After the 9/11 attacks on the United States, people began asking whether we should continue with our heavily consumerist mindsets, especially when we know there’s a lot to be done to prevent any more acts of terrorism?

Halloween back in 2001 was still happy, but many people were already beginning to raise their voice against the pointless consumerism that abounded.

The Thing About Patriotism

The United States is a large country that boasts of a trillion-dollar economy, and spending in America is seen as a patriotic act. When you spend your hard-earned money, you’re doing your part to keep the American economy rolling. Spending is the primary way to keep small businesses and big companies running.

This means that spending maintains the entire American economic system. This is why when people suddenly question their spending habits, especially during Halloween and other retail-heavy seasons, commercial entities have cause to worry. After all, when people stop spending, business stops running.

Defenders of spending seasons such as Halloween are quick to point out that consumerism actually helps keep the country afloat. And by keeping the country afloat, you’re actually doing your patriotic duty to defend the United States.

Whether this view is true or not, it does make a little sense.

“Nope, I disagree.”

Many people disagree with the way Americans spend money during Halloween. Kevin Horrigan, from the newspaper Post-Dispatch, says:

“Take the dough you’d spend on Halloween candy and send it to the Red Cross. How about $1.9 billion instead?”

This view is apparently shared by many. Halloween does seem to cheapen everything it comes in contact with. But Halloween’s supporters claim that NOT celebrating Halloween is much worse, as it makes the country more vulnerable to terrorist attacks.

As a direct consequence, leaving the country defenseless may make the sacrifices of 9/11′s victims meaningless.

Economic Value

Of course, Halloween is a prime point for those interested in the vicissitudes of economic interest in the United States. Halloween is a retail-based industry. The industry thrives on individuals going out of their way to go to shops, stores and malls to buy their Halloween stuff.

When a country depends heavily on a retail-based industry, what happens when that industry suddenly disappears? The entire structure crumbles and slows down. The American economy is like a machine that operates with many main cogs.

The main cogs are those large industries and fields that produce the most amount of money. Now, the whole economy is dependent on these fields. This is why during the peak of economic collapse; the United States government had been quick to lend the large industries to prevent them from collapsing.

When these big companies go south, its employees and all the other small businesses that depend on them will also go south. It isn’t about greed — it’s about maintaining a machine that’s slowing down, just so it doesn’t break down completely.

Today, people are spending again and are doing their job in keeping the economy afloat. The furor that came after 9/11 has toned down, and here’s to hoping it stays that way.