"American culture is too often focused on coveting what others have, and showing off success through the display of material goods." Agreed, but its not just A

"American culture is too often focused on coveting what others have, and showing off success through the display of material goods." Agreed, but its not just American culture that does this. The type of conspicuous consumption you refer to was one of the major ideas behind the economist Thorstein Veblen's The Theory of the Leisure Class. He claims that it is human nature to emulate those of a higher economic class through wasteful spending. Interesting stuff.