A surprising new economic phenomenon is occurring these days in the United States.
Thanks to gowning incomes among a privileged few citizens benefiting from Barack Obamas latest iteration of crony capitalism" funneling government contracts & grants to privileged political allies of the Obama administration -- marketers are excited about the re-emergence of a once-familiar American lifestyle group a social phenomenon which is setting marketing mavens greedy hearts aflutter.
These are the affluent class of consumers who in the past have variously been nicknamed (1) bobos (bourgeois bohemians); (2) creators; and (3) LOHAS (enthusiastic advocates of Lifestyles Of Health & Sustainability").
And in regard to the third group just count in most of Hollywood.
LEFTIST MEDIA CHIC:
Basically all these high fallutin labels are simply marketers way of acknowledging that a familiar breed of liberal-minded blowhards is re-emerging in America -- rich accomplished & (pretentious) social responsible glitterati in Washington New York & Tinseltown (Hollywood)
In other words think of everyones favorite leftist-chic media baroness the founder & publisher of The Huffington Post: Arianna Huffington (known to some as the fifth Gabor sister).
Or how about Babs Streisand George Clooney or Bill Maher?
Or maybe even that eccentric MBA or MIT graduate down the street who is making a fortune working for such social-media cash cows as Facebook or Google.
After all doesnt that social-media guy wear Birkenstocks to PTA meetings and natter on endlessly about the evils of irresponsible neighbors who offer his kids Cocoa Puffs for breakfast (when his children attend sleepovers at their friends homes)?
And how about the way this wealth monger loudly denounces the decadence of life in the West (as contrasted to the spirituality of the East) and yet spends seven thousand dollars on a new Italian ultra-light ten-speed racing bike?
Not to mention that Mr. Rich & Sensitive" is planning another fundraiser for Americas most charismatic political visionary Barack Obama!
Of course what were talking about here is LIFESTYLES OF THE RICH & HYPOCRITICAL
TAKING THE MORAL HIGH GROUND:
And taking a look at this ever-growing social stratum of progressive achievers tells us a lot about what liberalism is all about these days.
From a socio-cultural perspective todays liberalism provides a socio-political world view which allows affluent privileged achievers to salve their consciences and feel morally superior to everyone else (particularly working-class shlubs" who shop exclusively at Walmart).
Their unspoken motto is: Im rich & you arent (sneer sneer) … and though I may be guilty of conspicuous consumption all my excesses are excused by my morally-superior belief system."
In the meantime with their consciences clear these same gluttons of affluent consumerism continue to (a) spend excessively on bling" of all kinds; (b) employ domestic help at low wages; and (c) generally spend money just as decadently as the greedy ruling class whom they so often publicly condemn (though the rich & hypocritical spend their money on more socially-responsible" consumer goods -- for example on $7000 ultra-light ten-speed racing bikes).
As a few keen observers have noted THE ESSENCE OF THIS LIFESTYLE IS BEING WEALTHY AND LIVING THE GOOD LIFE WHILE PRETENDING YOURE NOT.
One espouses (and maybe even fakes) -- in ones politics and social discourse -- a sophisticated progressivism that allows one to feel morally superior to the great unwashed.
Meanwhile its business as usual in dealing with the practicalities of real-world living -- exhibiting as much ostentatious snobbishness greed & immorality in your private behavior as the worst of capitalisms original robber barons".
To form a clearer real-life picture of these high-achieving hypocrites just think of Michelle Obama and her many super-rich cronies.
Or how about the personal history & behavior of wealthy social climber & ersatz deep thinker Arianna Huffington?
Once married to a wealthy Republican (who is rumored to have left poor Arianna for another...er man) the jilted former conservative commentator (and society queen) switched political ideologies with surprising alacrity … once she became determined to worm her way into Hollywoods notorious ruling liberal social clique.
Of course Arianna Huffington still continues to travel around town by limousine fly around the country in a private jet and employ members of L.A.s economically-marginal immigrant class as household help.
But now Ms. Huffington has discovered the guilt-alleviating joys of espousing a progressive leftist political & social philosophy.
VICTIMS ARE EVERYWHERE AND MUST BE SAVED:
Following in the path of such groundbreaking Hollywood liberals as Babs Streisand Ariana Huffington has also discovered that not only are Americas economically-marginal proletariat useful for preparing her meals cleaning her mansion washing her cars & doing her laundry … they are even more useful as victims to be saved & liberated by her progressive politics -- the expression of which helps cleanse any conscience she might have and make her feel like a super good & ethical person".
Robotically spouting liberal talking points also help her feel morally superior to the materialistic pass bluebloods who had previously been her lifestyle soul mates.
Not to mention that it also helps reinforce her sense of social superiority vs. the vast masses of polyester-crazed suburbanite women with big hair -- as well as all those dclass bubbas with big paunches -- whom Hollywoods glitterati have always looked down upon.
Not that Ms. Huffington hasnt continued to be a wealthy materialistic social-climbing snob. Its just that -- like her fellow wealthy liberal arrivistes in Hollywood -- she has discovered a lifestyle that allows her to mask her elitism materialism & selfish ambition in a superficial but ostentatious public sensibility of social responsibility & caring.
For example in terms of her wealth conspicuous spending & employment of various domestic servants Arianna Huffington might still resemble the selfish rich capitalists loathed by Karl Marx & company.
But unlike yesterdays stereotypical bourgeois capitalist exploiters Arianna Huffington now cares".
She espouses a progressive politics of equality empowerment & liberation for the many victims of American corporate thievery exploitation & empire.
And so she is now dedicated to saving the worlds exploited masses from the well um Ariannas of the world.
Similarly Arianna might now conspicuously spend thirty thousand dollars on a useless decorative object dart to display in her 800-square-foot living room. But these days she makes sure shes spending such an obscene sum on a useless decorative object dart from a Third World country.
After all how can it be decadent to spend fifteen thousand dollars on a bit of interior decorating when the money is being spent on Third World culture -- the ultimate expression of cultural authenticity & anti-consumerism (even if the Rodeo Drive art dealer keeps about 85 of the $15000-dollar expenditure as his or her cut leaving the Third World artist in still desperate economic straits)?
In essence this lifestyle flim-flam is a way for wealthy arrivistes like Arianna to fool themselves into thinking theyre really not the greedy self-indulgent wealthy elitists which they really are.
Its how this emergent liberal lifestyle of the rich and hypocritical" fulfills the contradictory needs of its enthusiasts -- to live like a wealthy person but to cultivate the outward sensibility of a selfless monk.
THE HYPOCRITIC OATH:
It is a lifestyle medicine designed to heal the affluent soul -- allowing the rich & self-indulgent to take a hypothetical HYPOCRITIC OATH" and ostensibly cure both the ills of the world and their guilty consciences -- all the while behaving just like the wealthy class always has.
And recent magazine puff pieces" indicate that Arianna has indeed taken the liberal Hypocritic Oath."
And thats because her new political ideology hasnt stopped St. Arianna from living in an 8000 square-foot home in Brentwood flying around America in private jets and indulgently living what used to be called the good life".
But lets stop picking on Arianna Huffington fun as it is. Lets turn to a completely different example of hypocritical liberal excess & handwringing.
URBAN RENEWAL FOR THE PRIVILEGED:
For example lets look at the pleasant enlightened liberal enclave of San Francisco.
Progressive San Francisco liberals -- like liberals in Manhattan & Brookline -- spend a lot of time rhyming off talking points regarding the need for affordable housing".
Yet although these same liberals have dominated San Franciscos municipal politics for years San Francisco -- just like Manhattan and Brookline -- has become an urban shrine to the joys (for the affluent) of unaffordable housing.
Affluent and self-righteous San Franciscan liberals may shout their compassion for and solidarity with disadvantaged minorities & low-income earners.
But its the disadvantaged urban classes who have been squeezed out of the compassionate city by the bay" … by soaring rents & property values created by San Franciscos anointed class (read affluent liberal leftists).
Propertied San Franciscans have much invested in keeping property values rising.
And onerous environmental-friendly" zoning & building restrictions have only accelerated this trend and the accompanying scarcity of affordable housing.
Consequently according to various census reports the black population of San Francisco has declined precipitously in the last decade.
And despite San Franciscos elites love for the poor it is a city that has increasingly become an urban enclave for the wealthy & privileged (often boasting the highest average income of any city in America).
Enlightened San Franciscans may vocally identify with and advocate for the poor & disadvantaged.
But that doesnt mean these progressives have to actually live with such people.
Better that the servant class" commute from the suburbs every day for two hours -- to work at low-income jobs servicing the needs of affluent liberals -- rather than reside among the anointed and bring down property values.
The truth is that blinded by their smug pomposity and self-righteousness the urban elites of Manhattan Brookline San Francisco (and other left-liberal American enclaves) have increasingly chosen to ignore the social & economic underpinnings of their privileged existence.
After all they enjoy their affluence & freedoms thanks to the free-enterprise American political & economic system which they chronically criticize.
And they remain safe in their upscale mansions & condos thanks to the millions of less sophisticated and supposed reactionary working-class rednecks & philistines who defend their country & neighborhoods as members of Americas armed forces as policemen/ policewomen and as firefighters even combating disasters such as the 9/11 terror attacks with loss of their lives.
Most important the privileged practitioners of todays hypocritical liberal lifestyles live so comfortably thanks to the working class stiffs whom they despise for cluelessly voting for such alleged political villains as George W. Bush & Governor Scott Walker.
Yet these same working-class ignoramuses are the ones who mow the lawns of the privileged progressives pave their roads pick up their garbage unplug their sinks and transport & deliver so many of their expensive lifestyle toys.
However class-based snobbishness and condescension is what this kind of acquisitive liberalism is really all about.
And as indicated previously its through this lifestyle --which mixes a sophisticated bohemian" consumerism with progressive politics-- that this snobby elitist bent can find expression.
THE PROGESSIVE POLITICS OF SELF INTEREST:
This hip" new sensibility ultimately expresses & celebrates a paradoxical lifestyle of (1) conspicuous caring and (2) consuming self interest.
And what better an example than never-ending environmentalist dustup in the exclusive Nantucket Sound region the former yachting home base of liberal-left icon Walter Cronkite (the famous CBS news broadcaster).
Walter Cronkite was just one of the many rich & hypocritical Cape Codders who signed on to the Hypocritic Oath -- shilling for environmental causes when the cameras are on but taking a completely different tack when their comfy & exclusive lifestyles are being threatened.
For years Mr. Cronkite and his rich yachting friends were up in arms regarding a plan by Cape Wind Associates -- an environmentally-friendly clean-power company -- to use windpower to generate pollution-free electricity for 75 of the region.
The bad guys at Cape Winds Associates announced plans to place 130 windmills spaced one-third to one-half mile apart seven miles off the coast of Hyannis -- right in the way of the pristine views enjoyed by privileged yachting enthusiasts like Mr. Cronkite & and his friends.
Never mind that this environmentally-friendly power project was not going to use one drop of oil or natural gas from the pristine undisturbed tundra of Northern Alaska; nor burn an ounce of pollutant-generating coal; nor depend upon the alleged risky technology of nuclear power.
The hypocritical Marthas Vineyard liberal elite quickly dropped their fascination with environmentally-clean wind power and went about selfishly defending their yachting turf with the militant abandon of a riled-up Navy Seal veteran.
After all when it comes down to what counts most for the progressive Cape Cod yachting crowd happy sailing for the FEW rates higher than eliminating air-borne pollutants that damage the MANY.
In the past hypocritical Marthas Vineyard liberals like Walter Cronkite were happy to righteously vocalize their support for the concept of clean power. It just never occurred to them that some corporate interloper would have the chutzpah to plunk its environmentally-friendly windmills down in the exclusive waters in which Walter Cronkite & his privileged friends liked to sail.
In fact it wasnt till last month that legal actions against the project brought by the Cape Cod yachting cabal were finally settled completely in favor of Cape Wind Associates.
In a set of major legal victories for Cape Wind Associates U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton issued rulings against project opponents in their four lawsuits challenging Cape Winds permitting approval by the U.S. Department of Interior.
In America justice is allegedly swift for the just.
But it took 10 long years for the Cape Wind wind-power initiative to finally get approval from the Department of Interior for its clean-energy power project (the decision upheld by Judge Walton).
THE MORAL OF THIS LONG STORY:
Sadly this is the essence of todays lifestyles of the rich & hypocritical:
This emergent new privileged liberal sensibility has one primary function -- to mask the selfish elitism of its affluent proponents.
And as soon as one pokes beneath the surface caring & righteousness -- of this socially-responsible subculture -- one finds the very same self-indulgent & self-serving me-first" consumerism which these righteous advocates of progressive taste are constantly criticizing & sneering at.
A surprising new economic phenomenon is occurring these days in the United States.
Thanks to gowning incomes among a privileged few citizens benefiting from Barack Obamas latest iteration of crony capitalism" funneling government contracts & grants to privileged political allies of the Obama administration -- marketers are excited about the re-emergence of a once-familiar American lifestyle group a social phenomenon which is setting marketing mavens greedy hearts aflutter.
These are the affluent class of consumers who in the past have variously been nicknamed (1) bobos (bourgeois bohemians); (2) creators; and (3) LOHAS (enthusiastic advocates of Lifestyles Of Health & Sustainability").
And in regard to the third group just count in most of Hollywood.
LEFTIST MEDIA CHIC:
Basically all these high fallutin labels are simply marketers way of acknowledging that a familiar breed of liberal-minded blowhards is re-emerging in America -- rich accomplished & (pretentious) social responsible glitterati in Washington New York & Tinseltown (Hollywood)
In other words think of everyones favorite leftist-chic media baroness the founder & publisher of The Huffington Post: Arianna Huffington (known to some as the fifth Gabor sister).
Or how about Babs Streisand George Clooney or Bill Maher?
Or maybe even that eccentric MBA or MIT graduate down the street who is making a fortune working for such social-media cash cows as Facebook or Google.
After all doesnt that social-media guy wear Birkenstocks to PTA meetings and natter on endlessly about the evils of irresponsible neighbors who offer his kids Cocoa Puffs for breakfast (when his children attend sleepovers at their friends homes)?
And how about the way this wealth monger loudly denounces the decadence of life in the West (as contrasted to the spirituality of the East) and yet spends seven thousand dollars on a new Italian ultra-light ten-speed racing bike?
Not to mention that Mr. Rich & Sensitive" is planning another fundraiser for Americas most charismatic political visionary Barack Obama!
Of course what were talking about here is LIFESTYLES OF THE RICH & HYPOCRITICAL
TAKING THE MORAL HIGH GROUND:
And taking a look at this ever-growing social stratum of progressive achievers tells us a lot about what liberalism is all about these days.
From a socio-cultural perspective todays liberalism provides a socio-political world view which allows affluent privileged achievers to salve their consciences and feel morally superior to everyone else (particularly working-class shlubs" who shop exclusively at Walmart).
Their unspoken motto is: Im rich & you arent (sneer sneer) … and though I may be guilty of conspicuous consumption all my excesses are excused by my morally-superior belief system."
In the meantime with their consciences clear these same gluttons of affluent consumerism continue to (a) spend excessively on bling" of all kinds; (b) employ domestic help at low wages; and (c) generally spend money just as decadently as the greedy ruling class whom they so often publicly condemn (though the rich & hypocritical spend their money on more socially-responsible" consumer goods -- for example on $7000 ultra-light ten-speed racing bikes).
As a few keen observers have noted THE ESSENCE OF THIS LIFESTYLE IS BEING WEALTHY AND LIVING THE GOOD LIFE WHILE PRETENDING YOURE NOT.
One espouses (and maybe even fakes) -- in ones politics and social discourse -- a sophisticated progressivism that allows one to feel morally superior to the great unwashed.
Meanwhile its business as usual in dealing with the practicalities of real-world living -- exhibiting as much ostentatious snobbishness greed & immorality in your private behavior as the worst of capitalisms original robber barons".
To form a clearer real-life picture of these high-achieving hypocrites just think of Michelle Obama and her many super-rich cronies.
Or how about the personal history & behavior of wealthy social climber & ersatz deep thinker Arianna Huffington?
Once married to a wealthy Republican (who is rumored to have left poor Arianna for another...er man) the jilted former conservative commentator (and society queen) switched political ideologies with surprising alacrity … once she became determined to worm her way into Hollywoods notorious ruling liberal social clique.
Of course Arianna Huffington still continues to travel around town by limousine fly around the country in a private jet and employ members of L.A.s economically-marginal immigrant class as household help.
But now Ms. Huffington has discovered the guilt-alleviating joys of espousing a progressive leftist political & social philosophy.
VICTIMS ARE EVERYWHERE AND MUST BE SAVED:
Following in the path of such groundbreaking Hollywood liberals as Babs Streisand Ariana Huffington has also discovered that not only are Americas economically-marginal proletariat useful for preparing her meals cleaning her mansion washing her cars & doing her laundry … they are even more useful as victims to be saved & liberated by her progressive politics -- the expression of which helps cleanse any conscience she might have and make her feel like a super good & ethical person".
Robotically spouting liberal talking points also help her feel morally superior to the materialistic pass bluebloods who had previously been her lifestyle soul mates.
Not to mention that it also helps reinforce her sense of social superiority vs. the vast masses of polyester-crazed suburbanite women with big hair -- as well as all those dclass bubbas with big paunches -- whom Hollywoods glitterati have always looked down upon.
Not that Ms. Huffington hasnt continued to be a wealthy materialistic social-climbing snob. Its just that -- like her fellow wealthy liberal arrivistes in Hollywood -- she has discovered a lifestyle that allows her to mask her elitism materialism & selfish ambition in a superficial but ostentatious public sensibility of social responsibility & caring.
For example in terms of her wealth conspicuous spending & employment of various domestic servants Arianna Huffington might still resemble the selfish rich capitalists loathed by Karl Marx & company.
But unlike yesterdays stereotypical bourgeois capitalist exploiters Arianna Huffington now cares".
She espouses a progressive politics of equality empowerment & liberation for the many victims of American corporate thievery exploitation & empire.
And so she is now dedicated to saving the worlds exploited masses from the well um Ariannas of the world.
Similarly Arianna might now conspicuously spend thirty thousand dollars on a useless decorative object dart to display in her 800-square-foot living room. But these days she makes sure shes spending such an obscene sum on a useless decorative object dart from a Third World country.
After all how can it be decadent to spend fifteen thousand dollars on a bit of interior decorating when the money is being spent on Third World culture -- the ultimate expression of cultural authenticity & anti-consumerism (even if the Rodeo Drive art dealer keeps about 85 of the $15000-dollar expenditure as his or her cut leaving the Third World artist in still desperate economic straits)?
In essence this lifestyle flim-flam is a way for wealthy arrivistes like Arianna to fool themselves into thinking theyre really not the greedy self-indulgent wealthy elitists which they really are.
Its how this emergent liberal lifestyle of the rich and hypocritical" fulfills the contradictory needs of its enthusiasts -- to live like a wealthy person but to cultivate the outward sensibility of a selfless monk.
THE HYPOCRITIC OATH:
It is a lifestyle medicine designed to heal the affluent soul -- allowing the rich & self-indulgent to take a hypothetical HYPOCRITIC OATH" and ostensibly cure both the ills of the world and their guilty consciences -- all the while behaving just like the wealthy class always has.
And recent magazine puff pieces" indicate that Arianna has indeed taken the liberal Hypocritic Oath."
And thats because her new political ideology hasnt stopped St. Arianna from living in an 8000 square-foot home in Brentwood flying around America in private jets and indulgently living what used to be called the good life".
But lets stop picking on Arianna Huffington fun as it is. Lets turn to a completely different example of hypocritical liberal excess & handwringing.
URBAN RENEWAL FOR THE PRIVILEGED:
For example lets look at the pleasant enlightened liberal enclave of San Francisco.
Progressive San Francisco liberals -- like liberals in Manhattan & Brookline -- spend a lot of time rhyming off talking points regarding the need for affordable housing".
Yet although these same liberals have dominated San Franciscos municipal politics for years San Francisco -- just like Manhattan and Brookline -- has become an urban shrine to the joys (for the affluent) of unaffordable housing.
Affluent and self-righteous San Franciscan liberals may shout their compassion for and solidarity with disadvantaged minorities & low-income earners.
But its the disadvantaged urban classes who have been squeezed out of the compassionate city by the bay" … by soaring rents & property values created by San Franciscos anointed class (read affluent liberal leftists).
Propertied San Franciscans have much invested in keeping property values rising.
And onerous environmental-friendly" zoning & building restrictions have only accelerated this trend and the accompanying scarcity of affordable housing.
Consequently according to various census reports the black population of San Francisco has declined precipitously in the last decade.
And despite San Franciscos elites love for the poor it is a city that has increasingly become an urban enclave for the wealthy & privileged (often boasting the highest average income of any city in America).
Enlightened San Franciscans may vocally identify with and advocate for the poor & disadvantaged.
But that doesnt mean these progressives have to actually live with such people.
Better that the servant class" commute from the suburbs every day for two hours -- to work at low-income jobs servicing the needs of affluent liberals -- rather than reside among the anointed and bring down property values.
The truth is that blinded by their smug pomposity and self-righteousness the urban elites of Manhattan Brookline San Francisco (and other left-liberal American enclaves) have increasingly chosen to ignore the social & economic underpinnings of their privileged existence.
After all they enjoy their affluence & freedoms thanks to the free-enterprise American political & economic system which they chronically criticize.
And they remain safe in their upscale mansions & condos thanks to the millions of less sophisticated and supposed reactionary working-class rednecks & philistines who defend their country & neighborhoods as members of Americas armed forces as policemen/ policewomen and as firefighters even combating disasters such as the 9/11 terror attacks with loss of their lives.
Most important the privileged practitioners of todays hypocritical liberal lifestyles live so comfortably thanks to the working class stiffs whom they despise for cluelessly voting for such alleged political villains as George W. Bush & Governor Scott Walker.
Yet these same working-class ignoramuses are the ones who mow the lawns of the privileged progressives pave their roads pick up their garbage unplug their sinks and transport & deliver so many of their expensive lifestyle toys.
However class-based snobbishness and condescension is what this kind of acquisitive liberalism is really all about.
And as indicated previously its through this lifestyle --which mixes a sophisticated bohemian" consumerism with progressive politics-- that this snobby elitist bent can find expression.
THE PROGESSIVE POLITICS OF SELF INTEREST:
This hip" new sensibility ultimately expresses & celebrates a paradoxical lifestyle of (1) conspicuous caring and (2) consuming self interest.
And what better an example than never-ending environmentalist dustup in the exclusive Nantucket Sound region the former yachting home base of liberal-left icon Walter Cronkite (the famous CBS news broadcaster).
Walter Cronkite was just one of the many rich & hypocritical Cape Codders who signed on to the Hypocritic Oath -- shilling for environmental causes when the cameras are on but taking a completely different tack when their comfy & exclusive lifestyles are being threatened.
For years Mr. Cronkite and his rich yachting friends were up in arms regarding a plan by Cape Wind Associates -- an environmentally-friendly clean-power company -- to use windpower to generate pollution-free electricity for 75 of the region.
The bad guys at Cape Winds Associates announced plans to place 130 windmills spaced one-third to one-half mile apart seven miles off the coast of Hyannis -- right in the way of the pristine views enjoyed by privileged yachting enthusiasts like Mr. Cronkite & and his friends.
Never mind that this environmentally-friendly power project was not going to use one drop of oil or natural gas from the pristine undisturbed tundra of Northern Alaska; nor burn an ounce of pollutant-generating coal; nor depend upon the alleged risky technology of nuclear power.
The hypocritical Marthas Vineyard liberal elite quickly dropped their fascination with environmentally-clean wind power and went about selfishly defending their yachting turf with the militant abandon of a riled-up Navy Seal veteran.
After all when it comes down to what counts most for the progressive Cape Cod yachting crowd happy sailing for the FEW rates higher than eliminating air-borne pollutants that damage the MANY.
In the past hypocritical Marthas Vineyard liberals like Walter Cronkite were happy to righteously vocalize their support for the concept of clean power. It just never occurred to them that some corporate interloper would have the chutzpah to plunk its environmentally-friendly windmills down in the exclusive waters in which Walter Cronkite & his privileged friends liked to sail.
In fact it wasnt till last month that legal actions against the project brought by the Cape Cod yachting cabal were finally settled completely in favor of Cape Wind Associates.
In a set of major legal victories for Cape Wind Associates U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton issued rulings against project opponents in their four lawsuits challenging Cape Winds permitting approval by the U.S. Department of Interior.
In America justice is allegedly swift for the just.
But it took 10 long years for the Cape Wind wind-power initiative to finally get approval from the Department of Interior for its clean-energy power project (the decision upheld by Judge Walton).
THE MORAL OF THIS LONG STORY:
Sadly this is the essence of todays lifestyles of the rich & hypocritical:
This emergent new privileged liberal sensibility has one primary function -- to mask the selfish elitism of its affluent proponents.
And as soon as one pokes beneath the surface caring & righteousness -- of this socially-responsible subculture -- one finds the very same self-indulgent & self-serving me-first" consumerism which these righteous advocates of progressive taste are constantly criticizing & sneering at.