4 ms·
The problem is that it doesn't convey the subtlety that occurs when your income starts to drastically outstretch your expenses. I can't speak for anyone else, b
by Damogran6 6y ago
The problem is that it doesn't convey the subtlety that occurs when your income starts to drastically outstretch your expenses. I can't speak for anyone else, but _my_ brain can't wrap itself around the additional income...You have $1000 in income, and you make sure you keep your expenses to $900. So you have $100 extra...and you scrimp and save, and eventually you have $200 extra.
240 months later you don't feel any safer that you have $125000 in savings...meanwhile, you've upgraded your house 3 or 4 times, have upgraded the car 3 or 4 times, bought all the food and clothes and vacations...but you're still the same scared little rabbit you were when you had $200 extra.
People may or may not contribute to a greater cause with the extra money, but that's not the only factor into how people think about money.
Additionally, money does NOT follow value. That guy that IPO'd and his net worth went from $25,000 to $130M? It really wasn't from anything he did, it's lottery money. Is it fair? Meh, I dunno, I'm just pointing out the trope. But if you suddenly found yourself there, why WOULDN'T you buy the most expensive $item? It doesn't affect the number in your checkbook any.
We have the same brains our ancestors had...all it needed to do then was learn how to find the next meal.
- donmcronald 6y agoI don’t think I could waste money like that. Compare a $100k watch to hiring an electrician for a year. In SK / AB Canada there are a lot of electricians out of work due to downturns in resource sectors, but there’s a lot of work they could be doing. It’s just that the work that could be done would be for poor people and no one is going to pay for it. Owning the wealth gives you the ability to allocate labor and the current wealth owners aren’t doing a good job. Redistribute the wealth IMO.
- throw0101a 6y ago> Compare a $100k watch to hiring an electrician for a year. US$ 100K watches are generally built by hand by a craftsman (usually Swiss or German) and may take more than a year to build: * https://www.alange-soehne.com/en/timepieces/1815-tourbillon/730032f-pink-gold https://www.alange-soehne.com/en/timepieces/1815-tourbillon/... * https://www.chrono24.com/alangesoehne/lange-1-rose-gold-tourbillon-limited-edition--id18269852.htm https://www.chrono24.com/alangesoehne/lange-1-rose-gold-tour... What makes the work of the electricians, carpenters, plumbers, etc, any better or worse than that of a fine machinist? You're not wrong, it's just understand that you are making a value judgement, and not everyone has the same values as you. And here's a Canadian watch maker: * https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/canadian-comeback-kid-one-to-watch https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/canadian-comeback-kid-one-... * https://www.bradleytaylor.ca https://www.bradleytaylor.ca > It’s just that the work that could be done would be for poor people and no one is going to pay for it. Which is why we have taxes and social safety nets (which was added to by CERB).
- donmcronald 6y ago> What makes the work of the electricians, carpenters, plumbers, etc, any better or worse than that of a fine machinist? You’re right that it’s a value judgement. A tradesman might be able to fix problems that impact essentials (electricity, water, shelter) for 100 people in a year while a fine machinist makes a single watch for a rich person. I think it’s shameful to be spending resources on frivolous luxury goods when such a huge chunk of society lacks the essentials required for a reasonable standard of living.
- throw0101a 6y agoPeople are free to spend their own money however they wish. If you think you (or the government/society) can spend their money in a way that is "better" than they themselves can, take it from them (e.g., taxes).
- caseysoftware 6y ago> I think it’s shameful to be spending resources on frivolous luxury goods when such a huge chunk of society lacks the essentials required for a reasonable standard of living. In large swathes of the world, the computer you're typing on, the phone you have, and that ice cream you enjoyed the other night would be considered "frivolous luxury goods." Be careful what you wish for.
- zemvpferreira 6y agoI am personally kind-of-ok with the watch purchase you describe. What I'm not ok with is the extra ~100K tacked onto the watch price by the brand going exclusively towards status. My problem with conspicuous consumption isn't the relative utility being bought, it's the values that it signals to waste money for the luxury of wasting it. Making it desirable as a society to set money on fire instead of using it to better your situation is the real damage.
- Damogran6 6y agoYou build a widget for a buck...but you can SELL the widget for ten. Are you going to leave $9 on the table?
- Damogran6 6y agoIt's an increasing scale with no upper limit. Financially, I don't even register on the chart...but I'm already seeing things like "Do I buy the $600 laptop because it's all I can afford, or the $1299 one because I -Like- it and it won't affect my outcomes any." This, with more yachts.
- leetcrew 6y agoa laptop is kinda like a shoe though. my friends that buy the cheapest possible laptop always end up replacing it after a couple years. not for performance, but because it broke and repairing it isn't much cheaper than a new throwaway machine. they think they're saving money, but they're really not. a good business laptop will feel slow 5-8 years later, but there's a much better chance that it still works.