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Yes. The piece from Resident Contrarian hit hard because it was about being trapped in poverty. Choosing to live with low consumption is laudable. I grew up in
by strken 4y ago
Yes. The piece from Resident Contrarian hit hard because it was about being trapped in poverty.
Choosing to live with low consumption is laudable. I grew up in a thrifty household, though nowhere near so thrifty as the author's, and using less was much better for all of us. However, spending very little money but having a safety net and the opportunity to leave is the opposite of being trapped.
It's like a controlled retreat versus a rout. When you're choosing to be poor you have time and slack to make the choice. You might choose to live in a nice but remote house in the forest, which you may actually own outright (the article has no mention of rent or mortgage), and collect wood and grow your own food. When you're forced out of your shitty apartment because you lost your job or your landlord kicked you out on some flimsy pretext, as has happened to a few of my friends, then you've got two options: either find someone to give you a bit of breathing room by loaning you money/space on the couch/etc., or get an even shittier apartment for a worse price.
- emptystation 4y agoRight. I got a feeling that the OP is OK with their situation because they feel rather safe in their life conditions, there's an undertone "well if I _really really_ have to, I can take that job, or call my middle class parents, or the government will step in". None of these things are default for most poor people. When you're trapped in the cycle of poverty, you have one chance to get it "right" and you don't get a "phone a friend" option. This aspect of poverty just mangles your mental state really. Suppose, if you're lucky, you manage to live an OK, accident-free, healthy life while poor, but the anxiety about "what ifs" is going to haunt you all the way. Folks which have been poor and managed to escape it, are not driven by consumerism (not as the main driver at least), but by a sense of security.
- throwaway290 4y agoPerhaps this article can be actually instructive for a poor person then? Say you used to be trapped in poverty, but making it a choice reduces your psychological overhead and helps long term.