The Triumph of triviality

A wonderful article from the New Internationalist--a publication in its brilliance which predicted the financial mess long ago and here's what it says about the trivialization of our materialistic world:
"Maslow gone wrong: human potential took a back seat to economic potential while self- actualization gave way to self- absorption;a society that operates on the principle that triviality is more profitable than substance and which dedicates itself to unceasing material over-kill. Consumer culture has become a fine-tuned instrument for keeping people incomplete, shallow and de-humanised. Fashion statements become a form of literacy; brand names father pride and celebrity drivel becomes compelling.
Can a highly trivialised culture, marooned between fact and fiction, dizzy with distraction and denial, elevate its values and priorities to respond effectively to the multiple planetary emergencies looming?"