7 Reasons We Buy More Stuff Than We Need

ReducingВ wasted food would probably helpВ lowerВ dangerousВ emissionsВ into theВ atmosphereВ and slow downВ climate change,В according toВ experts. Over 15% ofВ emissions from farming and agriculture could beВ avoidedВ if weВ managedВ ourВ food suppliesВ better. About 3.3В billionВ tons ofВ carbon dioxideВ comes from foodВ waste.

A third of the food produced worldwide is never eaten. It getsВ spoiltВ during day-long transport or in shops.В HugeВ amounts of food are also thrown away byВ consumers, who often buy too many things which they do not eat. While theВ demandВ for food per person has stayed the same in the lastВ decades, more and more food isВ available.

Richer countries waste more food than poorer ones. According to farming experts,В more and more food is wasted in growing AsianВ economies, like India and China. As people become richer they alsoВ adoptВ to western eating habits.

It is not only important to waste less food but also to get food to theВ places where it is needed, where people do not have enough to eat or farmingВ conditionsВ are bad.

Heads of governmentsВ and agriculture ministers from around the world haveВ recentlyВ met to discuss ways in which food waste can beВ reducedCurrently, we are producing 20% more food than weВ actuallyВ need. With such aВ surplusВ we could feed another 1.5В billionВ people. On the other side, over 800 million people suffer fromВ undernourishment.

Another suggestionВ mentionedВ by food experts is toВ cut backВ on eating meat. More meat is eaten in richer countries,В thusВ producing moreВ greenhouse gasesВ because producing meat is moreВ energy intensive.

7 Reasons We Buy More Stuff Than We Need

1. We think it will make us secure. Our logic goes like this: if owning some material possessions brings us security (a roof, clothing, reliable transportation), owning excess will surely result in even more security. But after meeting our most basic needs, the actual security derived from physical possessions is much less stable than we believe. They all perish, spoil, or fade. And they can disappear faster than we realize.

2. We think it will make us happy. Nobody would ever admit they search for happiness in material possessions—we all just live like we do. We buy bigger houses, faster cars, cooler technology, and trendier fashion hoping we will become happier because of it. Unfortunately, the actual happiness derived from excess physical possessions is fleeting at best.

3. We are more susceptible to advertising than we believe. On average, we see 5,000 advertisements every day. Every advertisement carries the same message: your life will be better if you buy what we are selling. We begin to hear this messaging so many times and from so many angles, we begin to subtly believe it. This is not a complete condemnation of the marketing industry. This is simply a call to realize their messaging affects us more than we realize.

4. We are hoping to impress other people. In a wealthy society, envy quickly becomes a driving force for economic activity. Once all of our basic needs have been met, consumption must become about something more than needs. It becomes an opportunity to display our wealth, our importance, and our financial success with the world.

5. We are jealous of people who own more. Comparison seems to be a natural state of our humanity. We notice what other people are buying, wearing, and driving. Our society encourages these comparisons. And all too often, we buy stuff we don’t need just because people in our friendship circles have done the same. A culture fixated on praising excess will always misdefine true success.

6. We are trying to compensate for our deficiencies. We mistakenly look for confidence in the clothes that we wear or the car that we drive. We seek to recover from loss, loneliness, or heartache by purchasing unnecessary items. We seek fulfillment in material things. And we try to impress other people with the things that we own rather than the people that we are. But these pursuits will never fully satisfy our deficiencies. Most of the time, they just keep us from ever even addressing them.

7. We are more selfish than we like to admit. It can be difficult to admit that the human spirit is hardwired toward selfishness and greed, but history appears to make a strong case for us. We seek to grow the size of our personal kingdom by accumulating more and more things. This has been accomplished throughout history by force, coercion, dishonesty, and warfare. Unfortunately, selfishness continues to surface in our world and our lives even today.

Excess material possessions do not enrich our lives. In fact, buying things we don’t need keeps us from experiencing some wonderful, life-giving benefits. We would be wise to realize the cause and become vigilant in overcoming it.

There is more joy to be found in owning less than can ever be discovered in pursuing more. (tweet that)

Смотрите видео: 7 Reasons Why We Believe Everything on the Internet

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