We have become a whining, lazy, materialistic, narcissistic, belligerent, uncouth society.  That’s really saying a lot but i believe that statement sums up the way the world has turned pretty well.  One of the easiest of these self depreciating habits to correct is materialism.   It is a very sad commentary about our lives when the value of the the things we own dictates how much others like us.

Mad Magazine summed it up with the statement, “The only reason a great many American families don’t own an elephant is that they have never been offered an elephant for a dollar down and easy weekly payments.”

That funny statement, is only funny because it’s somewhat true. The reason people want whatever is currently “hot” is because they believe it will contribute towards their satisfaction and happiness in life. The word “believe” is the key here. People believe that buying more and more things will make them happy, when in fact research has shown time and time again that this simply isn’t the case. What we do know for sure is that buying more and more unnecessary things is damaging our planet and contributing to global warming.

Its a real shame to see so many people that were just OK last year but decided to “upgrade” their house or car, not because there was anything wrong with what they already had but because they wanted more, bigger, better.

I myself fall into the materialism trap when it comes to gadgets.  I find myself ALWAYS wanting the bigger, better faster computer or electronic gizmo.

We all need to stop. We need to realize this is not a race to be the best or brightest.  We need to takes a few steps back and realize that leaving our children morals and experience to know enough is enough and telling them that no material goods can replace your intellect or the love of family and friends is more important than “stuff”.