I have been inspired by Melody's "Organic" post and some musings of my own recently to write this.
As well all must be well aware, the trend for "organic", "natural", "green", and "environmentally-friendly" everything has been invading our lives. The media tells us that chemical preservatives and pesticides are bad. Plastic bags from the grocery pollute the environment. Cars emmitt greenhouse gases that cause global warming. Using too much electricity is adding to the "carbon footprint" each human leaves behind.
As a result, people buy organic and locally grown food. They tote reusable canvas bags to carry their groceries home. (I've even spotted several bags with the slogan "I am not a plastic bag" printed proudly on them.) Hybrid cars and buses are encouraged for transportation. Fancy lightbulbs and energy-saving appliances fill people's homes. Most of these items, I must add, are more expensive than the "regular", non earth-friendly variety.
Then I think back to 100 or so years ago. Nearly all produce people consumed was grown locally to them, not shipped across the country from California or up from South America. Chemical ingredients and preservatives were next to none, as food was made fresh or Grandma canned the summer fruit to eat during the winter. When ladies went to the market, they would carry a basket from home they could reuse each time. The option of "Plastic or Paper?" wasn't even available. Horse-drawn carriages were the mode of transportation, and they only emmisshions they left behind were "organic." Lightbulbs were a novelty, while candles and wood-burning fireplaces illuminated and heated a home.
However, the demands of todays society won't allow such simple ways of life. Quick-fix meals and meals-on-the-go are the norm for many families. Any shortcuts to sustenence is a blessing. And that rushed lifestyle doesn't lend itself to daily trips to the market for fresh dinner ingredients that easily fit into one basket. Jobs take people farther from their homes than a horse and buggie can allow. TV, computors, ipods, the internet, and appliances that do nearly everything for you are all "essential" for life in the 21st Century, and all require more and more energy to run.
Its truely a paradox, that we seem to want to live a simpler life without polluting our bodies and the Earth, yet we still want (or some would say need) the gadgets and gizmos and convenience that come along with living in a modern society. Don't get me wrong, I support eating healthy, recycling, taking public transportation, and turning off the lights when you leave a room, but I can't help but wonder if somewhere along the line, all these companies making the more expensive, but better for the world are pocketing the extra money with a smile and waiting patiently for the next big trend.
