An Economy Built On Waste

-- by Micheal

It was not AIG or Fannie Mae that were "too big", such that their failure would bring down the economy. It was our Waste Game consumerism. Wasteful consumerism failed this past winter and, sure enough, it caused the global economy to tank. Intentional waste employed millions (millions,) of people. Without that waste, our economy collapsed.

Waste was the great and grand engine that drove our entire national boom and bubble economy. Consume consume consume. Don't save. Waste. Buy more. That's what keeps people employed. In fact, people NOT spending wastefully on stuff they didn't need, is blamed for delaying the recovery. Naughty un-american savers. Waste! Spend!

A perfect example of the Waste Doctrine was the "Cash for Clunkers" program. The government bribed people into wasting resources (destroyed cars with years of service remaining) to boost the auto industry. People were paid to waste. Sure, that minivan might have another 100,000 miles in it, but destroy it now!. Buy a new one. It will save American jobs. Intentional waste -- a perfect vignette of our Waste Doctrine economy.

Imagine if such "clunkers" programs were applied to the surplus in the housing market. Burn a million older homes in order to 'encourage' people to buy up those empty new ones. It will create jobs. Shred half your wardrobe. Buy new clothes. Garment workers need you too.

This isn't increased productivity. It isn't even supplying "demand." Sustainable demand must have a foundation in need, not whim. Whims evaporate quickly.

This became abundantly clear when fear (of pay cuts and job loss, etc.) prompted Americans to stop playing the Stupid Consumer Waste Game and save some money for an anticipated rainy day. The old car still ran fine, so put off buying a new one. The old toaster still toasted. Why buy a new one? The TV seemed big enough last year (and was only a year old), so why buy a newer bigger one?

Late last year, American consumers temporarily stopped playing the Waste Game and our economy collapsed. It wasn't Lehman Brothers that "failed". It was the mindless american consumer who failed to keep consuming mindlessly. Now that economic indicators are sounding better, the pundits and government trumpets are trying to encourage us to play the game again. Waste, spend, waste, buy.

If we learned nothing from the "Great Recession", we will be back playing the Waste Game and the Recovery will be quick. If we've learned prudence and caution, the Recovery will long and slow.

The question going forward: Do we really want an economy that depends on stupidity?