[kbrackbill]

I think what makes it hard to be realistic about these things is that they're all aspirational. People want to be the kind of people who have parties, have guests often, do big projects that need a truck. Admitting to yourself that you don't need these things is admitting that you're not living up to the ideal in your head.

[jamestimmins]

This is also one of the main promises of consumerism - that we can buy the life we want.

If I have the right space, I'll become the kind of person who has parties.

If I buy a truck, I'll want to do big projects.

[Spivak]

This take is overly cynical. Burying a house with a nice entertaining space or a good set of tools is about reducing the friction of doing the things you want. Owning a treadmill and walking to the other room is way easier than going to gym after work when you're tired.

It's far far easier to throw a party when it just means inviting people over and making or ordering food than renting an entertaining space. It's easier to work on a project when you have the tools in your garage than if you had to go to the hardware store or go rent a u haul.

For all the talk of rampant consumerism the stuff on the bottom of my list of things to complain about are purchases intended to reduce your reliance on buying things. Owning nothing, making nothing, and renting other people's stuff and labor for every task is peak consumerist behavior disguised as "efficient" "minimal" living.

[lukas099]

The point probably doesn't land as well on this particular website where incomes skew high, BUT...

a LOT of people do not have the rosiest finances. Maybe it is student loans or credit card debt or whatever. But sure, maybe it makes sense for people with more wealth than they will ever spend to have extras around 'just in case'. But if you're not in that situation, I think it's something a lot of people should look at a lot harder than they do.

[jamestimmins]

In my mind these things aren't really at odds. It can both be true that in a society where folks have disposable cash they're willing to spend it to optimize low frequency events, and companies are willing to encourage this behavior for the reasons I mentioned above.

[wyager]

You phrase your comment as if that doesn't work.

The fact that I have a (mostly unused) guestroom absolutely does increase the number of guests I get.

The fact that I have a mountain bike (mostly used for commuting) absolutely does increase the amount of mountain biking I do.

[chii]

> main promises of consumerism

not consumerism, but advertising. Specifically, brand advertising (rather than informational advertising like walmart putting low prices in ads)

[lukas099]

Great point.