The Compact
Now this sounds like a great idea.
The Compact originated in December 2005 at a San Francisco dinner party, where guests decided to take recycling one step further and go for a year without new purchases. Consumerism, they said, is destroying the world and most of us already own far more than we need.
The exceptions are food, medicine and underwear.
I wonder if it’s feasible. And I wonder if diapers count as underwear.
December 28th, 2006 at 10:41 pm
diapers definately count as underwear!…but does coffee count as food?
December 29th, 2006 at 9:25 am
that’s a good question. if food counts as a necessity, then what about frivolous food — coffee, tea, alcohol, chocolate, etc. or are they okay? then what about eating out? or buying coffee out? if the point is to create less demand for a consumer culture, then would buying groceries be okay, but not going to a restaurant to pay ridiculous prices for food you could make at home? I.e., $2 for a cup of coffee when you could make coffee just as good at home for mere cents (well, *I* could make coffee that good at home…)? Or a $13 plate of pasta that would cost you a couple of bucks to cook and eat at home? Because, sometimes going to a restaurant is a good idea. For your mental health, you know.
And then where do you draw the line? Do you make your own bread vs. buying it at the store? Your own soup? Or, as has been in the Compact yahoo group discussion, your own soap?
I like the idea, but wonder about how it plays out. Does it make sense to buy a cheap used coat that will give out in a year, or to spend the money on a good, new coat that will last you many years? Which one is a better use of money, and which one buys into the consumer mentality more? One purchase of a new item or many purchases of used ones? Or to put it this way, as some on you are interested these days, which one is simpler?
January 8th, 2007 at 4:51 pm
i think, and my sustainability classes (and parents) back this up, that buying a more expensive but longer lasting product is always better for the environment, as long as you actually keep the product for it’s lifespan (or at least give it to someone else/thrift store). so if you’re buying something for just a few uses, to be trendy, maybe for the kids, buy used. but for you and joshua, something like a good coat, buy a nice one (best of both worlds i guess would be a well-made vintage one, if you could find it).