Economic Growth

When a country undertakes the challenge of economic growth, it does it for a number of reasons, but possibly the most important of these is to satisfy its populace. After the Second World War, South Korea wanted to grow economically in order to escape their medieval agrarian lifestyles and to experience all of the trappings of consumerism.

But instead what South Korea and many other developing economies find themselves bundled with is far from their idealistic dreams. Growth is not aalways something to be welcome for the vast majority of economically growing countries. Of the vast array of categorized evils that materialize from growth is the horrific pollution.

The pollution we see today is endless. From the smallest microcosm to the entire earth, economic growth and waste is slowly choking everything around us. As members of an industrialized society the detrimental effects are all too apparent. And in general, the despoiling of the landscape and the pollution of air aand water decrease man’s ability to enjoy the „real“ amenities of life, thus questioning the accepted opinion that materialism brings more to our daily lives than for example, the life of someone in a pristine and enjoyable natural environment. As II sit here writing this essay, in front of me lie vast swathes of land ripped wide open, and in their place, concrete sits. To the growing economies of the world, we must pose one question and one question alone – Is this you really want?

Socially, one might argue that perhaps, economic growth might be a good thing. All of the stereos, holidays, mobile phones and apartments, some might say bring „enjoyment“. But with this massive growth often society „wants“ are often created faster than the industrial machine can satisfy them, leading to a continual, bitter desire that always rises beyond what can satisfy it. Human nature dictates this. I will not stop and be satisfied with my Jaguar, my RRolls Royce and my BMW – no, now I want a Mercedes. This leaves people often dissatisfied than before, when consumerism had been given a lower value. Today, in our „advanced“ society, consumption exists not to satisfy consumer wants, but merely to justify production. Not only this, but also the demands of high economic growth and consumerism also place a huge toll on the cogs of the industrial machine, the workers. Why do some many people take depressants and commit ssuicide in developed nations if they are really enjoying the „real“ amenities of life? The stress and high-paced lifestyle is not always what people in less developed countries or even in developed countries would necessarily want.

So far, I have merely dealt with the problems that countries that have grown have encountered. But there are far more problems in countries where growth is just starting to occur. As well as the pollution and dissatisfaction ...