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3. On a related note, I have been reading since the 1970s about how materialistic Americans are and how we have too much stuff and how much of it ends up in landfills or waterways. Because of the recession, not only is less “stuff” being made and sold, what “stuff” we do have is being used longer and sometimes recycled. I read about how people want factories to open again and start manufacturing more “stuff,” but what if it isn’t needed or wanted, or people don’t want to buy it, or our planet can’t handle any more of the “stuff”?
4. Many articles have been written commenting about how the United States has shifted from an industrial society to a service-oriented economy. Most of the articles act like this is very bad, and I can sympathize with those whose careers were based around manufacturing. But what is wrong with service careers? The image is of a lowly big-box store stock clerk or a fast-food worker, but doesn’t the term “service” go way beyond that? To me, service includes the following fields: education, health care, repair work, sales, government positions including police and fire, entertainers and athletes, even the military.
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