Popsicles being melted by consumerism

Unlike the Regulation, it is a Union rule that does not directly apply in the Member States, but takes the form of a Directive whose effectiveness is specified by obliging them to approve the internal rules necessary to bring their national legislation into line with the European Union. The basic principles contained in the Directive.

In the case of Spain, let’s remember that last year a law was passed with a similar purpose: the Climate Change and Energy Transformation Act, which stipulates that the sale of combustion and hybrid cars and commercial vehicles in Spain will be stopped. the year 2040.

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, said the measure is a message to European motor vehicle manufacturers to speed up the process, which some have already begun. But it’s also a warning to foreign brands to change their business model if they want to continue operating in Europe.

When that happens, we can only applaud. Glaciers are melting, plastics are circulating freely in the oceans and skies, especially those covering major cities are turning gray from pollution.

It is necessary to be aware. And do it now, because the planet can’t wait any longer, and the health of us and those after us is at stake.

But of course, not only combustion vehicles are responsible for this situation. The efforts will not serve much if other parallel measures are not taken.

And as has been the case for a long time, the real problem lies in the frenzied consumerism that dominates our lives. The chained generation of millions of useless objects will sooner or later pile up in miles of landfills that already dominate an alarming part of the landscape. “Let’s produce millions of tons of stacked products and we will be happy!”, said the French writer Frédéric Beigbeder. Economic development was conceived of as the ever greater and more useless production of commodities.a large collection of goodsKarl Marx warned.

In this way, if the measures taken by public authorities, whether national or supranational, are not accompanied by a paradigm shift, they will be nothing but sterile prohibitions, incapable of achieving their aims, however noble and necessary.

Although large multinational companies try to persuade us with their colorful marketing campaigns, progress is not equivalent to abundant and compulsory consumption, but to the conscious and informed consumption of the production processes necessary to reach the final product, to responsible consumption. Progress necessarily comes from knowledge, reflection, stopping to consider the consequences of our actions. Something that major shareholders want to avoid at all costs for fear of losing their wealth. Education is bad, culture is dangerous, and religion is a remnant of a dark past. “What will we do if humanity decides to replace God with consumer products?Beigbeder wondered.

This is not the case, however, because the decision, if it is not free, cannot be considered a decision, but rather an implicit imposition. And only those who are duly informed and duly trained are free. Ignorance is a weapon used by those who have to subjugate those who do not have. It can take various forms: propaganda, publicity, idyllic lives portrayed in advertisements and social networks, and in short, just looking at it, anything that arouses desire. A desire fueled by smug images and catchy music.

So the problem is huge. And blaming just cars or just cruise ships for climate change is a bad joke told by a bad humorist, although it has implications.

Legislation is necessary. Closing the Official State Journal or the Official Journal of the European Union has the opposite effect. Let’s stop, think and act accordingly. Maybe if done well, a single rule will suffice. And the solution, as always, lies in good education.