• The average individual daily consumption of water is 159 gallons, while more than half the world's population lives on 25 gallons.
Encourage people to shut off the faucet when brushing their teeth. Take a bath once a week instead of a shower. This parallels the food argument; these simple suggestions will have a much higher success rate than an unnecessary, radical change in American lifestyle.
To sum up, I view my consumption habits as rather high. I will venture to the mall when I have nothing to do. I enjoy test-driving new cars. I look forward to commercials, and I always notice every billboard on the highway. But I am not ashamed of that fact. I do my part to limit the negative effects of my consumption without feeling guilty about the clothes on my back. I recycle my bottles, paper, plastic, and glass. I take paper bags home from the grocery store. I do not leave the water running 24 hours a day. However, unlike some of the views expressed in this week's readings, I do feel proud of the benefits that I possess from living in our modern society. While extremists want us to revert back to our way of life in the 18th century, I make sure to have my ringer off at 8AM Saturday morning, and it does not bother me at all.
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