Steven Murphy | Earthism | CHOICE GB
Earthism – A New Path Forward
The ideology of Earthism is defined as:
“A social & economic system; in which consumption is based on the ability of the individual to compete; and founded on the principle that humans have no rights or entitlement; but do have the freedom of choice; and the freedom to be equal”. Steven Murphy, October 2021.
It’s goal:
“To restore the Earth’s natural balance, whilst working to create an environment where human ambition, endeavour & innovation are rewarded”. Steven Murphy, October 2021.
Over the centuries, human societies have devised and implemented numerous socio-economic systems—most notably, Socialism, Capitalism, and Communism. Most cultures have ended up with a blend of each of these models, the reason is simple, no single model has been able to deliver the needs of the population whilst balancing the economic costs. As democracies evolved, politicians across the spectrum began competing for votes by promising greater rewards and improvements to people’s lives. Many of these benefits require little more than the act of voting—residents simply need to show up and cast their ballot.
While enhanced human rights and improved living standards reflect the bargains struck by our political leaders, these benefits come with growing financial obligations. Budget deficits and incessant borrowing signal that, despite voter rewards, the current trajectory is fiscally unsustainable. The cost of maintaining these entitlements has escalated, as higher taxes and increased government borrowing lead to ballooning budget deficits. Any attempt to renege on promises made, are met with anger and frustration from the populace.
This stand-off is exasperated by politicians and their parties, who repeatedly demonstrate a lack of genuine ambition or visionary thinking. They offer no innovative alternatives to our current socio-economic models, instead relying on the same old policies with only minor tweaks. This approach fails to address the complex needs of society, and leaves us with a system that remains essentially unchanged.
To compound the problem, we operate within a system where political parties and their representatives are elected on the basis of campaign promises — yet once in office, they can renege on those commitments without consequence. Worse still, individuals elected under one banner can defect to a rival party they actively opposed during the campaign, undermining the integrity of the electoral process.
Politicians themselves treat evasiveness as a virtue — the ability to dodge hard questions or obscure uncomfortable truths is seen as a strategic skill. At best, this is deceitful; at worst, it’s corrupt. Yet we’re told this is democracy in action — a system unshaken, even as public trust erodes. This erosion of accountability doesn’t just damage trust—it enables the policies that accelerate ecological collapse.
Even more troubling is the predictable cycle of politics. Election after election, the process repeats itself: promises are made, costs rise, and little substantive progress is achieved. Despite the changes in leadership, the outcomes remain the same, suggesting that the electoral process itself has become a self-perpetuating mechanism, where lessons from the past are rarely learned.
Beyond the political arena, the environmental consequences of these practices are stark. Policies such as artificial wealth creation through money printing, enhanced welfare programs, low interest rates, and increased access to credit and debt are driving consumption and waste production to unsustainable levels. As a result, individuals and the societies they form are consuming and generating waste far in excess of their natural capacities.
Without the current level of political support for these fiscal policies, both consumption and waste would likely be significantly reduced.
So where do we go from here? Albert Einstein famously remarked, “Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different outcome is insanity.” The pressing question, then, is: how far down that path have we already travelled? Are we simply intellectually immature, unaware of the broader consequences of our choices? Or do we understand them fully—and simply not care? Worse still, have we reached a point of collective irrationality, where reversing course feels not just improbable, but impossible?
The trajectory humanity is following, raises urgent questions about the long-term sustainability of our prevailing socio-economic structures. While it is undeniable that these frameworks have propelled extraordinary wealth creation and developmental progress, they have also generated complex, often unintended consequences that now threaten to unbalance the ecological and social equilibrium, upon which our future depends.
At the heart of the problem lies persistent overconsumption, driven by an insatiable hunger for material advancement. This behaviour is not incidental—it is structurally incentivized by systems that prioritize immediate returns over long-term resilience. Such a model cannot continue indefinitely. Without a fundamental recalibration, the costs—ecological, psychological, and economic—may be catastrophic.
This cycle is further compounded by the entangled web of incentives inherent in our current political systems. Too often, immediate electoral victories are prized above fastidious pursuit of transformative solutions. This short-sighted approach not only fuels soaring public debt and accelerates environmental degradation, it also prioritizes the needs of humans over the broader tapestry of life on Earth.
Such a situation demands that humanity take a step back, and reassess the foundational principles upon which our societal constructs have been built. Clearly, the current solutions are faltering. To forge a future of economic and societal stability—one that nurtures the Earth rather than dismantling it—we must evolve our thinking and act decisively. A mental shift is essential if we are ever to consign historical mistakes to the past, and transition toward sustainable living, rather than relentlessly pursuing growth and material consumption.
Existing societal models have become well-worn paths: predictable, tired, and recycled with little variation. Politicians tethered to these ideologies repeatedly offer the same tired refrain, albeit on a different platform. To truly address our most pressing issues, we need to adopt a different social framework—one in which individuals and society unite in safeguarding the planet for future generations.
While no single system has yet provided a definitive solution to civilization’s challenges, exploring alternative ideologies like Earthism opens the door to new possibilities. Earthism emphasizes the alignment of human consumption with our natural capacities while restoring ecological harmony, offering a provocative counterpoint to traditional models such as Socialism and Capitalism. This shift requires a radical departure from established norms—a courage to rethink and reimagine societal constructs, without being shackled by tradition or paralyzed by fear of the unknown.
As we stand at a crossroads, Earthism offers not merely a critique but a bold vision for a sustainable future. It responds to the failures of traditional socio-economic systems and challenges the assumptions that underpin them. It asks us to rethink everything, without fear or tradition holding us back. This provocative alternative aligns human behaviour with ecological realities, and places responsibility for consumption and waste squarely on each individual.
Built on five core pillars—competition, productivity, efficiency, simplification, and accountability—Earthism offers a blueprint for aligning human ambition with the planet’s limits.
- Competition – Rewarding earned contribution
- Productivity – Valuing output over entitlement
- Efficiency – Minimizing waste and duplication
- Simplification – Reducing systemic complexity
- Accountability – Linking consumption to consequence
It’s not just a critique. It’s a vision. Earthism responds to the failures of old systems and challenges the assumptions behind them. It puts the Earth first, and holds each of us accountable for what we consume and what we waste.
The choice is ours: continue down a path of exhaustion and collapse, or step into a new framework built on consequence, clarity, and care. Earthism is not just an idea — it’s an invitation to rebuild, to restore, and to rise.
The future begins when we decide to live differently.
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