Poirot "My point being that it's not because of some noble zenith in human consciousness - it's much more mercenary than that."

I think the massive shift in technology has been one of the biggest factors along the way. The industrial revolution changed a lot, the two world war's forced some more changes, electronics have allowed/created more change.

I suspect that most of the changes which have happened have done so because they can, some have made our lives better and some maybe not so much.

R0bert

*Your're the one who brought up Bangladesh and you can't escape the fact that there are ethical issues and economic inequalities apropos our relative status*

Indeed Sqeers, but I am not about to slit my wrists over it. I will
discuss solutions and lobby for what I think is possible, like family
planning for the third world for instance. In other words, I'm
all for empowering people everywhere to help themselves. But I'm
not about to sell the Ipad and send the money to Africa, as you
seem to be implying that we should be doing.

*I see them as victims of the system and hardly exercising free or healthy "choices"; that's just their delusion*

Oh come on, the system is us, making choices. There is no capitalism
boogie man who forces women to have breast implants, etc. We all
are the system.

*Thus we have the phenomenon of breath-taking denialism apropos resource depletion and environmental degradation*

Well then stop increasing the human population by 250'000 people
a day, or things will only get worse.

RObert,

There's no doubt that our lives have become more convenient and comfortable in a material sense.

We've lost a lot along the way - our sense of community for one. In an age that glorifies the individual, we find that communities in the modern sense are often artificially contrived (and one is usually compelled to commute to partake of the society within them).

Seneca said "Prosperity fosters bad tempers", which again, reiterating the theme of Squeers' last post, would hinge on the fulfillment or not of expectation and optimism emanating from our exalted state.

Why so much disaffection and depression in such a supposedly elevated culture?

I can't help thinking that for all our technological prowess and good fortune we missed the boat in a philosphical sense. "All hail the marketplace", it seems, is the theme of modern progress. We've raised generations of philistines when we could, with our advanced means, have bestowed simple truths and wisdom to the multitudes.

Civilisation should mean more than societal structure and material wealth.

Yabby:
"Oh come on, the system is us, making choices. There is no capitalism
boogie man who forces women to have breast implants, etc. We all
are the system".

OK, so why do we need the "science" of advertising and marketing if it's free choice?
And why is it so important for corporations to impart a positive spin and to abhor, even litigate against, negativity?
Indeed determined optimism is the mathematical lifeblood and currency of the system--whose keepers must love guys and dolls like you. Fortunes are made and lost and countries rise and fall on nothing but consumer confidence. We're locked into a spending addiction that must be nurtured and cultivated. Labor is supremely optimistic at the moment about the economy and the opposition is pessimistic--funny that. And it's all based on free choice and fulfilment? That's not optimism, it's imbicility!
For me fulfilment is seeing through my delusions, not indulging them.

Squeers,

I think what Yabby really means is that we're free to be seduced by marketing and advertising....and then we get to exercise our freedom of choice as to which entity has done the best job on us.

Delusions are great for business.

Another fascinating thing about so-called "choice" are our supermarkets. Therein lies almost too much choice as to the selection of brands available - yet, for the most part, it is all presided over by a duopoly between Coles and Woolworths. (Yes, I know about IGA, Yabby, and farmer's markets)

*OK, so why do we need the "science" of advertising and marketing if it's free choice?*

Squeers, for much the same reasons as you probably got all dressed
up and tried to display your charm, when you tried to chat up some
female. You wanted something from her.

Think of it this way. What would the world look like with no
advertising at all? How would you know if a good product even
exists? Fact is the more they bombard us with ads, the more
immune we become to them. Think of how many ads you see per day
and how many that you actually take notice of and go and buy something.
Very very few indeed. Today, consumers are more empowered
then ever before. We used to believe some of the ads. Now we can
google and check to see what other consumers experiences were with
the product. That is hugely empowering to us humble customers!

*We're locked into a spending addiction that must be nurtured and cultivated.*

But Squeers, that is your choice! You can live in the sticks and
grow your own food, make your own clothes if you wish. Some choose
to do just that. Most seemingly prefer to live in cities and live
it up.

*For me fulfilment is seeing through my delusions, not indulging them.*

Well that is wonderful for you, Squeers. But take religion and how
many go to sleep happily, knowing that their Jesus loves them.
Do you think Runner and others would be happy without their beliefs?
Should we ban Jesus? Yet people send hundreds of millions of $ to
the bible belt or give it to the church, hoping to buy their future
ticket to heaven. Religion is a massive industry, selling hope and
never having to deliver anything but hope. Clearly people get their
money's worth of good feelings from it, or they would not spend
it as they do. Why should I object, if it makes them happy?