"The story of Stuff"

A few weeks back I came across a posting on Daily Kos -http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/1/27/85519/4170/975/442455 about a movie called "The Story of Stuff". I read it, bookmarked it because I was sort of interested, and moved on. But I kept thinking about it, and the entire concept of stuff for stuffs sake, how our economy and culture is tied into our love - and need- of stuff. Here is a paragraph that really spoke to me



"Shopping has become the key to how we view ourselves to such an extent that not only did George W. Bush urge us to shop ourselves out of the peril of 9/11, even environmental activists often turn to the mall. What's the most frequent advice dispensed to people trying to behave more responsibly? Buy green. It's advice that not only encourages still more consumption as means to address the problem of over-consumption, but it all too often ignores the market forces that have delivered "green" products to the local mall -- forces that rarely have any concern for the resources or people damaged along the way."

But how to cut yourself off from this spiral of stuff? I mean, we do need stuff. Stuff wears out, breaks, goes bad. I could never go the route of those " compact"people, who pledge not to buy anything new for an entire year. But there has to be a way to minimize how much stuff to accumulate. Now, I have no answers here, honestly, I still am unsure as to how I feel about the entire concept. But, I know I have more stuff than I really need, and it's hard to keep organized and clean, and it takes a lot of money that honestly I could use for other things than just "stuff".