The Problem of Explaining

            The simple act of explaining the value of drinking tap water over bottled water due to environmental concerns as well as for reasons of human rights and equality, proves to be a most challenging task.

            When explaining to people that, for the most part, there is no difference between tap water and bottled water can be compared to explaining quantum mechanics to a small child, It just does not work. People have a hard time wanting to understand that there no difference. The argument over the differences continues with their blind faith in the sanctity of bottled water for their “expensive taste”.

            Bringing in the concept of the simple economics of paying for bottled water still seems to be a point of contention, always rounding back to the “better” taste of bottled water as a foundation of support. People seem to be fine with paying $1.25-$1.50 on campus for an expensive label, plastic and a relatively small amount of water.

            Tackling the issue of the exploitation of peoples by governments and transnational organizations seems to be lost before you’ve begun. The invisibly built into the system that exploits workers, people and resources has cemented an almost impenetrable foundation in peoples minds. This inability to connect the linkages between consumerism and exploitation only helps to drive the consumerist attitude, that support policies and business practices of exploitation.

            A last ditch effort to cause a change of thinking and understanding, is the attempt to, what would seem to be a very visible and recognizable outcome of bottled water, is ALL THE BOTTLES.  Making the argument that all the bottled water leaves thousands even millions of empty plastic bottles that liter streets and fill landfills, may still be in vain. “well, we just recycle the bottles” is the quickly and easily retorted. Never mind the fact that people far-few-in-between actually do recycle.

            Creating and inspiring change on an individual level would appear to be the most  appropriate and easiest way to effect and amend change to create activism. I do believe that it is the most effective way of starting activism. By gathering and building a core group of engages citizenry would best be able to create a larger social movement. With this in mind, I can also understand the difficulty in accomplishing both of these tasks. Breaking down the barriers of the invisible consumerism is needed for people to critically analyze the linkages in political, economic, and social consumerism and the implications they have on other peoples and areas of life around the world. One can only imagine the enormous hurdles to overcome in convincing a society based on invisible consumerism will be.