In the Advanced Capitalism of Our Era :  A small group of individuals own most of the wealth and power as the result of their control of tremendous amounts of capital. Therefore, the dominant interests and values within our society are of the capitalist owning class. As a consequence of the unequal distribution of wealth and power, we do not all enter the marketplace as equals. Everything (and everyone) is a commodity; seen in terms of marketability and profitability.

In the Advanced Capitalism of Our Era :  Capitalism is a system in which social value is determined by one's market value.  Those who have great wealth or high-status jobs are seen as dominant over those with lower incomes or low-status jobs. The elderly, the disabled, and the unemployed are seen as having little to no value because they are either out of the market or peripheral to it.  The definition of good is increasingly linked to financial profit. In the business world (the "real world"), greed is a superior human characteristic that is encouraged and rewarded.  You can see the dominance of the corporate sector all around you through various examples including the large business buildings with extravagantly decorated interiors and the commercial advertisements that surround us.

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Thorstein Veblen ( ), a social scientist, coined the term Conspicuous Consumption in describing the tendency of an increasing amount of people who purchase things to improve their social status rather out of need. Furthermore, those who cannot afford to buy these things conceive themselves as unworthy for lack of them; conversely, those who are able to purchase the most expensive commodities are looked up to and envied. However, recent data seems to show that once people move beyond acquiring their basic material needs, increased amounts of material goods do not seem to buy happiness (Toynbee 2003).

In the Modern Culture of Consumerism :  Planned Obsolescence is the process of creating things that always need to be replaced and it is an essential part of the capitalist need to sell us even more products.  With the never-ending glut of goods on the market, corporations must perpetually convince us to consume more and more.  The market is targeting more youth and children because young people today not only have a lot of disposable income, but they also have a large influence on their parent's consumer choices.  Corporations are getting individuals to buy more and more when most workers are earning less and less through the growth of personal debt. There are now twice as many credit cards in Canada as there are Canadians. (Anderssen 2007)

 People are often found sacrificing their own individuality in order to live with others. Why?  Fear  Economical Reasons ($)

 Studies show that changes in development of communities are a prime example of the “We vs. Me” theory.  For example, since the 19 th century more and more people are moving from rural to urban areas. “UN says half the world's population will live in urban areas by end of 2008“  This change from rural to urban dramatically effects the way people interact with each other  For example, living in a small community you are forced to get to know the people you live near. When you move to a larger city you find yourself living even closer in proximity to others, however they are complete strangers to you

 Karl Marx believed that socialism will replace capitalism which will lead to a classless society called “pure communism”  He also believed in globalizing capitalism, meaning people who migrate to other countries around the world find their neighbors to have totally different cultural traditions then what they are use to

 Emile Durkheim believed in two forms of social cohesions, mechanical solidarity and organic solidarity.  Mechanical Solidarity - “the form of social solidarity associated with small ‐ scale, pre-modern societies that have relatively little differentiation of labor”.  Organic Solidarity - “It describes a situation in which each part of the society is dependent on the other parts, thus forming an organic whole.”  Durkheim believed that a newer form of social cohesion would replace previous forms, meaning Durkheim is an order theorist

 Ferdinand Tonnies a German sociologist studied this theory as well and found personal relations were based on family/friendship bonds that were usually associated with religion  He believed in two separate social groups – Gemeinschaft (community) and Gesellschaft (society/association)

 The division of labour, individualism and competitiveness has drastically changed society over time. The loss of traditional communities effects personal relationships and how we react with each other as a modern society.

 A meaning of an individual’s loss of connection to community and other individual. Author Lasch describe me generation as “Narcissism”. Narcissism is the excessive preoccupation with oneself and lack of empathy for others. Me Generation Detach themselves from social networking.

 Has negative effects on the individual.  Keep to themselves  Go about their business Privatized themselves from everyone else Self Centered

 To reflect not only the perceived self –involvement of young people, but also their increasing connection to privatized technology. Access to the internet to connect to others that has been forgotten and to get in contact with. For example: Facebook,Myspace,etc.

 Technology is rapidly use by teen.  Almost every teen has access to the internet or music player.  98% teen have a laptop or home computer.

 The lack of social connectedness to negative personal outcome. Scientist Putnam said two to five percent of people are likely to die if not socially active. Most lose a sense of connection to communities and seek gratification from Alcohol;Drugs;Sex;Gambling and thrills of extreme sports.