Oddly enough, it was Marxism that helped to contribute massively to the society that we have, at least Marxism as developed in the Leninist model. In place of a cult of consumerism, communism created a cult of production for the sake of production, without any attempt to quantify demand or reasons for the production. This, coupled with dialectical materialism, helped to essentially ensure that there was no alternative to a materialistic (in all senses of the word) society other than backwards traditionalist societies like Afghanistan. The communist erosion of spiritual values went hand in hand with the capitalist erosion of spiritual values. The emphasis on things was there as well, but instead of personal possessions it was pride in how much grain the collective could send to Moscow or Beijing, how much steel a factory could produce, how many pairs of size 12 boots, how many locomotives...

What is needed today is a spiritual movement that emphasizes the individual's responsibility for spiritual growth and self-criticism coupled with a strong sense of a modern morality (essentially, don't do things to people they don't want done to them, respect their right to live differently and let each person handle the spiritual quest in his own way, be and do rather than have, and rise above petty displays of conspicuous consumption and wealth). Simple living, a clean environment, an absence of too much "stuff", and a focus on experiences.