On Wed, 12 May 2004 16:40:45 +0100, Janet Baraclough..
wrote:

from Frogleg contains these words:

In fact, 'consumerism'
drives the US economy -- if everyone bought only what they needed,
millions (more) would be jobless.

Much of the "stuff" consumed by the western world is often produced at
the expense of dismal conditions in the thirdworld; cheap beef, luxury
cash crops and designer trainers, to mention a few. Don't fool yourself
that excessive consumerism is justified by supporting more jobs in your
own country; manufacturing is in vast decline in the western world.

This is why I said the "science" of economics is a murky subject.
There are *always* good arguments on both, or rather every, side of a
discussion. More guns doesn't necessarily mean less butter. It might
even mean more butter, too. If economic effects were thoroughly
understood, the stock market wouldn't be a gamble.