I want what I don’t need (so I said no thanks!)

Part of me really wants to keep up with the Joneses. I’m as influenced by advertising’s allure as the next person. I want a KitchenAid mixer and a blender. I want a new sofa, the latest season’s wardrobe, designer sunglasses, endless credit, an overseas’ holiday.  A new house and a flash car would be nice too. I want, I want, I want.

My list of luxuries is endless; utterly and infinitely endless. I don’t have any of these things and it’s highly unlikely that I will get them in the foreseeable future. The rational side of me – the side I like to call my ethical side – knows I am not entitled to these things even if I can afford them.

Consumer choice is the catch-cry of the market. As consumers we have the power to say yes and to buy from a seemingly endless list of goods. In many cases, however, I have chosen to say no.

But the real issue at play here is between wants and needs. Establishing purchasing criteria based on ‘needs’ will be more ethical than making decisions based on wants. Should ‘needs’ be the same for those in the first and the developing world? Obviously Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs has little to do with modern consumer culture. What are our entitlements if we want to be ethical consumer/citizens?