>From the Simple Times newsletter:
TEN REASONS FOR CHOOSING A SIMPLER LIFESTYLE
by Jorgen Lissner
Copyright (c) Alternatives for Simple Living
Used with permission. All rights reserved.
http://www.simpleliving.org/
1) As an act of faith performed for the sake of personal integrity
and as an expression of a personal commitment to a more equitable
distribution of the world's resources.
2) As an act of self-defense against the mind- and body- polluting
effects of over-consumption.
3) As an act of withdrawal from the achievement neurosis of our
high-pressure, materialist societies.
4) As an act of solidarity with the majority of humankind, which
has no choice about lifestyle.
5) As an act of sharing with others what has been given to us, or
of returning what was usurped by us through unjust social and
economic structures.
6) As an act of celebration of the riches found in creativity,
spirituality, and community with others, rather than in mindless
materialism.
7) As an act of provocation (ostentatious under-consumption) to
arouse curiosity leading to dialog with others about affluence,
alienation, poverty, and social injustice.
8) As an act of anticipation of the era when the self-confidence
and assertiveness of the underprivileged forces new power relation-
ships and new patterns of resource allocation upon us.
9) As an act of advocacy of legislative changes in present patterns
of production and consumption, in the direction of a new
international
economic order.
10) As an exercise of purchasing power to redirect production away
from the satisfaction of artificially created wants, toward the
supplying of goods and services that meet genuine social needs.
--From "Alternatives' Treasury of Celebrations" (Northstone Books)
(c) Alternatives for Simple Living. Used by permission. For more ideas
to simplify your life, call 800-821-6153 or visit
http://www.SimpleLiving.org
