Another reason that I think saving Mother Earth is completely and utterly hopeless: I needed replacement blades for the razor someone gave me about four years ago to thank me for some computer work I did for him. I’ve never changed the blades because, frankly, they always worked fine. But recently I’ve noticed that they’re not as sharp as they used to be. Imagine that.

On the internet, the best price I could find was about $38. Since I don’t like ordering over the net (I don’t care how secure it’s supposed to be), I looked around at stores in my area and found a place that had the blades for the same price.

At the store, however, the cost was $44. Seems the cheaper price was only for on-line sales. Which aggravated the hell out of me, but I figured since I was already at the store, I’d shell out the extra bucks. Then I noticed that right below where the blades were hanging was a razor on sale -- for $29.99. A comparable one, made by the same company as my razor.  

I asked myself, why would I spend $44 when I could spend $14.00 less? Something in my brain said, “You’re saving the environment by not buying a new razor.”

Which I quickly realized is utter nonsense. 

The new razor is already produced. It’s already damaged the environment by being manufactured at some plant that probably pours all sorts of toxins into the earth and air. It’s already used up the planet’s dwindling resources. The next step in its cycle of destruction of the environment is when it’s tossed into a landfill and sits there rotting for untold numbers of years. Perhaps until some alien from another planet, who is rummaging through the remains of our “civilization,” exclaims, “What’s this? A god they worshipped?” 

I don’t feel guilty about my choice. I’m not the one who makes it cheaper for me to buy a brand new razor when all I need is a replacement part. And I’m certainly not giving that company fourteen extra dollars of my hard-earned money when it’s already rolling in the dough. 

I bet that company’s won awards for being “green.” Not that it takes much to be “green” these days. Put a few trees in a plaza near corporate headquarters and some “environmentalists” will be breaking down the door to give you an award. Okay, maybe I exaggerate a little, but you get the point.

Back when I was a teenager (here’s where I feel ancient), one could buy a part or fix a broken item (like a stereo or a toaster) for less than the cost of replacing it. When those old dusty repair shops, with those amazing guys who could take apart anything and make it like new, went the way of the dinosaur, the age of “it’s cheaper to replace than fix” came into being.

Not to mention the age of consume until you drop and then consume some more. How much junk can a person own? Never enough. And then you have to get the latest model of all that crap. Always the latest model. Feel guilty? Give away the old ones on a recyclers list. But keep buying, buying, buying. So that the companies will keep producing and producing and producing and making more and more money.

Saving the planet is a joke.