Is more growth really the answer?

I know the U.S. economy has gone through some ups and downs, but I don't remember it ever being as bad as it is right now. When a recession hits, conventional thought tells us that righting the ship involves getting our economy back to a "growth phase".

Maybe I'm being a little naive here, but I tend to question how much more growth is really possible in both our country and certain parts of the world (remote, third-world areas excluded).

Breaking it down in real-life, practical terms, I'll provide a small glimpse into some of the things I see when roaming around the concrete slab we like to call Houston:

1. Strip mall
2. Megafreeway
3. Infinite number of street lights
4. Megamall
5. Gigantic houses
6. Strip mall next to megamall
7. Countless number of bars and restaurants
8. Endless array of cars and gas stations pumping them up
9. Coffee shop dwellers and their laptops
10. List goes on and on....

Creating and sustaining these different entities already takes up a lot of energy and manpower. At some point, it was only natural to think we'd reach a saturation point where there would be less need/consumption of them.

For starters, we'll look at megamalls. Current news and consumer spending reports show that malls are empty right now. Quite simply, consumers aren't buying anything. Hasn't this retail slowdown been long overdue? How long could our nation's kids continue buying designer-name clothing in the name of "back-to-school" shopping? Aren't there already enough clothes in circulation that our closets have reached their tipping points?

Ok, ok, obviously I'm a big mall hater, but let's move the argument against malls and "growth" even further. Who does a mall really serve? Land developer - check. Fast food owners in food court - check. Donald Trump (selling his line of clothes inside department stores) - check. Owner of Visible Changes - check.

Why is it so important for us to re-grow our retail sector so that the aforementioned parties make more money and build more megamalls on our precious land?

Ok, ok, now you're thinking I'm completely oblivious to all of the people losing jobs when a mall or corporation shuts down. Believe me, I care about people losing their jobs, but I also wonder if we've been living one way for so long that we have trouble seeing the long-term benefits of letting these companies fail and replacing them with "alternative" models that benefit more people (including those losing their jobs).

Just imagine that mall being one big and juicy organic farm that feeds a whole community of people fresh fruits and vegetables, both making us healthier and eliminating the waste of fuel that occurs everytime foods are shipped cross-country or store-to-store. With self-sustaining communities, maybe our whole idea of "jobs" and "employment" gets thrown out the window. Instead, we stop caring about designer clothes, start eating healthier, and build closer-knit communities in the process.

Maybe I'm a dreamer...maybe I'm a socialist...maybe I'm just way over my head in trying to figure out this economy. In the end, I'm just not convinced that "growth", in the conventional sense, is the answer to our country's current economic dilemma. A shift to conservative, self-sustaining communities that better utilize and distribute resources might be a better long-term solution for all of us.

For now, that's all I got. Wrapping one's head around the U.S. economy is no easy task. I just know I prefer organic tomatoes over kung pao chicken. Well, sometimes.