After thinking a lot about Easter Island, Conrad Schmidt, founder of the Work Less Party, decided to sell his car. He worked out that he needed to work one less day a week because riding a bike was saving more than he was paying every week to own and run the car.... to get to work. Then, after a while, he thought hard about his job writing software for machines that made "stuff" and ..... well.... resigned.

Conrad has written a book.... "Workers of the World Relax".... and few lines follow:

Today we are dedicating more and more of our lives to produce more and more consumer goods. We work harder toward the empty pursuit of producing goods than we do toward the fulfilling work of living. The harder we work to make and afford "stuff," the less time we have to enjoy our lives, spend time with friends and build healthy relationships and communities. We are neglecting aspects of our lives, essential to our well being, in favour of status and material wealth accumulation that makes us no happier.

Our perverse work ethic is not just a social problem. The work we do affects the environment around us. The environmental tragedy of global warming, pollution and the extinction of millions of species are linked to the behavior of our consumerist society. We are working longer and harder at decreasing the ability of our planet to sustain us, and less at doing the work of enjoying life.

And here are some good quotes from the book:

On renewable energy systems being a false solution because they won't slow down consumerism -  We might very well have unlimited clean energy in the future. This will give us the capacity to completely destroy the planet.

Society -  Western culture is in an unending struggle to make enough money to pay bills.

In general -  Make less STUFF - do more LIVING!

Or risk the same fate as the Easter Islanders...... 

Song of the Dodo, by Quammen/Richard. A great book about... Islands as metaphor for our planet. A lot of the book is centered on the Indonesian Islands.