{"id":194144,"date":"2019-12-02T15:54:47","date_gmt":"2019-12-02T23:54:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/?p=194144"},"modified":"2019-12-03T08:35:47","modified_gmt":"2019-12-03T16:35:47","slug":"is-consumerism-bad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2019\/12\/02\/is-consumerism-bad\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Consumerism Bad?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What is consumerism, and is it really as “bad” as people make it out to be? <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

We need to consume in order to live <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

First of all, consuming isn’t bad. We must consume food, water and resources in order to live.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On gluttony <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Generally speaking, to consume “too much” (gluttony) is seen as a sin. What is “gluttony”? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I generally think the notion of gluttony comes from the notion that you’re taking away resources from another who might need it. For example if you’re stuffing yourself with sausage while the person next to you is dying of hunger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think generally to be a glutton is to eat more than you “need”. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But who is to tell us how much is too much, and how much is “enough”, and how much is “excessive”?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also why does modern society tell us that consumerism is a moral evil or form of moral degeneracy? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is all subjective <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What is “necessary” seems subjective. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In terms of what is necessary \u00e2\u20ac\u201d we only \u00e2\u20ac\u0153need\u00e2\u20ac\u009d water to survive, but we still enjoy drinking coffee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We might only \u00e2\u20ac\u0153need\u00e2\u20ac\u009d to eat beans for survival, but we eat meat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Almost everything we do which is beyond mere survival (almost everything) is \u00e2\u20ac\u0153excessive\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153luxurious\u00e2\u20ac\u009d. But it makes life better, and it makes us stronger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Luxury is good<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Even though I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t \u00e2\u20ac\u0153need\u00e2\u20ac\u009d to lift weights for survival, I choose to because I enjoy it, and it also makes me stronger, more confident, and helps me build a superior physique. Making art (photos and beyond) isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t necessary to survival, but makes my life 10000x more meaningful and interesting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Music is luxury, art is luxury, aesthetics are luxury. Almost everything is luxury and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153unnecessary\u00e2\u20ac\u009d!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Back to consumerism <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Back to consumerism and capitalism:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We will always desire better goods, and higher quality tools and equipment.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know anyone who prefers their old beige PC to their modern MacBook Pro<\/a> or iPhone Pro<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other consumerist goods I love:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. Merino wool<\/strong>: Legitimately superior to cotton for everything. 5x the price, but totally worth it. <\/li>
  2. GoreTex<\/strong>: Really does keep you dry. Far preferable to the cheaper rain repellant attire.<\/li>
  3. Modern digital cameras<\/strong>: RICOH GR III<\/a> as the best camera invented thus far. Far prefer it over any film Ricoh GR-series for performance, quality, and technology.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Just don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t get suckered <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    I think consumerism is fine. My simple suggestion:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t get suckered into buying stuff that isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t really going to improve or benefit your life.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

    Nassim Taleb says it well in his book \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Skin in the Game\u00e2\u20ac\u009d: often rich people get their tastes dictated by a system designed to milk them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    What stuff will actually improve your life?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    \"Audiophile
    Audiophile coffee shop. Singapore <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    Now this is the tricky thing:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    What consumer goods actually improve our lives?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

    Also, what does \u00e2\u20ac\u0153improving our life\u00e2\u20ac\u009d actually mean?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"iPhone<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    What does it mean to improve our lives?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    \"My
    My tiny apartment studio. Providence, Rhode Island<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    I think when we say that we want to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153improve\u00e2\u20ac\u009d our lives we mean to say:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    1. To make our daily life less stressful <\/li>
    2. To make our lives more convenient <\/li>
    3. To make our lives more fun and less boring<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      We seem to want novelty, new things, things to excite us, and to be less bored. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      But do consumer goods actually do that for us? Some do\u00e2\u20ac\u201d but some don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t. For example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      1. In praise of good in-ear monitors <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
      \"My
      My custom in ear monitor headphones <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

      I have some good in-ear monitor headphones I got custom made in Saigon, which cost me around $100 which is worth every penny. Super small and compact, seals up my ears, and great bass response and audio quality. Sounds 10x better than the Apple AirPods. The AirPods are more convenient, but when I really want to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153get in the zone\u00e2\u20ac\u009d of my music, I love the in ear monitor headphones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      So to find good headphones for music \u00e2\u20ac\u201d this is a good investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Perhaps the danger comes from trying to always \u00e2\u20ac\u0153over-optimize\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and seek marginal 2-3% gains, for hundreds (or thousands) of dollars for better equipment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      2. Are marginal gains or improvements worth it?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

      I think this is the interring debate on consumerism:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Is a 5% gain or improvement \u00e2\u20ac\u0153worth it\u00e2\u20ac\u009d?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

      For example, owning a car is useful. Generally owning a car will make your life more convenient and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153better\u00e2\u20ac\u009d than not owning a car.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      But will upgrading your Toyota Camry to a Lexus (same company) truly \u00e2\u20ac\u0153improve\u00e2\u20ac\u009d your life? Probably not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Even with electric cars \u00e2\u20ac\u201d I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think having an electric car will really \u00e2\u20ac\u0153improve\u00e2\u20ac\u009d your life compared to a gas car. But having autopilot or self-driving capabilities will.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      3. Cameras and photography <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
      \"RICOH
      RICOH GR II\u00e2\u20ac\u201d Sapa, Vietnam<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

      Photography is tricky. For example, sometimes the upgrade is worth it, sometimes not. And sometimes the older technology or tools are actually better. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      For example, the RICOH GR II<\/a> has an integrated flash, which in some ways makes it superior to the newer RICOH GR III<\/a>, which doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have an integrated flash. But the new GR III has better high ISO performance, far superior high contrast monochrome jpeg settings, autofocus, speed, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \"Hands<\/figure>
      \"Crossed<\/figure>
      \"\"<\/figure><\/div>
      \"\"<\/figure><\/div><\/div>
      \"\"<\/figure><\/div>
      \"\"<\/figure>
      \"\"<\/figure><\/div><\/div>
      \"\"<\/figure><\/div>
      \"\"<\/figure><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

      Consumerism is bad if it breeds insecurity <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

      If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve ever doubted your clothes, car, home, tools, equipment, etc by thinking:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      What I have isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t good enough. I wonder if I had a better [x] whether my life would be so much better?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

      Then consumerism is bad\u00e2\u20ac\u201d it breeds insecurity in yourself. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      What gets us to buy? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      1. Sometimes we want to buy status totems to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153flex\u00e2\u20ac\u009d our riches, power, and wealth \u00e2\u20ac\u201d to feel SUPERIOR to others.<\/li>
      2. Sometimes we buy stuff because we feel that by not having the newest iPhone or whatever, we are missing out, or at a serious DISADVANTAGE in life.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n
        \"Singapore<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

        Consumerism is bad if it traps us to a job or profession or lifestyle we hate<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

        If you hate your job, but it pays well, and if you got a mortgage, car payment, and lots of bills, you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re a bit trapped. If you feel you \u00e2\u20ac\u0153need\u00e2\u20ac\u009d your luxury car, luxury stuff, and luxury lifestyle, but your job is absolutely hateful to you (but you need the job for the money), then consumerism is bad. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Golden handcuffs are always bad\u00e2\u20ac\u201d no matter how expensive the watch is. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

        NEXT<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

        The next essay I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll write about will discuss:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        1. What goods or services or lifestyle choices do truly \u00e2\u20ac\u0153improve\u00e2\u20ac\u009d our lives?<\/li>
        2. Why<\/a><\/em> do we want to improve our lives<\/a>? <\/em>What is our notion of a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153better\u00e2\u20ac\u009d life?<\/li>
        3. Whats our ultimate life goal anyways?<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

          ERIC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          What is consumerism, and is it really as “bad” as people make it out to be?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":193963,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_ek_photo_artist_note":"","_ek_photo_thesis":"","_ek_photo_camera":"","_ek_photo_place":"","_ek_photo_human_moment":"","_ek_photo_sequence":"","_ek_photo_question":"","_ek_photo_canonical_claim":"","_ek_photo_ai_summary":"","_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-194144","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-posts"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/ERIC-KIM-PHOTOGRAPHY-Black-and-White20-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1704&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194144","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=194144"}],"version-history":[{"count":42,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194144\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":194307,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194144\/revisions\/194307"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/193963"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=194144"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=194144"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=194144"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}