I intend Crunchy Cons as a call to return to fidelity to living out the Permanent Things in every aspect of our lives.
As we wrap up Consumerism week, is this the emblematic quote? Consumerism makes us feel that we are anonymous, overpowered by the glossy-shiny overabundant world of new stuff. It induces a suspicion that our personal choices have very little impact; one consumer purchase is lost in a sea of millions. It tips the balance away from the things that we make, the things that might reflect our individual creativity or skill, and toward membership in faceless umbrella brands. The lonely individual can't compete. In all these ways consumerism invites a sense that real life is "out there" in the vast public sphere, and that our individual lives are nobody's business / too small and weak to make any difference.
In a nutshell, is the Crunchy Con sensitivity about recovering a sense that our private lives matter? That our individual choices have significance, and should be linked to principles of everlasting significance? It sounds trivial to talk about Birkenstocks, but in a way, that's the point; the little things matter.
