OK, I am pulling out my soap box, which usually means I am about to stick my foot in my mouth because I stink at speeches and usually say things in a way that they come out completely different than I mean. But I need to vent. I really appreciate the whole going green concept. I am especially fond of the shop local and buy handmade movements. But I am finding that there is a growing number of corporations who are trying to make a public statement by appearing to go green, but are they really?
What has spurred this rambling of thought, those gosh darn reusable shopping bags hanging in the checkout aisle at WalMart. Every time I see them with there "Plastic or Paper? Neither." slogan I feel a little mini throw up trying to happen. I totally understand some people may disagree with my reaction, but I honestly can't help it. Seeing those bags with WalMarts logos plastered all over them, like they are so environmentally conscious... ugh!! See, I live in a small town, and I know a lot of people look at those bags, and think, oh how wonderful, WalMart is trying to be environmentally friendly... whatever!!! It is all show. It is politics and advertising at it's finest. It is all about money.
People, please, please, please buy your shopping bags from somebody who hand makes them. I look around my small town and see what WalMart has done and it makes me sad.
Just one thing I read tonight I would like to share.... remember when you had to pay quite a bit of money for things like toasters and coffee makers, and they were simple machines without digital buttons and computer chips, and when they broke, you took them to the repair shop to fix them. Now, we buy these things yearly and they continually get tossed into the landfills. Things have changed so much, I think it is time to look back on things and find out how to live a little more simply and a little less wasteful. Cheaper is definitely not always better. Find a local fruit stand, or handcrafter and try to pick one thing that you can buy that is locally grown or made. And, the next time something breaks and it is simply thrown away, try to think of another way to create the same end result that will not result in a large hunk of plastic and metal ending up in a landfill in a year's time.
Do you feel like I am lecturing, I hope not. I am by no means living a simple, handmade life, but I am focusing on making steps, and even if they are small steps for me, they are going in the right direction.
4 comments:
WELL, WELL Said!!! Please don't slip off that soap box ;D
Totally well said. Absolutely agree! We had our washing machine repaired last week and the repair man said he has less and less work because people would rather buy a new machine than wait three days for him to come and see to it. Ridiculous and SO wasteful. There.
Thanks so much for stopping by my blog - and yes, you just can't beat a little furry rat for the ultimate small pet :-)
See this is one of the reasons I switched to bioheat. It's not this much of a hassle. I'm definitely not going green for the wrong reason! I just figure if I want to stay warm during the winter time and I can help preserve the earth in the process, then why not? Besides, bioheat is awesome. It's made of biodegradable fun products like corn and soybean oil. It's non-toxic too! And OMG it's my best friend during the cold seasons. It definitely keeps me warm.
If it wasn't for me working with NORA, I would be oblivious to all of this stuff; Bioheat, going green, and the whole enchilada. I got lots of great tips from:
http://oilheatamerica.com/index.mv?screen=bioheat.
Check it out and see what kind of cool info you can find to help the earth.
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