Do you think that people who buy expensive stuff -- the gatekeepers in the original article -- can't tell the difference? That they don't know brand names? The

Do you think that people who buy expensive stuff -- the gatekeepers in the original article -- can't tell the difference? That they don't know brand names? The goal isn't to meet some objective standard of looks-close-enough. The goal is to signal in a very specific way, through brand names. You may impress other poor people who don't know about brand names and such, but you will not impress people who do know their stuff.