Given the Recent Effects US Consumerism Had, Maybe a Bit of Toning down Is a Good Idea

Via Offsetting Behaviour, a funny little article in the New York Times about couples' disagreements about how environment-friendly their lifestyles ought to be. Here it is in a nutshell:

Mr. Fleming, who says he became committed to Ms. Cobb “before her high-priestess phase,” describes their conflicts as good-natured — mostly.

I also liked this bit:

Robert Brulle, a professor of environment and sociology at Drexel University in Philadelphia, said he had seen divorces among couples who realized that their values were putting them on very different long-term trajectories.

“One still wants to live the American dream with all that means, and the other wants to give up on big materialistic consumption,” Dr. Brulle said. “Those may not be compatible.”

Remember: When academics say "may not be", they may mean what other people call "isn't".