I want to talk about the economy．Not "the economy" we hear about endlessly in the news each day and in politicians' speeches．I want to talk about the real economy, the one we live in day by day．
Most people aren't particularly interested in "the economy"．"Share prices are flying high; interest rates are soaring; the Dow Jones Index closed sixty-three points down on 8472．35．" We hear this and subconsciously switch off．
Notice that "the economy" is not the same as the economy, "The economy" is what men in suits play with to make vast personal wealth．The economy is where the rest of us live on a daily basis, earning our living, paying our taxes, and purchasing the necessities of life．
We are supposed to be benefiting from all the advantages of a well-off society．So why do we feel tired and stressed? We have no time for anything other than work, which is ridiculous given the number of labor-saving devices in our lives．Our towns become more and more crowded．We poison our air and seas, and our food is full of chemicals．There's something wrong here．If times were truly good, then you may think we'd all feel optimistic about the future．Yet the majority of us are deeply worried．More than 90 percent of us think we are too concerned about ourselves and not concerned enough about future generations．
The term "economic expansion" suggests something desirable, but expansion simply means spending more money．More spending doesn't mean that life is getting better．We all know it often means the opposite - greed, crime, poverty, pollution．More spending merely feeds our whole economic system, which is based on production and consumption．Unless money keeps circulating, the economy breaks down．If we don't keep consuming, the whole system goes into stalemate（僵局）．
How do we break the cycle and make some changes? We need to become far more aware of the results of our actions．We buy clothes that are made in sweat shops by virtual slaves in poor parts of the world．We create mountains of waste．We demand cheap food, mindless of the fact that it totally lacks taste and is produced using chemicals that poison the land．
The consumption culture makes us unaware of the effect of our own behavior．Our main problem is not that we don't know what to do about it．It is gathering the desire to do it．
小题1:According to the author, which one belongs to the real economy?
A．The Dow Jones Index．
B．Increases in interest rates
C．Skyrocketing share prices
D．Shopping in a supermarket小题2:It can be concluded from Paragraph 4 that ．
A．people are benefiting from a well-off society
B．the future generation is a big concern for most people
C．people still feel much pressure despite labor-saving devices
D．the majority of people are optimistic about the future小题3:What is true about economic expansion?
A．It guarantees a better life for us．
B．It may lead to some social problems．
C．It will stop the circulation of money．
D．It has only brought desirable effects．小题4:The author writes the passage mainly to ．
A．call on us to change our behavior
B．suggest a solution for over-consumption
C．make a distinction between two economies
D．inform us of the effects of economic expansion
