{"id":2810,"date":"2012-11-26T12:26:49","date_gmt":"2012-11-26T17:26:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/?p=2810"},"modified":"2012-11-26T14:29:13","modified_gmt":"2012-11-26T19:29:13","slug":"enter-the-shopping-free-zone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/2012\/11\/26\/enter-the-shopping-free-zone\/","title":{"rendered":"Enter the shopping-free zone"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>There is no\u00a0 black-Friday or cyber-Monday here. You are in a safe space. I will not try to sell you anything…even at drastically reduced prices. This is not a gimmick. There is nothing more. No special deals. There is simply no stuff.<\/p>\n

We have entered the annual month-long national buying frenzy, which is always accompanied by articles and commentaries (like this one) rejecting commercial gluttony. But so what?<\/p>\n

See, here’s the thing that gets me any time I think about our economy: it appears that capitalism, in order to survive, must grow steadily year over year. And, the way it grows is pretty much through consumerism<\/a>. You want a strong economy? You want to avoid a calamitous national depression? You better get out there and BUY!<\/p>\n

Do not watch this video with small children nearby. It is definitely X-rated for consumerist obscenity.
\n<\/object><\/p>\n

One take on our consumerism:<\/p>\n

<\/object>
\n\"\"<\/a>Finally, there’s a blog entry from zenhabits (thanks to web developer Bill Haenel):<\/p>\n

Challenge<\/a>: Buy Nothing Until 2013<\/h2>\n
\n
Post written by Leo Babauta<\/a>.<\/h6>\n

Leo’s post comes complete with a pretty reasonable manifesto and a set of “challenge rules.” Leo suggests we extend Buy Nothing Day through the end of the year. He says:
\nWhy the hell would you want to do this challenge?<\/em><\/p>\n

Do it as a protest against consumerism and corporate influences on our lives. Do it as a tool for contentment, for simplicity. Do it to reclaim the holidays as a time of connection and love, not of buying and debt. Do it just to see if you can.<\/em><\/p>\n

And yes, you can still do it if you\u2019ve already done some Black Friday shopping. We\u2019ll forgive our past sins and start afresh. \ud83d\ude42<\/em><\/p>\n

Again, see Leo’s complete manifesto and challenge rules, here<\/a>.
\nBUY OR GO ZEN?<\/strong><\/p>\n

So, NCPR readers, there you have it. I’m inclined to come down on the side of moderation: buy as little as possible. How about re-gifting as a code of the season–that is, give away stuff you already own. Nice things. Even cherished things. Funny things. Things to eat. Things to read (who doesn’t have a gazillion books gathering dust on over-loaded shelves).<\/p>\n

Dale Hobson, our web manager, tells me he and his wife have purchased farm animals through Heifer International<\/a> and “given” them to young family members, along with a book about how these animals help small scale farmers get started.<\/p>\n

Tell us about your approach to the holiday giving season. Please comment below.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There is no\u00a0 black-Friday or cyber-Monday here. You are in a safe space. I will […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[8584,8587,8582,8585,8583,8586],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2810"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2810"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2810\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2815,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2810\/revisions\/2815"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2810"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2810"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2810"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}