I have gradually evolved into a minimalist after years of frequent moving and having realized that many of the things I used to own came with a psychological "w

I have gradually evolved into a minimalist after years of frequent moving and having realized that many of the things I used to own came with a psychological "weight" that's only fully apparent in the thing's absence. Aside from the practical aspect of anchoring me to a single physical location, having unnecessary things around distracts me and tends to elevate my anxiety. Anyway, this piece strikes me as a critique looking for a cultural phenomenon. Of course most First World minimalists, including myself, realize there is a vast infrastructure supporting the few things we have in our possession. To say otherwise is just a straw man. This isn't the privilege of being a minimalist; it's the privilege of living in a rich and well-connected society. Despite the author elaborating the history of minimalist aesthetics in modern Western culture (which is only superficially related to minimalism as a lifestyle), it has a far richer history than merely "pop philosophy". Minimalism is an important component of philosophies as culturally distant as Cynicism and Buddhism, but none of these even get a nod. To the author's credit, I'm sure it's much harder to write an article about real people than Silicon Valley caricatures upending their lives for a fashion statement or a productivity panacea.