"The problem with that is, like much Eastern spiritual thought, it doesn't scale. Sure, we could all be Zen practitioners, but we'd have no fast computers, cool phones, or footprints on the Moon to show for it."

I think what Buddhism preaches is more along the lines of functional minimalism rather that forgoing material production altogether. The idea is to develop a clear mind that can better distinguish between the means and the ends in everyday decision-making.