Analyzing Wessels Argument In Today's Economic System

Chapter 5: Wessels main aim through this chapter is to propose solutions to the problems that are prevalent in today’s economic system. He believes that for an economic system to function properly the system’s sole aim should not be continued growth. Furthermore, we should look for solutions that do not revolve around materialism. To justify his idea, he first explores whether materialism is actually a good indicator of progress and societal well-being. He believes that progress today only affects a certain section of the society, rather than society as whole and this is one of the drawbacks of the system. Subsequently, he suggests that affluence and depression are directly proportionate. His proposed solution to these problems are to bring back ancient American values, which contain the foundation for communities and civilization and has allow us to prosper
Epilogue: Wessels is skeptical about the future and thinks it will be hard for us to recover from the position we are in right now. Nevertheless, he has some optimism and believes that the most efficient and effective way to recover would be to promote sustainability throughout major nations and provide leadership for the small nations to follow. His only concern is how long this process will take.

Reflection:

Wessels believes that ancient values and traditional values promote completely opposite messages. Ancient values believe there should be no hierarchies or materialism, they believe in deep and meaningful connections to nature and other human beings. Furthermore, they advocate for lesser consumption, leading to lesser waste and believe that collectivism is more important than individualism. Ancient values were based around the idea of understanding rather than knowledge. These two refer to two different concepts. Knowledge is simply obtaining and collecting