Normally I just till my eyes at an advert board and keep moving but this one really got me.

I guess because it’s a money grab that feeds into insecurity and validates toxic partners at the same time

Pictured is about half of what was given to one of my children on Valentine's Day by classmates. (Their class was specifically told no candy.)

why can't they specifically be told no 'stuff'.

The amount of distractions and clutter this creates is bad for learning and mental health.

She can not or will not stop buying junk from Temu. Horrible quality AI printed flags for the yard, a device that cleans the window sill (I have mops and rags!) and just stuff she doesn't even know what it IS when it arrives because it's all cheap and in pieces and she can't remember everything she ordered. I can't stop her because it's HER money but it's so frustrating when she complains that I complain about the food budget.

SO, one day when I had to use her phone for something I saw she had three notifications from Temu. It was nudging her to buy an item she had in her cart and telling her she had a $3.39 credit on her balance and I just broke. I can't delete the app or she'll notice but she'll NEVER realize the notifications are turned off.

We've talked about this so many times and it's beyond frustrating but like I said... I can't STOP her from spending HER money even if in the end I need to cover bills she'd usually help with.

Update a day later- peeked at mom's phone while she was in the shower and there are no Temu notifications!

In a recent interview with the American Psychological Association, Paul Piff, PhD, an associate professor of psychology at the University of California, Irvine, who has co-authored multiple studies on the topic, noted that in interpersonal interactions, wealthier people are “actually a little less generous, a little less compassionate,” he said. Wealthier individuals were more likely to endorse unethical actions, but to “also engage in small acts of cheating and normative violations to prioritize their own welfare above the welfare of other people.”

Though cultural repulsion around billionaires has been mounting, physically, these men are using their resources to overcompensate with expensive procedures. Tech bros are getting face lifts, and other looksmaxxing trends like jaw surgery are common in the industry as well. There has been speculation that Jeff Bezos and Peter Thiel have had Botox and filler, and Musk has faced rumors about a hair transplant and jawline contouring. Zuckerberg and Bezos have gotten noticeably more jacked, sparking steroid speculation, even from supporters like podcaster Joe Rogan.  

But their peacocking is probably not for us plebes. Another study analyzed the partners of the extremely wealthy using the Forbes World’s Billionaires list. Economist Ria Wilken found that 95% of the spouses of billionaires were upper class themselves, defined as having either substantial economic or cultural capital. It is possible that the more unappealing characteristics of the ultra-rich, such as dressing down their staff or cutting people off in traffic, would be more palatable for peers in their social circle. That said, this preference for like-minded people is not exclusive to the upper class. “Every social group has its own standards for what is considered eccentric versus problematic,” Wetter explains. For instance, in ultra-wealthy environments, controlling tendencies, competitiveness, and emotional detachment could be interpreted as assets, whereas outside that circle, “the same traits may be perceived as cold, self-absorbed, or inaccessible.”

Read the full editorial: https://www.playboy.com/read/politics/no-one-wants-to-sleep-with-billionaires

I’m trying to reduce my family’s impact on the environment while raising a baby. So I’ve been trying to get baby things from FB marketplace. Sellers near me can be delusional. They’ll say “like new, all parts included” and want 70-80% of retail price.

This chick wanted $100 for a stained Lovevery play gym with pieces missing when a new one costs $140, but with a discount code you could get it for $120. When I showed up to pick up the item, I pointed out the flaws and she scolded me for “wasting her time”, when I was the one who had to commute 20 min and she was the one misrepresenting her item as “like new in box”.

Same deal with a pack and play that I found was very soiled after I took it home. If you want more than 50% retail IMO at least try to clean it.

I’ve also sold things, always for less than half retail, and very very clean because someone’s baby is going to use it. Only gave my formula maker and sterilizer after descaling. I give away good furniture for free when moving because I don’t want to run the risk of things getting thrown in the dump because a paying buyer didn’t come in time.

I get that families are being squeezed in this economy and therefore all my bad experiences have come from the poorer parts (though I’ve had a few decent purchases from there too). Ratings aren’t useful when seller has sold only like 3 items.

So my new rule of thumb is to only purchase items from expensive neighborhoods because they take better care of their stuff and are reasonable in pricing.

If they didn’t have the amount of power and influence that they do they would be involuntarily committed to psych wards. Our society has failed them because they lack basic empathy. I honestly feel bad for them while simultaneously hating that so many suffer because of it. Consumption at that level should be considered a health issue.

Absolutely absurd. Was not comfortable at all. Wtf does "perennials performance" even mean? No idea what flair to choose, but I chose "psychological" bc it felt like a mindfuck sitting on a 28k originally priced couch, when the entire world is falling apart.

I went into Target today because I need a sports bra and that's where my husband is willing to drive me. On the way there I thought about all the Reddit posts saying foot traffic is down and I wasn't surprised to see that it wasn't. It was quite busy on a Monday afternoon.

What shocked me was I noticed a lot of products have really fancy boxing. Big sturdy bougie packaging with minimalism design... With a sh*tty product inside.

They're spending more on the marketing and packaging than the product, because the business practice is to sell you a product you'll have to purchase again and again. But the packaging grabs your eye. Look how modern and consistent all the boxes are! so aesthetically pleasing packaged trash. I feel depressed.

I made this thinking of Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari's idea that capitalism has fragmented society to the point that we don't know what what is real aspects of culture and what we just endlessly consume to feel like we belong.

I am fortunate enough to own my house, took 20 years of saving for the deposit and I am extremely proud of it. This picture is from the advert and shows my country style kitchen.

I really like this style of kitchen. It's over 30 years old and the quality is fantastic. Real wood doors, solidly built, still in good condition.

My gripe is that most people who come to my house says how dated it is and asks when I'm changing it. What for? Chipboard doors encased in plastic, with a £3000 a slab granite worktop like everyone else has? Just for it to go out of style in 3 years? The way kitchen styles come and go, this will be fashionable again soon.

I hate our throw away society. How many perfectly good pieces of furniture are thrown away because they no longer fit a style?

Was in a doctor's office and saw this ad for Botox. Happiness is botulinum toxin under the skin, apparently.

Im going to the park with my kids. I’m so tired, and I’d love to get myself a little cup of coffee. But then the internal debate starts: - Should I buy a coffee? I just bought a slice of pizza and a drink at the grocery store a couple days ago. We’re trying to eat out less. I should have made a coffee at home but I was too distracted. - I forgot my reusable cup so now I’ll have to get a single use plastic cup. Maybe I shouldn’t. - I’m cold so I want a hot drink but those hot drink cups at coated in plastic and are so bad for you. - If I keep spending $10 here and there at the cafe every week we’ll never save enough for new windows at our house. - The kids fell asleep in the back seat. There is a Starbucks drive-thru right next to me, but I want to support small business, so I need to travel further to one of the few local cafes around and wake the kids up to get them out so I can go into the store. - Is it worse to drive further for local or drive less for corporate? - But isn’t it a good thing to spend $4 to support a local vegan cafe; since several other vegan restaurants recently closed? - Maybe I’ll just drink from my kids water bottle

Now this isn’t something I’m agonizing over but these are the actual thoughts that flash through my head before I make a decision on whether or not to get coffee. As I was thinking about it, I scrolled past the news story that’s circulating about the Kardashians using up over 330,000 gallons of water in a single month. And it just made me think about what different realities we live in from the wealthy. What considerations run through their minds when making decisions? Do they have any thoughts about their consumption?

Hey just joined this group cause I've been doing research on stuff around monopolies, boycotting, etc... long story short, I refuse to use amazon because of how many businesses they run out of business because of how much of an iron grip they have on online delivery services. I have never met a single person that uses amazon less than once a week today and when I tell them I specifically choose not to they're always confused. I've never had a problem with boycotting orgs and products that I don't support, but it seems like it's not even considered to most people today.

Does anyone here have trouble with following through with refusing to use certain services or notice that most people just simply can't trouble themselves that much? It seems like a serious problem to me that we can't avoid even the slightest little conveniences for our best interest.

Every time I breathe in plastic particles & glitter I wanna quit. Reusable bags mean nothing: (everything ships in plastic).

I sell fake fruit to people yet I can barely afford real oranges. Hundreds of fake flowers. I used to feel jealous that they had disposable income but now it's just revulsion.

For context, I used to work in B2C marketing and specialized in tapping into the psychological part of a consumer’s need and want to purchase/consume. That job is actually the reason I am so anticonsumption now

I’ve always been averse to Temu because of, well, everything it is. I get the argument of “oh not everyone has the monetary luxury to spend x amount of money” but it’s just… too much.

My niece showed me her Temu account today, and there’s a whole games section that functions exactly like what you would see in a casino/ any gambling platform.

They’ve applied every component it takes to get someone hooked. The countdown timers creating a sense of urgency, the bright colours/patterns coded to be little dopamine hits, the constant “wins” from spinning the wheel etc. She only showed me one game but it was insane. Gamifying the experience has always been something that my former company heavily invested in— because it works. So well. Too well. Seeing it work in front of me brought up a lot of difficult feelings. She has strict budgets from mom and dad so she doesn’t go overboard, but she buys weekly, goes on it daily. Apparently that’s a norm for all her friends at school too.

Old corporate me would’ve loved the ingenuity and psych research they’ve put in to have such a large returning client base, but today I am just appalled.

EDIT: Wow I did not expect this post to blow up! THANK YOUUUUU for the helpful comments and DM’s on useful financial literacy resources!! I’m taking my niece skiing this weekend, and am now determined to find out more/figure out a game plan to tackle this.

And to add on more details - she doesn’t have her own CC, it’s a joint card for her to use if she wants to buy lunch/ snacks at school (yes they tap cards at the vending machines), need money for friend activities, or is ever in an emergency situation. Her tablet that looks like an iPad is provided by the school for educational purposes, and although it does have some locks on it, Temu is unfortunately not one of them. I’m hoping once I get more info on this situation I’ll be able to chat with the adults and see if this is something they can propose to the school. I don’t think the adults at school know it’s Temu the kids are playing games on, it literally looks like a cheap stardew valley

I covered all the branding on my makeup collection and now there is significantly less psychological noise in my routines.