truths. You will not buy useless shit. This was of thinking is rooted in capatalism and unless we see some new legislation we need a revolution to live in a better world.
Ravi

I find it interesting that the only call to action in this article is a suggestion to give up Starbucks – as if that one thing, or even boycott politics in general, will be effective in altering the nature of free market capitalism. If a student gives up Starbucks and McDonalds, they're still buying their products elsewhere, and still supporting a capitalist system that is by nature unsustainable. Every business: small, large, giant contributes to the destruction of the planet, is implicit in fucking over workers, and directly or indirectly profits from things like the war economy. I don't understand how, when it's acknowledged by the author themself in this article, consumerism, an effect of capitalism, can be defeated by the basic boycott of multinationals. First of all, it's almost completely unafforable for any worker, even in a Western country, to afford envirofriendly products, and second of all, everything we do, everything we buy, even getting up in the morning and turning on our light switch beside the bed, is part of the machine that is destroying us and our environment. Claiming the defeat of one company or successfully getting a small portion of the population to boycott one product means absolutely nothing in the long run – in some rare cases, the company pretends to look green and healthy, in some even rarer cases, they make some tokenistic steps towards it and win the market back with the congratulation of organisations like Adbusters. Nevertheless, their workers are still earning the minimum wage, don't have health care, struggle to put their kids through school. If we really want to see the world economy change, the whole system needs to change. As long as the stock market still exists, as long as US Presidents are elected by 26% of the population, we're going to live in an unjust economy.
Amy Thomas

Although this article has brought back many found memories of my adbusting during my college years at Fort Lewis College and especially as I studied at Colorado State; it has brought a greater fear of things yet to come for our poor global mind state. You see I have moved to China to teach English as a second language and I have noticed one terrible reality: the majority of all of Chinese traditions and festivals involve massive amounts of consumerism, from MidAutumn Festival, where you MUST buy moon cakes, to visiting a friend or relatives where you defiantly should bring a small gift. During Spring Festival one should buy a basket of fruit, which is conveniently marked up 300 to 400% to give to family. As Naomi Rockler stated above Americans resort to the individualism, while I find here in China, Chinese people are merely following the group blindly. As a teacher here I have the most trouble getting students to think for themselves, as they are not taught to do that in their schools. Their answers often include: this is China and we always have done that, or, "mei you ban fa" which means "there is nothing we can do." There is a lesson that talks about the pollution of our environment which I have taught numerous of times, and getting the students to think of any other ways to help that are not in the book is next to impossible. So their favorite Popsinger does Pepsi commercials and is on billboards for everything, I see students who have the most expensive electronic dictionaries, Ipods equipped with Brittany Spears, Backstreet Boys and all the worst that is American music, fake Nike shirts that say NIEK, drink Coke and only know Popculture, I think of how to reach the generation Y of China, who love Friends and everything The United States Sells, from KFC to Budweiser and dream of a day when China's products are exported on an equal level as American products. I get arguments from students that state if you want quality products you need to buy the most expensive name brands. But the worst of it all is that on a daily basis, I struggle to get students to think for themselves, or think about others and what may happen to us all if they too strive to own four black Audi sedans, a large apartment, washing machine, Plasma TV and all the amenities of the modern world. My students largely dream of being rich and being able to afford the most expensive products and the word "farmer" has nearly become a four letter word. China is trying desperately to modernize and become as great as America at the risk of killing its entire population from pollution. I think what a beautiful world as I look out my windows and fail to see the mountains or the buildings which lie around one mile away or walk from my apartment and see the black waters of Shan Xi's rivers. Inside and out I am bombarded daily by consumerism gone mad. I see famous people from the west used to endorse Chinese products, I see Jackie Chan selling a shampoo to regrow hair. I see weddings where the bride wears up to four different dresses in one day and the families have purchased too much food to eat just to save face. I hear my Chinese friends talk about how they must have the most expensive wedding or their family will lose face. I hear Chinese people talking about how much money they spent on a product not how inexpensive their purchase was, and I wonder if all our focus on American Consumerism is too late as the WTO gains more power in the international scheme of things. I am witnessing the exporting of this Consumerism culture into developing countries first hand and run into a brick wall when I say to these people slow down and think what you are doing and am answered with "well you do it and your standard of living is greater than ours, so why can't we strive to be rich and have nice things?" I continue to feel rather powerless as I see people making 37.5 dollars a month in the same society where some make millions of dollars in a month, and nobody is taught to think about it on a critical level. I am thankful I was born an American and was taught to think for myself critically and continue to help those I see in need. I believe those of us who feel remorse and obligation for those in need, can make something great happen, no need for revolutions the only need is more action, and less talking about what should be done and start doing something, anything. But remember every time we make a company follow ethical business practices, there are still many places in the world who are welcoming our companies with open arms, who do not care about environmental standards or humane, safe work environments. Remember we have allowed the corporations to create a union or guild if you will in the WTO with no real balance. Fighting consumerism is merely fighting a symptom of a larger problem, but at least it is something. Right on to the soldiers on the front lines, educating, lobbying, legislating, protesting and working for a better tomorrow. Keep up the good work.
Jesse Walker

I hate to sound like a broken record, but as a member of Gen. Y, and the prominent influence of corporate culture and media just anger me...I cant seem to rid myself of these things that make seem inevitably part of me. It's almost impossible for me to look at television without feeling that I'm being treated in a condescending way! It makes me sad how passive people feel about nature and the outdoors when they prefer a large urbanized concretejungle of a city. I agree that our mentality has dramatically changed over this last century, not just for women, but for men. The reason I say this is that True.com and love.com ads piss me the fuck off! There's more than just advertisements that anger me to the point of wanting to isolate myself from society and abandon all of which i am apart of. It feels like one massive machine which produces predictable results. I'm scared of the future. I'm scared that all America will eventually will become is a mass society influenced by idiots influenced by television. How many hours of television does the average American watch? Attention deficit disorder and hyperactive disorder in our generation are on the rise. I don't know how else to articulate the fear and the anger and the disapointed feelings that I get anytime that I see where i live. Houston, Texas...THE LARGEST CITY in the US (land area that is) and third largest in population. I never really understood why it was that became so depressed just about coming back home from Colorado. It took me a while of thought and sifting through denial but I honestly don't see the beauty in Houston. I admire the innovations in technology, but wandering through a huge city like Houston, makes me depressed. Looking at the beautiful mountainous city of Colorado Springs, Houston can't compare. It just seems unfathomable.
Peaceluvndharmohknee

Katterine, above, said it wasn't a positive thing that a student decided to stop going to Starbucks. Why is that not a positive thing? I have become so suspicious of other people and of what I read, I almost feel like Katterine is undercover, working for Starbucks, letting this crowd know we can still go there. It's cool, because she saw the movie Merchants of Cool. I'm going nuts.
Matthew Peterson

This article is very interesting and I agree with most of it. However, I find the us and them division between Generation Y (them) and older generations (us) a bit disturbing. I'm part of Gen Y (just) and I'm tired of never being included in any group or conversation. Older people around me seem to view my generation either as a threat to increasingly rare secure employement or an exploitable resource (we seem to be cheap, after all) or just a bit of a pain in the backside (all those revolting students to teach...). There seem to be very few older people left who believe that it is an obligation of society to train and mentor the younger generation – or even that all of us actually DO have a worthwhile contribution to make to society. If you want to relate to Generation Y, you might start by including us in the discussion and in society in general. And in a slightly unrelated point raised in this article – the one about criticising consumerism seeming to imply a criticism of individual Gen Ys as well. Let's for a moment overlook the rather moralistic attitude expressed by a lot of older people (the whole "young people these days..." set of bemoanings about the degenerate youth) and go to the more interesting point about Gen Ys wondering whether consumerism makes you a bad person. To me, this seems to be nothing less than Gen Y having to face the fact that almost everything we remember from childhood as being pleasant was tainted in some way by consumerism and corporate exploitation that none of it was actually real. I've been through an experience unrelated that made me realise that something/one that mattered a lot to me when I was a child was actually just a load of B.S. and I know how psychologically devastating that sort of disillusionment is. I'm not saying that it's better to live in ignorance – far from it! In this case, the truth really did set me free or that we should retreat from uncomfortable truths. But for an entire generation to have to face up to the fact that almost all of the pleasant things they remember from childhood were just a con, that nothing was genuine (especially in a society that does not seem to value young people very much, or particularly want us around) is not going to be an easy thing to do. I'm not suggesting any particular strategies or saying that we should simply give up in despair or cowardice – and I don't know what the answer to any of this is.
C.

In response to Baron Roberts' suggestion of flagwaving, I would suggest this is a misreading of the article. RocklerGladen is commenting on students' resistance to engaging in any conversation or reflection about consumerism. She's not asking them to agree with her views about consumerism. In fact, she doesn't even state her own position about consumerism here, except that it is a relevant and powerful sociocultural force. I don't really think that's up for argument, is it? And she's asking students to engage in a conversation about that, which is where it's easy to hit a brick wall. As a secondary school teacher who teaches several miniunits on advertising and consumer culture, I run into this myself a great deal. I'm a consumer, certainly, and I'm not asking my students to be anticonsumer. But what she points out in the article is that students have come to see consumerism as natural, and they believe they are immune to the effects of advertising. I have found this to be absolutely true in my own classroom. After reading an article that analyzed some of Disney's marketing strategies, for example, I had 17 year old student say to me, "This author is too picky. . .why can't she just let her imagination come alive?" It was frightening to me that she couldn't consider the fact that we were actually talking about someone ELSE'S imagination! Enjoying "The Little Mermaid" does not mean you created her! When students are encouraged to ask questions about the influence of Apple, Coke, Nike, and especially products beloved of childhood, they seem to experience a sense that they are betraying their favorite brands. They are often staunchly set against pausing even for a moment to think critically about them, and that leaves them in an incredibly vulnerable position in our culture. Leaving them without the tools to consider the influence of advertisers and major corporations is abandoning them without crucial literacy skills to a world that is predatory and profit-driven. We may want to believe that educators can maintain an apolitical stance in the classroom, but conceding to student beliefs that advertising is ineffective and irrelevant – avoiding addressing these issues – is itself a political stance. My best media studies success story? A student who wrote me an email saying, "You've ruined tv for me. Now I can't stop thinking while I watch."
Alicia Wein

This is an interesting and enlightening article. It seems to be another almost visceral attempt to reject the present capitalist world order without a concept of its replacement. I agree with much of what is said, desires are clearly stimulated to increase consumerism and this undoubtedly has adverse effects that we all should be concerned with. However an outright rejection of consumerism is naive. Global productivity has reached levels that now mean in countries such as the UK and US there is not the level of basic human need to produce enough demand to create jobs. In other words, if we did not want to buy the latest Ipod, mobile phone and loads of coke, the system would fail. This is one of the main contradictions Marx perceived in the capitalist economy – it is only circumvented by the demand produced by excessive marketing. Many will argue that this failure would be a good thing, yet any student of history can see that capitalism is a prerequisite of democracy. Hayek, Friedman and many others have demonstrated that without capitalism we will eventually be left with only tyranny.
Duncan UK Gen.Y

I am a member of generation Y and I think the key consideration this article points out is in attacking brands and consumerism the majority of my peers see it as a personal attack. There is a large degree of apathy and anticonsumerism has become to an extent a social taboo (seen as the cliché of the protesting student – those annoying busy bodies who want to tell us that we're bad, the world is evil, the misanthropes who are full of teenage angst). The problem is a lot of people are tired of being told of the social, environmental and political evils of the brand, plus they simply like the fashion or want cheap clothes. I am in no way condoning this attitude but I feel it is a prevailing trend. Brands are simply the product of our capitalist society, I feel the factor which is most overlooked is that the real power lies I the hands of the share holders, bank investment programs and ultimately the public itself. Ultimately without support they would not exist, pressure exerted at this level is the only way to force change. Corporations will always exist and they do so to serve the public, what the public wants it gets, unfortunately at the moment this is profits and cheap products which leads to the aggressive marketing strategies and stealing of culture to create a Baudrillard style hyperreality where everything is turned into a cliché.
punkkk

I'm a babyboomer. That speaks of many things: my age, the toys I played with, the possible quality of my education, the time I was without a father while he flew in the VietNam War. My husband and I were talking about not remembering that the first coke cans had to be opened with a can opener. I remember the only time I drank coke soda was when we went to McDonald's or the pizza place, maybe once a month. I wore my brother's handmedowns, and sometimes my mother's too. We weren't poor; we knew how to get every last ounce of use out of things. We didn't come from a throwaway world. Not all of the attitude Gen Y has is their faults. Those from my generation, just like the generations before us, wanted more for our kids...and somehow expected less. There needs to be a resurgence of training to our young people in the areas of knowing how to work for what is important, and how to wait on the things that they want. Credit has messed up more college students and adults, because it comes so easily. The hard part is paying it back. Something I have had to train myself to do is to ask myself, would you still want it if you had to wait until you had the cash in hand to get it? The ads seem less appealing when you set a standard for your buying. Thanks for the article; there was much food for thought.
Sassylady

I am a student in a school were I think it is imposible to get away from all the consumerism, I think this article is ok. I enjoyed the examples but didn't really understand them. There are just something that happen naturally like wanting a new pair of sneakers or wanting the latest phone, you don't really realize you are copying anyone but we are. I think it is cool when I have somthing different from everyone else but it's not really true someone gave me that idea and I used it in a different way. I still enjoy going to the mall and drinking pepsi and eating a bag of doritos but don't really think I am eating it because it is really popular, I just eat it because I like it. I guess the first time something tries something they are doing it because all the consumerism, but if I keep doing it it is because I like it. I don't think I am a bad person for doing it I just am a normal girl.
llisel

Naomi, have you ever thought of using clips from the 1988 John Carpenter film "They Live," which blatently outlines the hidden messages in Media, to open the eyes of generation Y, of which I am a blissfully unaware member?
TK

I think one of the main points that the author brings up is that most people, especially in Generation Y, see consumerism and brands as a part of who they are. He alludes to the fact that there seem to be little or no alternatives, affordable ones anyway. And that isn't far from the truth. I am a student, and apparently a member of Generation Y...but was not brought up on the same line of thought. My parents grew up poor, or Working Poor as we call it now...and their parents lived as children during the Great Depression. While growing up, they instilled that kind of mentality in me: buy what you need, save everything, and there are always choices. What the author neglects to say is why the student stopped drinking at Starbuck's...well, they probably found a good alternative. Personally, I don't mind Starbuck's, for reasons of my own. They're coffee doesn't taste that bad, and their business practices aren't as evil as everyone thinks. Coca-cola and Pepsi take them on that one. There is a Starbuck's on my campus, but I rarely get anything there, aside from a muffin or a coffee once in a great while. Next door to it is an eatery/cafe thing that sells coffee for half the price as Starbuck's cheapest coffee...so I go there. Or I brew at home. The world has a variety of choices is what I'm trying to say, and that is what I got from this piece. The article is very good, I think, at saying this. Us in Generation Y do not think so. There is no defining line between needs and wants, or the mentality of debt, and all of that. There is a lot more than just commercials and ads warping our minds, it is how much power they have over us. Who wants to be refused a good, comfortable lifestyle? Most people deserve it, right? And of course, you need a Lexus, Range Rover, three camera cell phones, 4 pair of Nikes, six brands of hoodies....blah blah blah. It's very difficult to work out a massive solution to the problem. It isn't the type of problem that is easy to point to and say "It's CAPITALISM which is evil." Quite the opposite, I think. It seems that, and the author makes it his main point, is that there seems to be no choice.
Christo

IIisel, if you are willingly participating in something that you know is morally wrong than I question your statement, "I don't think I am a bad person for doing it..." and being a normal girl isn't necessarily Ok. I think we should not conform to the obvious injustices and gluttony of our culture. Live outside of the box when the box is wrong, refuse apathy, live with some convictions, and I promise that you will live a life of meaning. I'll pray for you.
JPA

We all know the age-old saying "let the buyer beware." It seems to have led to a consensus in mainstream thinking that it is the sole responsibility of the consumer to inform his/herself and to sort through all the BS before making any decision. Merchants in our generation seem to have embraced that way of thinking as an excuse to be underhanded in their marketing and elusive with their information. They count on the fact that noone reads the fine print or puts much thought into WHY they want a given commodity. Yes, I believe that people SHOULD be responsible for examining those decisions and how they fit in their lives. But I think the retail industry and media should be more active in upholding their end of the responsibility. I can't help but wonder if "let the buyer beware" wasn't originally intended to be a guideline for the merchants, rather than a catch-all warning to the consumers.
twangadelic

I'm 19, I don't follow fashion and I don't wear make up. I don't think I own any branded clothing That isn't a gift and I wish I had a teacher like you. I don't feel any pressure whatsoever to buy any certain thing. I feel immune to marketing ploys and the new UK Coke Zero ad made me feel sick. So why are some people so susceptible and others not? Is there immunity to consumerism? I'm not saying I'm completely guilt-free, choosing a coke off a shelf in favour of something else perhaps, but why do other members of my generation feel the need to spend so much?
Naomi

I wish we would all stop being frustrated with ouselves and start getting at angry corporations and their political bedfellows who allow this to happen to our culture and our country. Let's stop fighting the fight online and fight it where people can't ignore us.
Emily

I tried to convince one of my elders to buy the free trade' Starbuck rather than the standard source coffee on his next caffeine stop. After discussing the ramifications (without mention of anyone named Pablo or M'Abasi and hypothetical scare-you-into-thinking-my-way methods) of transnational corporations and plantation agriculture in lesser developed countries, my elder remained solid in his position that the gain of large businesses is only more of a gain for them. He implies my question: To what extent is it a problem that a business is winning in the world market? Isn't this a goal of progress?
Jeff17IB (student, Colorado)

I agree that Generation Y prefers to live in the shiny haze of consumer comfort rather than see the world with clarity, but I don't think it's fair to lay the blame entirely there. This is a societal problem and I think we're all to blame. Whether or not someone has grown up with the full spectrum assault of media, everyone that breathes now is letting it happen. We can rent a documentary from Netflix and see prominent media figures proclaim in plain english the failures of their profession. Yet moments after the credits role and TV/Video gateway flickers, there are those same people doing a public interest story on a Wal-Mart sponsored charity event. Why just this morning I saw a CNN piece about the obnoxious side-effects of new prescription sleep aids bookended by sublime ads for Lunesta and Ambien. We've all been had, and it's about time we all owned up to it.
Fluent Sword

"No Logo"...anyone?
Tobias

Im 28 years old and I just moved from Mexico City to Vancouver, Canada. It's really impressive to see how different the streets and public places look without massive huge advertisments everywhere. If you get like bombarded daily by an average of 3,000 adverts everyday in North America, in Mexico city it must be at least 5 times that number. The strange thing is that people here seem to be more controlled by media advertising than back in Mexico, although probably the economical difference and the cultural orientation of campaigns probably helps to slow down a little the success of the companies marketing.
Suicide Serge

This article, and more so the responsive feedback, has helped to shed light on an issue I've struggled with since reading "Culture Jam." The people reading this article have some kind of idea that the system doesn't seem advantagious to a peaceful, happy society. Yet, all I seem to ever see from Adbusters, indierockers, and even those like-minded indviduals I come into contact with is bitching and finger pointing. Everybody has a mouth to scream their frustration with, I was exceptionally guilty of this, and still am from time to time. So I've taken a new approach to my activism. I stopped trying to convince people of their shortcomings, instead I chose to follow FDR's advice. I'm doing what I can, with what I have, where i TV. am. I walk to work, I quit eating meat, I got rid of the TV, and I try to buy local produce as often as i can afford it. I think we as a society need to stop preaching and start living. Live your life as richly and vibrantly as you can, shed your positive light on the world, I'm going to see if simply enjoying my anti-consumerist life will encourage people to follow suit, once they see how little stress I have, my debt-free bank account, and pleasant demeanor. P.S. I know someone's thinking this, and I'm not some potsmoking hippy (though at one time that may have been an accurate statement).
wandering cocopelli

This is all bullpoop. You all seem to be unaware that you are affected by the same mental malaise that you accuse others of having. Whereas some people worship Nike & Coke, you all worship the Adbusters brand. Just putting it out there.
Ben

Great article. I'm glad to hear you're teaching young adults about the effects of consumerism. It opens the door for much deeper thought. To Ronald: You talk about pursuing happiness as if it's attained by external things that have to be, well, pursued. You also make the declaration and/or assumptions that humans have in fact improved over their history. That all depends on the definition and scope of improvement. The book of human history is still being written. An examination of human history up to this point shows a continued increase in population, living at odds with what is natural and in sync with the rest of life on this planet, increases in crime, poverty, disease, etc. We are in the midst of cultural collapse and cannot see the forest for the trees. It might sound like doom and gloom, but it's happening. We're fed all the lies about progress and sophistication while ignoring the effects of this culture on the living conditions on this planet and the psychological impacts on humans. All for the almighty dollar.
John

I'm 17 and people are often annoyed with how often I express my dislike of big corporations, especially Walmart. Now, I'm not one of those people who tell you that you should boycott everything, and that you are horrible if you don't, because there are obviously plenty of people who can't afford to shop anywhere but Walmart, but I do explain that Walmart destroys the local economy, that they treat their employees badly (especially women) and that they are trying to start their own bank which would force the small businesses that they are driving into the ground to come to them for loans. The people who just say "I hate walmart" or starbucks, or whatever aren't helping, if anything they are making things worse by making people with opinions look like horrible whiners. The real trick is to educate people, and I'm glad someone is trying to do that, despite how hard it is. Also, I'd like Naomi Rockler-Gladen to know that all teenagers aren't completely ignorant...just most of them.
Elisha Rubacha

Great article! I've had the hard experience of trying to convince people that materialism is one of that forces that pushes our society – and is just a bad thing in general what with all the sweatshops and things of the kind. We had a debate on the subject and what I found disturbing was that the majority of my class was on the side of materialism not being a problem or just being a natural part of life. One of my classmates actually stated that it is good to buy brand-named clothes because otherwise people could insult them and that would cause stress. It was taken as a valid point. Some of them were very good debaters, but still they had the mentioned "advertising affects everyone but me" attitude. I tried reaching them in the context of the debate by doing everything from mentioning due sweatshop labour to the images of women that are painted in men's head due to advertisement. It was pretty shocking to see, a grade nine class (smart mind you, all of my classmates get fairly good grades) so clueless. If anyone has any suggestions on how I can help my school be more aware, or anything I can do personally do to resist this (I must confess; I have an IPod. . .) I would really like some views on how to do this. I am somewhat on the same boat as lost cause. Help would be good, thanks. And about llisel. The sad thing is; she is just a normal girl.
3-Piece Ventriliquist

I am studying to be an art educator,and I am also a part of generation y. In dealing with the power of visual culture and its impact on consumers, this article hits the points that I strongly want to instil in my classroom when I begin my practice. I know people who are so brainwashed by the media that they don't know where to draw the line! There are more and more people who can't even move out of their parents house because of this insane credit card debt. Not to mention, all of the waste that we produce by this overbearing greedy consumption that is filling our landfills. In response to a prior comment about how kids can think for themselves and you shouldn't play the violin for yourselves, well, do you not believe that people can be brainwashed? It is obviously not the parent or child's fault for not being educated enough from the beginning to be conscious critical thinkers. This is something that parents and teachers should try to explain to their children the best they can. I am glad to see others who feel the same way that I do. Yes, Adbusters is a magazine and it has customers, but if they do have an advertisement it's for something that will actually benefit them intellectually and not just to make them look cool for the next month that the particular item is in style.
Melanie

This is an excellent suggestion of what consumers can do; provided by a letter to the editor in the Cochrane Times, March 21. "On March 16 another avoidable tragedy was brought to an end. The RCMP looking for weapon offences closed a puppy mill in Rosebud, Alberta in a raid. The volunteers from the area said the conditions were appalling and that many dogs were in distress. It's the same story over and over again. Profit outweighs the health and well being of the puppies. Profit for the mill owners and profit for the pet store owners that sell them. It is hard to resist the impulse to buy a cute little puppy when you walk into a pet store. Sometimes the price may deter you i.e. $900 to $1200 for a nonpapered crossbreed dog that the store pays $250 to $300 dollars per dog for, but then there is always VISA or MasterCard to help out or in some cases, in store financing. There are not enough local breeders that can consistently supply the pet industry. Dogs in stores come from mills. Unless you can see the conditions the dogs are bred in as well as the parent or parents, chances are that puppy came from a mill. There is only one thing that can be done to stop this cycle of abuse and exploitation of these poor puppies – it is to, boycott pet stores that sell puppies. Don't buy anything there till they stop exploiting these poor animals. After careful thought and research, buy your puppy from a registered breeder or home breeder where you have viewed the premises, or adopt from a humane society. Don't even go into stores where puppies are being sold, especial with children. You, the consumer, have the power with your dollar to put an end to this terrible situation once and for all. — Tim Ellenbroek"
Petersen

This is a fantastic article; I agree with it wholeheartedly, and have actually written similar articles. One problem I am faced with though... I have always, and still do really enjoy clever ads. Products need some kind of advertising; why not pay creative people to make it good? I myself, am studying to be an art director. I am, however, very socaily conscious, and it is my hope to one day start or join a socially conscious ad agency that is very ethical, etc. In the meantime though, I need to find a job, to support myself. If this means working at an unethical ad agency for a little while, I may have to... :/
Ivan Cash

Oink, oink, squealed the fat little piggy. BURP barked the satisfied wolf. And so it continues: If only the piggies wouldn't fatten themselves simply to serve and satisfy the wolves. Then again, were all living a fairytale lie, aren't we?
Gwen F

While working on a very similar essay of my own, I too wanted to use the Vietnam/Iraq comparison and how apathetic today's youth is. I was surprised, however, to find no stark differences in terms of number of people protesting the war. Also, it is not a fair comparison because the Vietnam war lasted longer, and more people died, so you have to consider that, because of its severity, it makes sense for slightly more people to have protested Vietnam war. The largest Vietnam protest was around 500,00 people whereas the largest Iraq war protest was around 400,000. (These numbrs could be slightly off as I used wikipedia as a reference.) Not a huge difference... So if you're going to make a claim like Its three years into their own Vietnam, and they arent exactly flooding the streets with protestors, I think you should have supporting evidence to back it up. I opted to completely leave out that point from my essay, because of a lack of supporting evidence.
Ivan

Peterson makes a good point. All animals are viewed as property, like slaves used to be, and with examples he made or that the overbearing PETA makes, there needs to be changes. On to the article, it's not a generational problem, we are all sucked into the social matrix and the values we accept as a whole. I had an awakening of sorts driving into my city from the freeway and thinking of my future dreams and desires. I finally realized that the odds of this economic structure and social structure maintaining itself even for another ten years without significant change through environmental change, terrorism at home or abroad (and the power grabs and control that will be implemented), economic reduction or collapse (and the list can go on) is slim. So I find it amusing when the generation Y of all style and little substance, wants and expects the big wedding and of course the house, the cars, etc., in a system that is on life support already. The parents are to blame as well, like ostriches with their heads in the sand, pretending all is well and forever will be in the world. It's so funny how, especially in America, that these things are akin to a right of passage into society, kind of like the old indiginous tribes in this world leading their young ones with their insights of the world and the social systems and structure they created. The big difference is that with many of these tribes, their way of life is sustainable to everyone. To their society, to the earth, to the animals and so on. I'd rather learn from a shaman or tribal elder than a university professor, doctor, or politician anyday.
Gideon

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