Needs, Wants and Sustainability
What do we need, what do we want and how can we sustain our planet if we get everything we want? I remember from my basic Psychology class at Cal that Maslow identified a hierarchy of needs. At the extreme, before one can be artistic, one must have food & water, be free from fear of attack and be sheltered from the elements.
When you truly analyze our needs, they are rather simple. Good health, air to breathe, liquid to drink, a bit to eat and some cover from the elements. In some temperate climates, cover from the elements can be as simple as the shade of a tree. In more extreme climates, cover can take the form of a coat, fur or umbrella. Beyond that basic shelter is actually a want rather than a need, since survival from the elements was possible for centuries without fancier accommodations. As far as food goes, most of us who own computers capable of reading this text have more calories in food than we truly need. But the quality of the food varies from inexpensive nutritious fruits and nuts to exotic caviar. So caviar is not a need in most cases. Yet some people will buy caviar even at very high prices.
What leads us to want to build exotic mansions of huge proportions? What drives our thinking that we need something grander, more comfortable than that which we already possess? Is it envy? Is it creativity? Is it some of both? Envy is the easiest to deal with. The discussion goes something like this: “My neighbor seems to have it better than I. So why not take his good idea and copy it?” If I’m living under a tree and he’s living in a dry cave with a warm fire, I start to think, “Hmm. Maybe I can find a cave next to the forest with an ample wood supply for my fire. That way when it rains I won’t get dripped on!” So I go out to explore where there might be a nice cave. Taken to the nth degree, that leads to everyone wanting a warm cave next to a forest. The only problem is that the supply of warm caves next to forests is limited.
So some creative thinker decides that if he cuts down the trees and piles them up, he can create a log house. Taken to the nth degree, that leads to everyone wanting either a warm cave next to a forest or a log house. The only problem is that the supply of forests is limited, so not everyone can have a log house. In the meantime, the tree cutters are happy because they have work. The log cabin builders are happy because they have work as well. But the guy in the cave complains that he now has to pay more for the firewood since the tree cutters have to go farther to find trees for him. That makes him mad. His lifestyle is no longer sustainable. But until that breaking point is reached, the standard of living has increased, the economy has thrived and some people consider their lives blessed by creature comforts.
Planners would tell us that the solution is to want less. If they can convince everyone that they want less, then there will be more for everyone. Lower the cave thermostat by five degrees, they say. Then you won’t have to burn as many trees, the forest will last longer and more people will have cave fires even though they won’t be quite as hot. So the leaders of the cave people create a rule. If you burn hot fires, you’ll have to pay a fine by giving away some of your firewood to people who don’t have any firewood. They formed the firewood police department to monitor the heat of people’s fires and the amount of wood each cave had in storage. To avoid getting caught, an underground market for firewood storage got started. But the risk of trading in firewood went up. Therefore the price went up as well. Pretty soon, there was much more firewood in the clandestine firewood storage bunkers than there was in the forest. Vigilantes went out to try to find the culprits. But they were very well hidden. The “want” police couldn’t find them easily. But when they did, it made the headline news.
Sometimes we justify our wants by calling them needs. This leads to confusion about which our wants truly are wants. An example would be, “I need a new car because my old one uses too much gas”. Well, no. Life would go on without a new car. You could take the bus, train, walk, jog or swim instead of having a car at all. The phrase, “But I’ve always wanted ________” sometimes becomes a justification for a new car or whatever else goes in the blank. Just because I’ve always wanted it makes it a need. And it is the wants, not the needs, that has driven our economy to provide the highest standard of living ever conceived in the history of humankind.
And yet the want police justify their existence because they figure they are doing for everyone (else) what is good (for them).
They dictate that you must use less gasoline or pay them for overconsumption
They dictate that you may not burn on “spare the air days” or pay a fine
They dictate that you must have health insurance or pay a fine
They dictate the curriculum in the schools or lose benefits
They dictate the tax rates
They dictate that you cannot be creative in investments
They dictate that you must carry insurance to own a car
They dictate that employers must carry workers compensation insurance
They dictate when and how you may dig wells on property you own
They dictate the height of any building you may build
They dictate that you must pave roads
They dictate that you must install fire hydrants
They dictate that you must _______ (fill in the blank)
Freedom took wants to the highest possible levels.
-Freedom that helped us to escape from the cave.
-Freedom that dared to dream of creating the wheel to make life easier.
-Freedom to devise the steam engine
-Freedom to mass-produce automobiles
-Freedom to communicate with hand held devices
-Freedom to enjoy life without government interference
-Freedom to blog (except in China)
What happened to our freedom?
©Frank Bliss 2010 All rights reserved
March, 2010
