Economic obsession with growth itself destroys the conditions that make prosperity possible

Evidence

Such a view of land and people is, of course, subject to the blurs and distortions of personal experience and personal bias. But wherever the truth may lie, this much is crystalclear: our bigger-and-better society is now like a hypochondriac, so obsessed with its own economic health as to have lost the capacity to remain healthy. The whole world is so greedy for more bathtubs that it has lost the stability necessary to build them, or even to turn off the tap. Nothing could be more salutary at this stage than a little healthy contempt for a plethora of material blessings. — Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac, 13

Categorization

• XREF: The hypochondriac and bathtub figure parallels the treadmill of economic growth critiques foundational to environmental economics and eco-justice material. — connects to: Outdoor recreation’s value is contrast with mechanized work, which excessive gadgetry destroys. — Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac: With Other…, 633; Asserting that something is valuable does not make its value indestructible under mechanization. — Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac: With Other…, 635; Unlimited economic growth necessarily consumes nonrenewable resources, making sustainable growth an oxymoron (+2 more)
• recurring: this claim recurs 2 times within its source

Broader Connections

• Capitalism’s growth fetish inherently opposes ecological sustainability #corroborates (0.95) — Mark Fisher, Capitalist Realism, 41
• Unlimited economic growth necessarily consumes nonrenewable resources, making sustainable growth an oxymoron #expands (0.90)
• Unrestrained capitalist growth is a form of destructive creation requiring humility to balance #corroborates (0.82) — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass, 768