Martin Chapter 8 - Life and the Ladder

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Chapter 8 - The Simple Life and the Ladder May 4, 2012 Chapter 8 - The Simple Life and the Ladder In this section of the chapter Martin analyzes what he considers one of the best descriptions of the consumerist world, written by a fellow Jesuit named Dean Brackley. Brackley’s article explains his idea of consumerism through 12 steps. He tells us that we live in a culture that is extremely individualistic, failing to care for anyone outside of themselves and their inner circle. This attitude is fueled by emptiness that we try to fill with worldly things instead of God and loving relationships. This blatant neglecting of others leads to what is described as a “Ladder” culture (putting some people above others). People become so wrapped up in this system that they actually begin to believe that they are defined by their position on the ladder. At the top of the ladder sits a mythical figure such as a celebrity or billionaire, and on the bottom sits the losers who are made up of the unemployed and homeless. Because these people are at the bottom of the ladder, people higher up on the ladder tend to treat them badly because they have no perceived value. Once someone is in the system for long enough, their attitude tends to change from merely wanting success, to actually hoping other people fail. The security of the individual depends solely on how successful they are in the climb. Essentially the ladder morphs into a pyramid where the lower groups ban together to protect themselves from the higher groups, think labor unions and the 99% rallies. The people on top know the power is theirs and don’t want to risk its loss, so they are constantly forced to remind everyone below them just how powerful and great they are. The end result of this system is fear, mistrust, and loneliness. The first thought that popped into my head while reading this description was that

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