Less is More

Simplicity is relevant to the poor in another way — it challenges our beliefs about money: As long as we allow unbridled profit to be our primary goal, people, and particularly corporations, will lie, cheat and treat workers unfairly. Ultimately, profit is the reason we go to war, and it’s the poor who fight these wars. As Americans use up more than their share of resources, others have less. As Americans force other nations to cater to their needs, poor countries neglect their own citizens. As Americans insist on pursuing “more,” they destroy the planet for the rest of humankind

Ultimately, we must change our belief system: Americans believe that “you’re on your own,” “every man for himself.” With this belief comes a cutthroat, irresponsible, uncaring society. But we’re beginning to understand that we will survive only if we come to believe that we’re all in this together, that we need each other. Embracing Simplicity is part of that transformation

Boston University professor Andrew Bacevich argues that Americans are now in a “crisis of profligacy.” In his book The Limits of Power: The End of American Exceptionalism, he shows that America’s consumerism — our belief that we can have anything we want, with no limits — is destroying our nation. First, our identity as Americans is diminished: “If one were to choose a single word to characterize that identity, it would have to be more. For the majority of contemporary Americans, the essence of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness centers on a relentless personal quest to acquire, to consume, to indulge and to shed whatever constraints might interfere with those endeavors.”

individual change is not enough — it’s necessary, but not sufficient. We must create a movement that leads to policy changes. We need policies regulating corporate behavior, work hours, the wealth gap and sustainability