A Reasonable Attitude To Consumption
Comment: Many people today, especially young people, are increasingly reducing their degree of consumption. This is becoming a new trend.
My Response: In principle, this is sensible and correct from all points of view. All consumption should be limited. Otherwise, it causes various undesirable consequences. This is first.
Second, we lived already through years when we were just beginning to cultivate the Earth by modern methods. There were abundant deposits and minerals.
Today we are discovering the limitations of such an attitude toward the Earth. This, in principle, is not a bottomless sphere, but a very complex system. What we are leaving for our children is unclear.
Question: It is estimated that if all of humanity rises to the standard of living of the United States, we would need four planets with such a volume of minerals, materials, and production to provide the whole world with the level at which America lives.
I wonder if America will reduce consumption or will there be any other solutions? Maybe a virtual world, where people will need fewer material things, will replace this?
Answer: I am sure that the problem here, of course, is not in America and in the number of people, but in the fact that, unfortunately, we are controlled by great egoists who feel only replenishment of their own pockets. They do not care what happens next with this pocket even though everything is disappearing from it as well.
This is a pure type of egoism where a person feels that he gets more and more of something in banks, factories, and enterprises.
The only thing that we need here is serious re-education. Otherwise, the planet will force us to switch to a different consumption regime. But it will be a forced regime. Look at how hard it is in countries in many parts of the world. People will have to starve.
Question: And this is despite the fact that now we throw away half of the food we produce?
Answer: Yes. People will have to starve not only because of this but because there really will be no food. Look at what is happening to forests and fields. There is no way to reverse it. Half of the people will die out. The other half will understand that it is impossible to live like this and will slowly limit themselves. But they will still not achieve anything by this.
We will have to understand that only our good relationships will give us an understanding of how to treat ourselves and nature correctly. It requires a new attitude of a person toward people and the world around them. And this is our entire egoism.
This scenario of the extinction of half the planet is possible but not necessary. Our planet, as Baal HaSulam writes, can feed tens of billions of people. No problem! But only on condition that we cultivate the land, plant, harvest, and distribute it for this very reason. Then everyone will have enough of everything.
Question: Obviously, it is necessary to re-educate not only ordinary people, but first of all managers who make decisions?
Answer: Absolutely everyone! Absolutely everyone in our world will have to change themselves, their attitude to the world, and not as an individual consumer but as a social unit consisting of billions of people. We will have to perceive all this as one single whole. Then there will be enough of everything for everyone.
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From KabTV’s “Virtual world” 2/9/22
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