America - The Land of Too Much?

I love America and all the principle on which it was built. I am horrified at some of the directions our country to taking. America is special and should be fought for. But we must first look at home before we point fingers at others.

At a recent conference, I engaged in a conversation with a Scottish gent who has lived in Canada for the past 18 years. He pointed out that two big box stores had just opened in a small Canadian town that could not support the one big grocery story that had been home grown for the past 30 years. Between his Scottish/Canadian philosophy and my proud Texas heritage, the conversation became quite intense.

Whatever happened to going to the store to get a bag of M&M's or a Mars Bar? Today we must first ask which flavor - mint, truffle, dark or milk chocolate and even what color of M&M's? Did someone ask for all these choices? Was there some piece of market research that demanded we take the Mars Bar -- the very best candy bar ever made -- off the market and create a dozen different varieties in its place -- none of which satisfy the hunger for the original? Who did this research and are they available for debate?

The gentleman also explained how he still has his grandmother's vaccuum cleaner and it works great. How many vaccuum cleaners on the market today would last 10 years, much less 40?

I love this country. Perhaps it is time to look at all our options. If we must tighten our belts, lets begin with those the automobile dealers that created forty different version of cars, the 200 version of loans, etc.

Janelle