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I don't mean to sound mean but it seems to me as a European that Americans value comfort and convenience over being prudent and thrifty. I hear stories from peo

I don't mean to sound mean but it seems to me as a European that Americans value comfort and convenience over being prudent and thrifty. I hear stories from people on massive salaries yet struggling to make ends meet due to a lifestyle of extravagant food choices, car purchases and other material junk which is not necessary. The saving grace of all of this is the recent trend on the topic of FIRE- people who realise they don't need all that junk and prefer financial freedom over a life of servitude.

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RickJWagner 7y ago
As an American, I'd say your observations are astute. Americans that live a bit below their means and invest can easily retire in comfort. (Even on a modest salary.) Those that spend every penny they make (and more) are doomed to a later life of financial worry.
notacoward 7y ago
As an American, I'd say your statements have a grain of truth to them but you're probably not looking at the right demographic. The people with "massive salaries" barely make a dent in those statistics. Those numbers come from people in the middle and working class. I have a lot of sympathy for them, having been there myself a long time ago. It might not be their fault that their means are more limited, and being poor shouldn't have to mean a lifetime of unceasing self-denial. I don't begrudge anyone their occasional moment of (relative) luxury. On the other hand, going into massive persistent credit-card debt for the sake of having the latest phone or TV is just crazy and it's a common syndrome. There's something very sick about a society that pushes that lifestyle on people who never got a good enough education to realize that there are better alternatives. It's predatory. So your criticism (if it was even that) is justified, but IMO misses the real point of how we came to be that way.
- cylinder 7y ago
  Nah it's definitely a thing. Generalisations are borne out of truth. Just look at all the waste ... Living far from work, driving alone in an Escalade or huge pickup 30 miles to work, cooling entire houses to 18C etc. It's in your face everywhere you look. Even the toilets are wasteful!
  - notacoward 7y ago
    I'm not saying those things don't happen. I'm just saying they're the tip of the iceberg. The part below the waterline - the part that does the real damage - is the vastly greater numbers of middle-class and poor people, and the reasons why they behave the way they do. The glittery ice on top barely matters. The real problems are the advertising and finance industries which were way oversized since long before tech came along, an educational system that leaves most people vulnerable to their manipulation, and politicians who make the whole situation worse with their misguided (or venal) policy making. Maybe callous condescension makes some people feel better about themselves, but it's really not very helpful.
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RickJWagner 7y ago

As an American, I'd say your observations are astute. Americans that live a bit below their means and invest can easily retire in comfort. (Even on a modest salary.) Those that spend every penny they make (and more) are doomed to a later life of financial worry.

notacoward 7y ago

As an American, I'd say your statements have a grain of truth to them but you're probably not looking at the right demographic. The people with "massive salaries" barely make a dent in those statistics. Those numbers come from people in the middle and working class. I have a lot of sympathy for them, having been there myself a long time ago. It might not be their fault that their means are more limited, and being poor shouldn't have to mean a lifetime of unceasing self-denial. I don't begrudge anyone their occasional moment of (relative) luxury. On the other hand, going into massive persistent credit-card debt for the sake of having the latest phone or TV is just crazy and it's a common syndrome. There's something very sick about a society that pushes that lifestyle on people who never got a good enough education to realize that there are better alternatives. It's predatory. So your criticism (if it was even that) is justified, but IMO misses the real point of how we came to be that way.

cylinder 7y ago
Nah it's definitely a thing. Generalisations are borne out of truth. Just look at all the waste ... Living far from work, driving alone in an Escalade or huge pickup 30 miles to work, cooling entire houses to 18C etc. It's in your face everywhere you look. Even the toilets are wasteful!
- notacoward 7y ago
  I'm not saying those things don't happen. I'm just saying they're the tip of the iceberg. The part below the waterline - the part that does the real damage - is the vastly greater numbers of middle-class and poor people, and the reasons why they behave the way they do. The glittery ice on top barely matters. The real problems are the advertising and finance industries which were way oversized since long before tech came along, an educational system that leaves most people vulnerable to their manipulation, and politicians who make the whole situation worse with their misguided (or venal) policy making. Maybe callous condescension makes some people feel better about themselves, but it's really not very helpful.

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