Finnish spending

(via Daniel)
Finland is running an advertising campaign to get its 5 Million residents to stop saving and start spending. I like the the devil/vampire pig for a couple of reasons - It reminds me of HBO's True Blood and the FAT pig that I helped create for HSBC Direct. However, as we have discussed below, just spending will continue to support this broken economy. What we really need is guidance on how to fuel a better/different economy.

I still think that distinguishing between spending on people rather than things could be a good distinction. Giving money directly to people who do useful things for us ensures distribution of wealth to those who offer a valuable service - unlike giving money to corporations who disproportionately distribute it to management and other unnecessary spending (e.g. John Thain).

Money given to people is more likely to remain active in the economy - people will use it to do things they want to do/buy - while money that we spend on things, objects, possessions is likely to go nowhere. I recognise that ultimately paying for products goes to workers and producers but not before it sits on many different balance sheets and lots of people take a cut. If our new economy supports and incentivizes creativity and production we need to make sure the money we spend goes directly to the people who create and produce. The easiest way to do that is to buy as close to the source as possible so the people who actually create and produce get the money without it going to the 'middle men' who neither create nor produce anything.