I did it their way: consuming our way to freedom

 “I’ll scream”, the priest muttered as he left the funeral, “if I have to listen to ‘I Did It My Way’ one more time.” What explains the vogue to play the Sinatra anthem at one’s funeral? It’s a fair bet that anyone who makes a posthumous declaration to the world that he did it his […]

The Rebirth of Nature and the Climate Crisis

The Rebirth of Nature and the Climate Crisis A Sydney Ideas Lecture University of Sydney, 7th July 2009 Clive Hamilton Introduction1 The failure of humanity to respond to the threat of global warming with anything like the urgency demanded by climate science is deeply puzzling. Undoubtedly, our preoccupation with economic growth, and the way it […]

The Intensification of Consumerism and Reactions Against It

THE AUSTRALIA INSTITUTE The Intensification of Consumerism and Reactions Against It A Public Lecture Demography and Sociology Program, ANU National Museum of Australia, 2 May 2006 Clive Hamilton In a previous era, there was a clear distinction between ordinary goods consumed by the masses and luxury goods consumed by the wealthy minority, the richest 5 […]

Marketing and Modern Consumerism

THE AUSTRALIA INSTITUTE Marketing and Modern Consumerism A speech to the Third National Consumer Congress Melbourne 16 March 2006 Clive Hamilton In a previous era, there was a clear distinction between ordinary goods consumed by the masses and luxury goods consumed by the wealthy minority, the richest 5 per cent or so of the population. […]