I don't have time at the moment to read through 44 pages of dense economics, but can you explain why some people think "consumption" is the right choice? It so

I don't have time at the moment to read through 44 pages of dense economics, but can you explain why some people think "consumption" is the right choice? It sounds to me like "consumption" is approximately the same as "spending", which goes up whenever prices go up. Conflating consumption with wealth seems like a big mistake, if we are to truly evaluate the impact that materialism has on our long-term well being.