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In this article I maintain that, as a society, we are lacking a basic commitment to the social equivalent of Winnicott's “environmental provisions.” Though we live in a democracy with certain inalienable rights, we have not instituted a system of governing authority to protect those rights. Instead, the needs of the market have taken precedence, overriding the needs of the populace. I believe that psychoanalysis can be used to inform political and social policies by underscoring the importance of the environment (familial and societal) and of the responsible agents (parents and governmental institutions) to provide an environment that fosters growth and creativity. I suggest that one internal, psychic response to the lack of a system of governance that guarantees the provision of basic environmental needs is the proliferation of manic defenses. Compulsive consumption, a behavior our market heavily relies upon, rates as one of the many socially sactioned manic attempts to ward off the pain and anxiety associated with both the absence of a containing governing authority and the loss of basic provisions including health care; schools; safe water, air, and food; energy; and other needed resources.
A composite clinical picture will be presented to illustrate the manifestation of manic defenses. These defenses will also be discussed in relation to the changing role of work in this society.