--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Faced with a choice between the survival…" description: "\"Faced with a choice between the survival of the planet and a new set of matching tableware, most people would choose the tableware.\" — George Monbiot" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c51/george-monbiot-2762_choices_faced-with-a-choice-between-the-survival_2420636.png" --- # Faced with a choice between the survival of the planet and… ![“Faced with a choice between the survival of the planet and a new set of matching tableware, most people would choose the tableware.” quote by George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c51/george-monbiot-2762_choices_faced-with-a-choice-between-the-survival_2420636.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c51/george-monbiot-2762_choices_faced-with-a-choice-between-the-survival_2420636.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c51/george-monbiot-2762_choices_faced-with-a-choice-between-the-survival_2420636.png) > “Faced with a choice between the survival of the planet and a new set of matching tableware, most people would choose the tableware.” [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People often prioritize trivial comforts over critical environmental issues, revealing misplaced values. **In simple terms:** We value small comforts more than planetary health. Key Takeaway Recognize and act on true priorities. Themes environment values consumerism priorities Mood concerned reflective Type ethical political When to use this quote - shopping decisions - policy voting - personal consumption - corporate sourcing Key Concepts ethical decision‑making cognitive bias Questions to Reflect On - What would you sacrifice for planetary health? - How do marketing tactics skew your priorities? A Different Perspective Convenient choices can mask long‑term damage. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Survival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/survival/) ## Related quotes > [“I'd unboxed so much china from funeral sales and broken-up households that there was something almost unspeakably sad about the pristine, gleaming displays, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/i-d-unboxed-so-much-china-from-funeral-sales-and-broken-up-households/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“The selection of appropriate service suppliesΔ (trays, dinnerware, tableware, hollowware, glassware, and disposables) is important for presenting meals attractively.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruby-parker-puckett/the-selection-of-appropriate-service-supplies-trays-dinnerware/) [Ruby Parker Puckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruby-parker-puckett/) > [By our uncritical pursuit of relevance we have actually courted irrelevance; by our breathless chase after relevance without a matching committment to faithfulness, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/by-our-uncritical-pursuit-of-relevance-we-have-actually-courted/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) > [My heart lifted, and a matching grin curved my lips. He wanted to see me again. Maybe he really did like me after all.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-estep/my-heart-lifted-and-a-matching-grin-curved-my-lips-he-wanted-to-see/) [Jennifer Estep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-estep/) > [Matching shoes and bags immediately age you by 10 years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ines-de-la-fressange/matching-shoes-and-bags-immediately-age-you-by-10-years/) [Ines de La Fressange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ines-de-la-fressange/) > [Radio is less important than it used to be. Kids are not just hip-hop kids, just punk kids, just pop kids, just whatever kids.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-munroe/radio-is-less-important-than-it-used-to-be-kids-are-not-just-hip-hop/) [Colin Munroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-munroe/) > [Food conditions the nature of the mind. Mind guides the thinking. Thinking results in action. Actions lead to commensurate or matching results and effects.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sathya-sai-baba/food-conditions-the-nature-of-the-mind-mind-guides-the-thinking/) [Sathya Sai Baba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sathya-sai-baba/) > [I am lucky to have been gifted with a good ear and the ability to mimic. If I can hear it... I can replicate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-atkin-downes/i-am-lucky-to-have-been-gifted-with-a-good-ear-and-the-ability-to/) Robin Atkin Downes > [If you're interested in matching your mind with the most intelligent kind of beast I have ever encountered, get yourself a Scotty dog. He'll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/if-you-re-interested-in-matching-your-mind-with-the-most-intelligent/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [My mother did like to make clothes, and in I think the worst picture I've ever seen of myself - I must have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/my-mother-did-like-to-make-clothes-and-in-i-think-the-worst-picture-i/) [Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/) > [Offer a vibration that matches your desire rather than offering a vibration that keeps matching what-is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-hicks/offer-a-vibration-that-matches-your-desire-rather-than-offering-a/) [Esther Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-hicks/) > [If, I can someday see M. Claude Monet's garden, I feel sure that I shall see something that is not so much a garden…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/if-i-can-someday-see-m-claude-monet-s-garden-i-feel-sure-that-i-shall/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [ Britney and I wore matching denim outfits \[to the 2001 American Music Awards\]. Yeah, another bad choice. I’d probably pay good money to get… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-timberlake/britney-and-i-wore-matching-denim-outfits-to-the-2001-american-music/) [Justin Timberlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-timberlake/) > [You had to pick up a landline to make sure your best friend wore a matching outfit to school. I do remember people talking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-groff/you-had-to-pick-up-a-landline-to-make-sure-your-best-friend-wore-a/) [Lauren Groff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-groff/) > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) ## More by George Monbiot > [If we want to prevent both climate and ecological catastrophes, the key task is to minimise the amount of land we use to feed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/if-we-want-to-prevent-both-climate-and-ecological-catastrophes-the/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [“The wealth creators of neoliberal mythology are some of the most effective wealth destroyers the world has ever seen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/the-wealth-creators-of-neoliberal-mythology-are-some-of-the-most/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [The schedules are crammed with shows urging us to travel further, drive faster, build bigger, buy more, yet none of them are deemed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/the-schedules-are-crammed-with-shows-urging-us-to-travel-further/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [The ideology of consumption is so prevalent that it has become invisible: it is the plastic soup in which we swim.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/the-ideology-of-consumption-is-so-prevalent-that-it-has-become/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [I might find myself standing, transfixed, by the roadside, watching a sparrowhawk hunting among the bushes, astonished that other people could ignore it. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/i-might-find-myself-standing-transfixed-by-the-roadside-watching-a/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [Economic growth is the aggregate effect of the quest to accumulate capital and extract profit. Capitalism collapses without growth, yet perpetual growth on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/economic-growth-is-the-aggregate-effect-of-the-quest-to-accumulate/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [Even when political reporting is not reduced to personality, political photography is. 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Despite the great evil which runs it, it is more companionable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/people-believe-loose-change-because-it-proposes-a-closed-world/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [David Cameron's government criminalised squatting in empty homes. This too was previously a civil matter. Thousands of homeless people found themselves on the wrong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/david-cameron-s-government-criminalised-squatting-in-empty-homes-this/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [If I could turn back the clock, magically deleting my prostate cancer, the surgery I needed and its complications, would I do so? It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/if-i-could-turn-back-the-clock-magically-deleting-my-prostate-cancer/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [The grim truth is that the rich are able to live as they do only because others are poor: there is neither the physical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/the-grim-truth-is-that-the-rich-are-able-to-live-as-they-do-only/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [Technological change is essential, but to a natural historian it often feels cold and distancing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/technological-change-is-essential-but-to-a-natural-historian-it-often/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [Yes, the car is still useful - for a few people it's essential. It would make a good servant. But it has become our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/yes-the-car-is-still-useful-for-a-few-people-it-s-essential-it-would/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) [Explore all 151 George Monbiot quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) ## More Choices quotes > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [“Don’t allow anyone to pressure you into taking a job in a field that doesn’t feel right in your gut. You are the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-james/don-t-allow-anyone-to-pressure-you-into-taking-a-job-in-a-field-that/) Alison James > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) Pancho Barnes > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Movies have power. Power to impact society and the choices we make. I want to entertain, but I also want to say something to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-prince-bythewood/movies-have-power-power-to-impact-society-and-the-choices-we-make-i/) [Gina Prince-Bythewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-prince-bythewood/) > [If you have a different mindset, you will have a different outcome: if you make different choices from your peers, your life will then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ma/if-you-have-a-different-mindset-you-will-have-a-different-outcome-if/) [Jack Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ma/) > [Personally, I prefer contemporary films, but the market calls for more period choices, especially since China opened up a cinema market in Hong Kong.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donnie-yen/personally-i-prefer-contemporary-films-but-the-market-calls-for-more/) [Donnie Yen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donnie-yen/) > [Clarissa," he said, "here with the vampire, I see. When things have settled a bit, we really must discuss you choice in pets..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/clarissa-he-said-here-with-the-vampire-i-see-when-things-have-settled/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Change is inevitable but personal growth is a choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/change-is-inevitable-but-personal-growth-is-a-choice/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [If you choose to draw from the inner well of free will, then you can make choices that are outside your current karmic patterns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/if-you-choose-to-draw-from-the-inner-well-of-free-will-then-you-can/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Act always so as to increase the number of choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heinz-von-foerster/act-always-so-as-to-increase-the-number-of-choices/) [Heinz von Foerster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heinz-von-foerster/) > [Give me a platter of choice finnan haddie, freshly cooked in its bath of water and milk, add melted butter, a slice or two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-claiborne/give-me-a-platter-of-choice-finnan-haddie-freshly-cooked-in-its-bath/) [Craig Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-claiborne/) > [I don't know that any woman could ever not think about that at some point - even making the choice not to do it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-watts/i-don-t-know-that-any-woman-could-ever-not-think-about-that-at-some/) [Naomi Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-watts/) > [In this choice of inheritance we have given to our frame of polity the image of a relation in blood; binding up the constitution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/in-this-choice-of-inheritance-we-have-given-to-our-frame-of-polity/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) [Browse all 11,466 Choices quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Faced with a choice between the survival of the planet and a new set of matching tableware, most people would choose the tableware.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George Monbiot" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/faced-with-a-choice-between-the-survival-of-the-planet-and-a-new-set/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Choices" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/faced-with-a-choice-between-the-survival-of-the-planet-and-a-new-set/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c51/george-monbiot-2762_choices_faced-with-a-choice-between-the-survival_2420636.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c51/george-monbiot-2762_choices_faced-with-a-choice-between-the-survival_2420636.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c51/george-monbiot-2762_choices_faced-with-a-choice-between-the-survival_2420636.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Faced with a choice between the survival of the planet and a new set of matching tableware, most people…” — George Monbiot", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "George Monbiot", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Faced with a choice between the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/faced-with-a-choice-between-the-survival-of-the-planet-and-a-new-set/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/faced-with-a-choice-between-the-survival-of-the-planet-and-a-new-set/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```