American Consumer Culture

In the introduction of Chapter 1 “Consuming Passions” “The Culture of American Consumption,” it talks about how American popular culture is grounded in consumption. With the media in our hand, it is a huge influence towards the advertising world. With how styles of clothing have been changing over time, this talks about how from the earlier times wearing a simple type of blue jeans can change between who wears them over the years. As stated, “ By the 1950s, however, blue jeans began to bear an additional class significance as “casual wear” for middle-class Americans.” (72). In 1970 these pants have then become a simple fashion wear. They have also been introduced as a hipster type wear. Then in 1980 through the early 2000s, baggy jeans were

1. When selecting a UPL the Commander must take into consideration which of the following qualifications? The commander appoints an officer or non-commisned officer ( e-5 r above) on orders as the UPL

Many Americans have accepted the consumer debt as an essential component of their everyday life. People who say they don’t have enough money to live comfortably have greater financial worries than people who feel they have enough money. Both people who feel as though they don’t have enough money to live comfortably and people who do have enough are worried about not

Society is buying objects we do not need, with the money we do not have, to impress people that do not matter. The American Dream is developing into a more materialistic world, a dream in which the dream keeps getting larger and greedier. Materialism is the tendency to think material objects are more important than people; a desire for money over ethics. Today, life shows us that people have a desire for newest, thinnest, updated—most expensive smartphone or the more expensive lavish materials. Life shows us that our car is undesirable now, especially when our cars do not hook up with that latest cell phone. Life shows us unrealistic standards of a way to live, yet a huge portion of the people in society appear to be emptying out their wallets. This materialistic culture is a show, a phony act when in society we pretend we are what we are not. We all live in a materialistic society where the majority of people are more worried about what we have than who we are. There is an emphasis on what brand a person is wearing, what car someone is driving, and just how many objects one has, in general. A person must wonder where this hunger and greed comes from and why most Americans fall susceptible to this phenomenon, including me.

Before the causes and resolutions are discussed, debt must be understood. Terry Herman, a financial advisor for Edward Jones, expresses this definition: “Simply put, debt is a product bought or a service utilized that you still have a financial obligation to” (Herman). To further that definition, debt is the borrowing of money with the entitlement of repayment with interest; this explains the financial obligation Herman expressed. While family members and friends may not enforce interest, interest would not demean the situation. The current consumer-driven culture has significantly increased the amount of personal debt from decades ago. A chart derived from statistics collected by the Federal Reserve and Bureau of Labor Statistics displays the climb of debt from $1,186 per person in 1948 to $10,168 in 2010 (Indiviglio). As shown, the increase over 62 years is approaching a factor by the multiple of nine. Consumers are clearly spending irresponsibly, which Herman manipulated into the “complete difference between an investment and expenditure” (Herman). An investment is something expected to obtain an additional value while an expenditure is unnecessary spending. Thus, consumers must be acquiring expenditures more frequently than investments.

6). Interestingly enough, in a study by Pew Charitable Trusts (2015), 69 percent of Americans, when asked about nonmortgage debt, say although they prefer not to have debt, it is a necessity in their lives. Similarly, 68 percent of Americans said they would not have been able to make purchases or investments with just their income or savings alone yet loans and credit cards allowed them to do this (p. 8). Beyond “rainy day” savings, “…more than half of all American households lack sufficient retirement savings to maintain pre-retirement lifestyles, even if family members continue to work until age 65” ( Wuorio, 2015, para. 3). This paper examines where many American families are financially, why a majority of Americans struggle with saving money, and what changes should take place in order strengthen financial security and develop healthy spending habits.

“Since the end of the Second World War the USA has been transformed into a society where the national economy depends to a large extent on private consumption; and where mass acquisition and use of material goods is the dominant lifestyle, the centerpiece of social practices, leisure time, cultural rituals and celebrations. We refer to it as consumer society.”

Today, the United States is the largest economic and military power in the world, the political freedom and education level of the people are universally acknowledged to be among the top 3 in the world; so, what kind of American spirit has shaped the United States?

Debt has become the new American bedfellow; “The average U.S. household with debt carries $15,762 in credit card debt and $130,922 in total debt” (Issa). One should keep in mind that the “$130,922”is a median debt; some live debt-free while others have substantially higher debt (Issa). For twelve years running, the cost of living in our country has grown greater than our median wages contributing to the overall mountain of debt incurred (Issa). Our country has grown used to the debt that looms because that is what the American way has become; buy bigger, one can always settle finances at a later date. Juliet Schor discussed how “The new consumerism, with its growing aspirational gap, has begun to jeopardize the quality of American life”. Americans have grown tired of carrying a proverbial weight of their debt and are fighting against the normal American life of living

As a country, Americans love to shop. Whether in malls, grocery stores, on the Internet, or elsewhere, the culture of buying is deeply ingrained in American culture. Fueled largely by advertising and the current credit system, America’s consumer culture is depleting our planet’s finite natural resources and polluting our environment. Consumerism has instilled in Americans an artificial, ongoing, and insatiable desire for mass-produced and marketed products, and the money with which to buy them, with little regard to their actual usefulness or necessity. This constant desire to acquire more possessions is poisoning the planet, as it can never be sated and thus results in the never-ending exploitation of the Earth’s natural resources, and

In America, there has never been a time in history where so many Americans have become millionaires or billionaires, yet so many Americans are in debt. Studies have been down in America that the “average U.S. household owes about $15,706 credit card in credit card debt, the average mortgage is $156,333, and the average student loan debt is $32,953” by combining all three of the categories of debt together the total amount is $204,992 (NerdWallet). It has become an epidemic across the country at the same time some Americans aren’t too concerned with their debt. Some of them are more concerned with pursuing in buying useless items just because advertisements are telling the viewer to go buy their product. Capitalism has given birth to a new age of people who are being conformed into having a materialistic and consumeristic mindset by businesses using psychological tactics through commercialization, which people are getting played into thinking they will socially accepted if they purchase the product.

Having your own money is a great thing, but it also means you have to make choices about how to use it and when to use it. Imagine saving up money for a trip or saving funds to have stashed for later situations, then out in this free enterprise system you buy all the things you want instead of investing funds into important possessions and needs. Then later a financial situation hinders you because your savings have been spent and were not able to build up. Soon you will begin to ask “where did all my money go”. Americans should “save to spend”; many don’t allow their income to accumulate before spending what they have earned, as soon payment is received the mind is spending. Sometimes spending money on “wants” instead of “needs” does satisfy the consumer, but the question still reoccurs; “Did I really need it”?

Consumerism is the center of American culture. Americans tend to confuse their wants with their needs. With new advances in technology, as well as the help of advertisers, people are provided with easy access to new products that seem essential to their everyday life, even though they have survived this long without them. People cannot live without food, clothing, and shelter. But realistically, according to people's different lifestyles, more than food, clothing, and shelter are needed. Most people need to work to survive. Unless a job is either in their own home, or within walking distance, a means of transportation is needed. Whether it be a vehicle, money for a taxi-cab, or a token for a ride on the subway, money must be spent

A consumerist society is a group of people who put a lot of time, energy and thought into consuming material goods. The media plays an essential role in this. In America, people are constantly consuming advertisements persuading them to consume materialistic goods. Children aged 2-11 consumes 25,000 advertisements on television annually while an adult consumes 52,500 advertisements annually. These advertisements promote a vision of a ‘good lifestyle’ that people should have in order to be happy. These advertisements include materialistic goods such as big houses, large televisions, latest cars and much more.

You and I consume; we are consumers. The global economy is set up to enable us to do what we innately want to do: buy, use, discard and buy some more. If we do our job well, the economy thrives. If for some reason we fail at our task, the economy suffers. This model of economic existence has been reinforced in the business pages of every newspaper, and in the daily reportage of nearly every broadcast and web-based financial news service. It has a familiar name: consumerism. Therapeutic ethos has created a consumption-oriented ideology that ultimately transformed American culture and life, as we know it. This multi-dimensional approach shifted nineteenth-century American values of frugality, moderation, and self-denial to periodic leisure, compulsive spending, and individual self-fulfillment. There are three main factors that contributed to this transformation: radio and billboards, credit, and mind-cure religion. Consumer culture developed out of the rise of modernity and the historical emergence of capitalism as an economic force throughout the world.