B-Day Related Ramblings
A couple of minutes ago I mentioned having a good time with my wife on her birthday. However, going to The Cheesecake Factory (and Pottery Barn) ended up bothering me; something about seeing people spend over $25 each for a meal and contemplating home accessories in the hundreds or thousands on a whim really got to me.
Admittedly, part of it was being frustrated with our high debt and low income; it often feels like we'll never be able to afford a house, let alone over-priced junk to fill it with. But a bigger part of it is how we can even have places sell stuff like this when many people out there don't have homes or a single dollar for a meal; that there's this whole system in place to encourage us to live beyond our means by presenting people with enough disposable income to waste on a $1000 chair as normal (and no, it wasn't even a high-tech chair or anything, just a fabric-covered wingback).
Similarly, I recently saw an ad for a sitcom about a rich teen who has to move in with his much poorer relatives; we are made to know that they are poor because a big deal is made out of the fact that they can't afford cable or enough hot water for a full shower. While watching the ad, I started paying attention to the house and clothes and it was unbelievable! We're told that this family can't afford non-basic TV (something more than 3/4 of all Americans have) or possibly even hot water, yet they have a multi-level home, several children, fully and nicely furnished rooms, and expensive clothes!
This reinforces the idea that something must be wrong with us if we can't even keep up with a "poor" family. And, of course, the solution to this self-doubt we are now made to feel is to buy what the related ads are selling! Yea Capitalism!
Admittedly, part of it was being frustrated with our high debt and low income; it often feels like we'll never be able to afford a house, let alone over-priced junk to fill it with. But a bigger part of it is how we can even have places sell stuff like this when many people out there don't have homes or a single dollar for a meal; that there's this whole system in place to encourage us to live beyond our means by presenting people with enough disposable income to waste on a $1000 chair as normal (and no, it wasn't even a high-tech chair or anything, just a fabric-covered wingback).
Similarly, I recently saw an ad for a sitcom about a rich teen who has to move in with his much poorer relatives; we are made to know that they are poor because a big deal is made out of the fact that they can't afford cable or enough hot water for a full shower. While watching the ad, I started paying attention to the house and clothes and it was unbelievable! We're told that this family can't afford non-basic TV (something more than 3/4 of all Americans have) or possibly even hot water, yet they have a multi-level home, several children, fully and nicely furnished rooms, and expensive clothes!
This reinforces the idea that something must be wrong with us if we can't even keep up with a "poor" family. And, of course, the solution to this self-doubt we are now made to feel is to buy what the related ads are selling! Yea Capitalism!