Freeing Yourself from the Consumer Culture

In this wide-ranging interview Peter talks with Eric Zimmer, host and producer of The One You Feed, named one of the Best Health Podcasts of All Time by The Huffington Post. Peter discusses some of the big questions he is tackling lately, including:

  • The Wolf Parable
  • His book, An Other Kingdom: Departing the Consumer Culture
  • “I shop, therefore I am”
  • The four pillars of the free market consumer ideology under which we live: Scarcity, Certainty, Perfection, and Privatisation
  • If we believe in scarcity, then it’s “I win, You loose” or “You win, I lose”
  • The longing for perfection, or “Is something wrong with me?”
  • Neighborliness and Covenant
  • His book, The Answer to How is Yes
  • That questions bring us together and answers alienate us
  • That sadness isn’t a problem to be solved, rather, part of being human
  • If someone can convince you that something is wrong with you, they have control over you

To listen or download go here.

Home page image: Bernard Spragg

About the Lead Author

Peter Block
Peter Blockhttps://peterblock.com
In addition to The Abundant Community, co-authored with John McKnight, Peter Block is the author of Flawless Consulting, Community, Stewardship and The Answer to How Is Yes. He serves on the boards of Elementz, a hip hop center for urban youth; Cincinnati Public Radio; and LivePerson. With other volunteers, Peter began A Small Group, whose work is to create a new community narrative and to bring Peter's work on civic engagement into being. Peter's work is in the restoration of communities and creating systems that restore our humanity. He is a partner in Designed Learning, a training company that offers workshops he has designed to build the skills outlined in his books.

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