Affluenza: an Unsustainable Addiction to Economic Growth

Affluenza, an unsustainable addiction to economic growth. Most Americans often cope over their wants instead of their needs. Podcast 2 with The Diane Rehm Show “Most Americans only care about their wants such as going shopping”. Americans think more consciously when buying something they want instead of something they need. In my opinion American’s do spend more time thinking about what they want to get instead of thinking about what they actually need. I began to become more aware how I spend my money. I honestly to my knowledge do not know if I am affected by affluenza because I can show times when I over consume or when I save money. The US consumes over 33% of all resources is a bit absurd, seeing that we only make up 5% of the population. Families should consume less of their wants and they should try to meet most or even all of their needs. Families should get in to a routine where they work out together, have a better overall diet, and they should take care of their necessities such as house payments, unpaid debt, and essentials of everyday life. Statistically Americans spend about 5.1 hours a day watching TV which means that those five hours when their sitting on the couch they could either be playing with their children or exercising. Only buying necessary things would really help the world’s problem. If a person has plenty of money, after bills are paid, then saving should be one of their biggest priorities but buying something for recreational purposes would be fine also. Individuals in America need to change their shopping behaviors as well as sense of better understanding and savings.