3 ms·

I don't really assume that someone's rich because they have a nice watch, either... or that they're not rich because they're not wearing a watch.

• jrockway 16y ago
  Right, because in our generation, we don't really "get" watches. I mean, I know that there are $20,000 watches in the Universe, but I wouldn't know one if I saw one. So I don't consider it a status symbol and wouldn't pick it up if someone was using an expensive watch as a status symbol. To that generation that "gets it", though, then perhaps watches are status symbols. A status symbol that people have these days is their house. Most people pay way more than they can afford, mostly to make themselves feel like they "fit in" with a "more elite" crowd. (I noticed this because I rent what someone with my income can afford, but the people I live with make a lot less money than me. They are using their housing as a status symbol; I am using it as a place to sleep and shower.)
  • brc 16y ago
    Trust me, if you saw a really expensive watch, you'd know it was an expensive watch. You don't have to know the list price of a sports car to tell it is expensive. It's obvious just from looking at it.
    • atgm 16y ago
      Maybe if you know about sports cars. I've seen, for example, RX-8s and thought "Wow, what a nice-looking sports car, I bet it's expensive." They're pretty cheap.
      • brc 16y ago
        Put a RX-8 next to a Pagani or even a Lotus and the difference will be quite clear.
        • stcredzero 16y ago
          Sports cars are an interesting object lesson in signaling. Often their track performance is way out of line with their price and/or appearance. For many, an old Mazda MX-5 is a superior track-day car to many newer vehicles costing several times as much. The Ariel Atom is especially instructive, as it achieves higher performance by dispensing with the sheet metal -- which is the primary medium for an automobile's signaling.