Resignation

Tired of whining about the economy? Just quit.

Starting April 2007, I am embarking on a six-month experiment. I will no longer buy anything that is not necessary for the continuance of life. The things I must have--like food--will be bought directly from local producers. As the primary shopper for our household, I will be dragging seven other people with me on this adventure in ecology. It is a drastic decision, and I am not by nature a drastic person.

I'm sick of financing CrapMart in beating down the little guy. It's hard to eat while wondering who was oppressed in the production of my food. I don't want a pair of Italian stilettos made by a starving six-year-old in Singapore, and I don't accept John Q. Enron's word that he is fair to his producers. Administrations come and go, liberal and conservative; nothing ever changes. WE lead our country regardless of who has the reins on paper. And WE want the goods, as cheap and as plentiful as possible. Those of us who came of age in the eighties and nineties grew up with consumerism taking up a massive amount of space in our homes and in our minds. We can't imagine a life without the constant acquisition of stuff. I think most Americans are willing to make economically responsible choices; they just don't realize that it is possible.

It is possible. Let's vote for change with the most convincing, most loudly heard ballot available: money.