Discussion #2 - What does "long-term capitalism" look like?

Capitalism (the modern-day business paradigm) is built upon the practice of driving consumption in society.Businesses want customers to consume products and then return to consume more products, this is the underlying philosophy behind business success.It is realized in the model ofplanned obsolescence(Links to an external site.)

, it is why Apple was slowing down older model iPhones with software updates so that you'll buy a newer, faster iPhone.Chapters nine and ten present sustainability concerns with this practice as the earth's resources are finite and at some point our resources will be used up.Society cannot logically engage in an unceasing pattern of consumption without running out of materials, or worse, destroying the natural world that sustains us in the process.

Your text presents two possible solutions to this problem created by consumerism:

SOLUTION 1:Keep consuming, but try and reduce the negative effects of this consumption through innovation.

"One approach is to develop new technologies to produce energy, food, and other necessities of human life more efficiently and with less waste. Vast solar arrays in the desert, offshore wind turbines or state-of-the-art utility plants that pump carbon dioxide deep under the ground could power homes and businesses. Genetic engineering could create more nutritious and productive crops."

SOLUTION 2:Drastically reduce consumption, adopting a new model for capitalism not driven by consumerism but by sustainable living.

"Some contemporary thinkers have gone even further and suggested that what is needed is nothing less than a completely new set of values about what is truly important. In this view, society needs a new "sustainability consciousness" that views the quality of lifenot the number of thingsas the most worthy goal of human aspiration."

In this discussion board you have to pick a solution, either Solution 1 or Solution 2, and defend it as the best and most ethical course forward.You cannot use both, they are a dichotomy.Read your chapters nine and ten before participating!There is awealthof good information available to inform your decision.