So anyone ever truly think about how fucked we are as a species because of how tethered to capitalism we all are? Let's break that shit down:
In today's modern capitalist society, the goal is simple: make money, and keep making money. And if you're not making more money this year than you made last year, you're not succeeding at capitalism. It's not enough to be successful, you always have to be growing. This earning and growing is supposed to be beneficial for the economy, because all this earning and growing drives competition and forces companies to try to be inventive, which in the long run is supposed to benefit consumers by giving us these fancy new things to buy that improve the quality of our lives (and make the businesses even MORE money) and benefit our country through selling our fancy new things to other countries that don't have/don't manufacture those fancy new things. Money goes into the companies, new things/services come out, money goes into the companies to buy new things/services, repeat. Ad nauseum. Until forever.
Depending on how you look at this; that's not inherently bad. It's not good either, but I'm not arguing about the actual morals of capitalism. The thing that my brain decides to focus on is the fact that by design - a lot of businesses are reactive and not proactive. They want the fast money, so they see what's happening, find a trend/opportunity to cash in, and they jump in where they can to try to make as much money as they can until the time has passed. Then it's on to the next thing. Now, some businesses *are* proactive, and they tend to do very well - but those businesses aren't the norm. They're the ones that get to "decide the rules", so to speak; but the vast majority of businesses aren't in it for the long haul. They're in it to get in, make that money, get out, do the next thing. Reactive. Keep an eye on what's going on, find the untapped market, jump on it as fast as possible. Bleed it dry. Find the next market. Always looking for the next step to more money.
So this brings me (finally, I guess) to my main point. We're been slowly but steadily digging ourselves a giant hole called the environmental crisis. Well - I say "we're", but really it's not a thing that should be laid on the shoulders of us individuals. All of these companies/corporations have done an AMAZING job of making us feel like if we all put our minds together and all pitch in - we can reverse things. We can heal the planet. The truth though; it's on THEM. Yes, we can each doing less-destructive things as individuals. I drive an electric car. I recycle and compost. I believe in right to repair and try to not be someone who buys new when I can just fix instead. I try to be mindful about my carbon footprint. But guess what - that doesn't mean SHIT in the overall scheme of things. The lifestyle I and many others have chosen to live - while not actively adding to the problem - isn't going to magically move the needle and make anything better. You know what could? All of these massive worldwide corporations actually doing something and changing their practices to start reversing the damage.
But guess what? In the eternal choice between "being conscious vs. being profitable" - a business will pick the higher dollar amount every time. Even if they *say* that they're doing things to turn it all around; many of the times it's just greenwashing. Marketing to make us consumers think that we're spending our money more responsibly. "Earth-Friendly" as nothing more than a marketing tool. Because they see worrying about the environment as just another trend to capitalize on.
It's getting hotter outside because of global warming? Better push tank-tops and shorts, and provide cities with infrastructure money to make roads that'll be able to weather that heat! Longer summers means more beach time - get out and party! And it's not a party without your favorite beers, wearing your favorite brand of sunscreen, listening to your favorite music on your favorite music service!
Water tastes bad because of a catastrophic drought? Put a squeeze of lemon in it - lemons are on sale right now at XXXXX for $.79 a pound! If you buy a new water purifier, it'll get ride of the cloudiness, and you won't even be able to tell the difference! Once water rationing is put in place, eventually you'll get used to it - in the meantime, check out our sodas and sports drinks. They'll quench your thirst even better!
We're getting record-breaking amounts of snow in new places each winter because of changing weather patterns? Sounds like an ideal time for more (sustainable, of course) winter jackets! Get money to those towns for new snowplows and improvements to their buildings to be able to handle this weather they've never had to experience before! Cozy up with some hot cocoa around your new fireplace - invite your friends! Make an event out of it and make sure you have a nice spread with all their favorite snack foods!
Forget about EVER addressing the cause of the issue; there's more money in comfort. In the temporary solution.
When a group of those people get together and create a business, however, deciding to participate in capitalism; there's a seismic shift. It becomes about what's best for the company. Not only keeping the company alive at all costs, but making sure the company is always growing, so that the people *in* the company (but usually only those highest up) can pad their pockets just a bit more.
We're FUCKED.
So, yeah. When you understand that most businesses are looking only at those short-term gains and not the long-term, and that they're going to continue to make all this money off of the temporary bandaging and not more permanent fixes, and that they're going to make it seem like the responsibility lies on us to change when it's really on them, and that we're essentially living on a ticking time bomb of a planet that needs massive, large-scale changes IMMEDIATELY...
I'm not a conspiracy theorist. I know this all sounds a lot like that old adage you'll sometimes hear about big pharma: "The money's not in the cure; the money's in the medicine." Which - while true in certain respects - I don't fully believe. People (not businesses, but people) will typically do what they can to make positive choices. They'll have SOME sense of self-preservation. They'll want to help their fellow people, and leave this planet in a better condition than they found it.
(I'm still going to do what I can. And enjoy life. But damn.)