Cool Culture

Lucas recently asked Xtina, why I had to go to work. Hmmmm, good question. She said that she started to answer with all of the various reasons regarding our need for money; food, clothes, entertainment, etc. But then it began to dawn on her that not only did it not make sense to him, it didn't make sense to her either. She started to realize that the way our society is structured is actually very strange.

Consumerism is an economic ideology based on the promotion of the consumer's interest, that free choice of the consumer should dictate the economy. But what do we truly need in this life, beyond nourishment and shelter? And why do we entrench ourselves in the system so that all of our other desires may be met? And are all of those other desires actually coming from our very own wishes or are they manufactured by others, the very people who bear a heavy hand in controlling this system?

This Adbusters article addresses some of these important issues. I think that it's time we rethought our purpose in life. Each generation must do it and now it's our chance to make an impact. What should we embrace in our culture? What is cool or stylish? And what should we really cherish in our lives?