From Consumption Society to Extinction
The logic of "whoever has money can consume everything, nothing can stand in the way of personal pleasure" has destroyed the collectivist structure of Turkish society. Now, instead of the enlightened individual of the West, we are raising a generation that is a slave to pleasure, manipulative, and sees conscience and moral values as a burden.
We are going through a period of severe economic conditions in our country. However, I can often hear you saying "if only the economy were the only problem" in the face of the problems we encounter around us, in the media or on social media. Generally, the most common reaction to these problems is the bewildered expression of the question "when did we become such a society?". Social changes take place over a very long period of time. It would be misleading to expect changes in the superstructure to take place in a short period of time, and it would be overly optimistic to expect these changes, which take place over a long period of time, to be perceived by the whole society. Of course, it is impossible to explain change in societies, which are the object of sociological research, with a single factor. In addition, the scientific method may require that a certain factor be emphasized and analyzed in order to facilitate the explanation of the subject. What I will try to do in this article is to look at the processes that have brought us to today from a different perspective.
The French sociologist and philosopher Henri Lefebvre (1901-1991), who was well acquainted with the processes of capitalist accumulation, argued that capitalism owed its ability to see the end of the 20th century to its discovery of urban space. Indeed, cities have not only become the sites of mass production, but also of mass consumption. On the other hand, capitalism has periodically experienced crises arising from its own internal contradictions and has evolved into a new (!) world order after each crisis. Just as World War I was caused by the crisis of the late 19th century, the conditions that led to World War II were shaped by the economic depression of 1929 that shook the world. It should not be forgotten that this economic depression was caused by a lack of demand. In other words, the crisis occurred because there was no demand to meet the supply that increased with the massification of the mode of production.
The period after the Second World War was the period of the construction of a global capital order led by America. In addition to the reconstruction of the destroyed Europe, the state-led increase in the welfare of the individual brought about the expected change in consumption habits within decades. The leading institutions of this change were the IMF and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank after the 1992 Uruguay talks), which were established immediately after the war. Through these two institutions, developing countries were provided with financial resources, but in return for this generosity (!), policies were exported. In short, the world order that America wanted was established against the opposing bloc. By the 1970s, however, the Bretton Woods (International Monetary Agreement) system had disintegrated due to America's economic difficulties, and the SDR (Special Drawing Right) currency was created instead of the exchange rate system, which broke its link with gold in 1974. "As of 1981, the structure of the SDR was simplified and its value was linked to a basket of five consisting of the US dollar, the Japanese yen, the West German mark, the British pound sterling and the French franc" (1). The devastating consequence of these developments for developing countries was an increased debt burden in the face of a sudden rise in exchange rates. The high levels of indebtedness triggered by the oil crisis in the 1970s forced these countries to knock on the door of the IMF. This created a unique opportunity for the export of America's neo-liberal policies targeting nation-states.
What Happened in Turkey?
Especially after the 1973 oil crisis (2), Turkey, which was classified as a developing country, entered a very turbulent period both economically and politically after the increase in energy costs and exchange rate shock. The most important economic outcome of this turbulent period was the decisions announced on January 24, 1980. On September 12, 1980, the roads leading to the military coup were almost paved. After the military coup, the biggest blow in terms of economic approach was dealt to the economy that Atatürk had built on solid foundations with the principle of statism. Just as Pinochet, who seized power after the coup against Allende in Chile, handed over the economy to the "Chicago boys", in Turkey, under Turgut Özal's rule after the coup, all the reforms (!) demanded by the IMF were carried out in a fight.
The power of the public sector in the economy was drastically cut back, and the public sector's means of production were sold off at auction to ensure so-called economic efficiency. Institutions were looted by politicians and the resulting public losses were used to justify privatizations. In the process, a covert war was launched against the trade union movement, and the power of trade unions to influence policy processes was eroded. However, what is more serious is the return to a structure in which capital is more influential in education policies. In Turkey, which is a collectivist society, the individualist streak has been fed more than necessary and society has been reshaped.
These were the years when consumption patterns and brand curiosity developed in Turkey. The logic of "whoever has money can consume everything, nothing can stand in the way of personal pleasure" has destroyed the collectivist structure of society, but instead of the enlightened individual of the West, a generation that has become a slave to the sense of pleasure, pursues only its own interests, and sees conscience and moral values as a burden has begun to grow. There has been a rapid transformation towards a society that consumes more and more quickly.
Everything can now be turned into money. Relationships, friendships, loves, emotions and knowledge have begun to transform into easily consumable forms. This radical transformation in consumption patterns has created a state of social delirium in which people now want to have everything without long efforts and labor. It is a pill-like perception that loving only consists of loving what belongs to oneself. Everything is owned. Not only houses, cars, statuses, but also relationships, lives, lives have started to be owned. A state of abnormality where everyone lives their own normal has become the norm of society.
Beliefs have also had their share of this. No one has time to waste on philosophy. Islam literally means "submission" and Muslim means "one who submits". However, although the submission here refers to submission to God, people do not have time to understand Him. The unbearable "lightness" of a religion presented like a pill through symbols has taken over society. Symbols such as the turban, mosque and prayer have been swallowed like a pill as a requirement of Islam and have brought great happiness to those who swallow them. In addition to this, social messages such as "It is not one of us who eats while his neighbor is hungry" have become less vocalized. Of course, there is no logic in the devotion to symbols, but nobody has time to lose with logic anyway. A religion that is consumed like a pill is easier and more peaceful than reading and understanding its philosophy. I don't know whether it is because it is too much for him to realize that his whole life is against religion if he understands its philosophy, or whether it is a state of belonging that he tries to prove to others, but religion has become something that is consumed as easily as a pill. The pleasure of going on a pilgrimage and looking at the Kaaba from the top of a five-star hotel intoxicates people to the extent that it prevents them from being aware of a state of philosophical misery.
Let's come to the crux. Getting a society so addicted to swallowing pills to think requires a much more difficult process than one might think. Conscience is different from the unbearable "lightness" of posting on social media. Although there are those who have tried to turn morality, conscience, loyalty and honesty into a pill, no one has succeeded so far. A thief is a thief no matter how you dress him up. A murderer is a murderer even if you wrap him in gilding. I don't know how to be happy among creatures who think they are human beings, but it takes some courage to even look in the mirror. Then don't say, "this government has ruined us", "when did we become so insensitive", "there is no conscience left", "this is what love looks like", "life is so expensive". The whole problem is in the pills you swallow. A friend...
The last word: Global capital without its local collaborators is just a paper tiger...
(1) https://tr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bretton_Woods_Anla%C5%9Fmas%C4%B1
