Hmmm..."Why are so many people materialistic? asked by BebopStrange - around 3 days ago
I've encountered many people that only care about these things: Money, If I have a job, If I go to school, And if I drive. It bothers me that people don't allow themselves to even talk to me for these reasons. They seem to not even care about who I am. All they care about is what I have."

Translation: "I am a complete loser, but I want everyone to look past my loserhood and see the secretly awesome person I am inside...without me actually having to do make any effort whatsoever!"

I am sure that BebopStrange is beautiful on the inside.

Can kinda see where he's going with that, but really, can a person living in a capitalist society complain about materialism?

The complex answer:

We live in a consumer-based economy and in order for there to be enough work for everyone, people need to buy things. So we have developed lots of way to encourage people to buy more things (advertising, Christmas etc.)to keep things going.

****

Everyone, except a few hardcore Luddites, Buddhists, and crazies, likes material things. Computers, phones, cars, planes, etc. have made the the world a much better place.

When people ask this question they are really asking, "Why is material wealth the primary means of measuring status in our culture? Aren't there other/better measures of status?" Which is a much more interesting question.

Well, if BebopStrange doesn't work, or go to school, or drive, does he/she have ANYTHING going on? When you meet someone for the first time, you ask questions that can lead to other conversations. I don't really care if you're the CEO of Wal-Mart, or a stocker- I'm just trying to find something we can talk about. Maybe it's this person's sulky responses to innocent questions that drive people out of conversation, not the lack of prestige.

I agree with your response. Well said!

"Why do some people only care about the material things?"
Only? I am concerned about those things, but far from only.
Some I see as the hypocracy of Bebob determining what these people should care about, and ignoring their opinions about what they care about. The true egocentric shows with the phrasing, Don't allow themselves to even talk to me. That talking with you is such a great gift you are giving them is over the top egocentric.

Some I think is a bias of where this person is looking/talking to people. If I were to talk to people at the superbowl, I would be convinced that 100% of people were only concerened about football/sports. If I talk to people at a school, guess what school will be a main toic, at a happy hour after work, still work will be the main topic.

Work and income are a big part of peoples lives, I and most spend 40+ hours (add in commute) per week on work.
Let's break down the numbers> there are 112 waking hours in a week.
I work(toss in commute time) 45 hrs per week, works out to be 40% of the week.
Yep I probably discuss work about 40% of my conversations.
So what, not a 1 track pony, but it is a major part of mine and everyone elses life, so why not talk about it.

"It bothers me that people don't allow themselves to even talk to me for these reasons."

Wait...what?

I find that materialism resides more in the people that don't have expensive things than the ones that do. The misinterpretation of the disinterest in his personal life and the jump to the conclusion that it would be different if this person was to purchase expensive items is a prime example of materialism, and huge problem within our society.

Perhaps, the lack of interest has nothing to do with actual things, but the lack of ambition, and interests that don't revolved around the "inside". That person can only manifest itself with actual actions.

"'It bothers me that people don't allow themselves to even talk to me for these reasons.

Wait...what?"

Allow me to translate: "For some reason, most people seem to have better things to do instead of being lectured at by the sanctimonious."

""Why do some people only care about the material things?"

The physicist answers: "Because in this universe, matter is kind of hard to get away from."

"When people ask this question they are really asking, 'Why is material wealth the primary means of measuring status in our culture? Aren't there other/better measures of status?'"

Our ancestors had other means. For millennia, one's status was measured largely by which tribe or caste one was born into. In many parts of the world, this is still true. Measurement of status by wealth is a considerable improvement.

I agree with others--asking about work, school, and what you drive (in some circles) is a typical way of making small talk or trying to get to know someone. Even if you don't have much going on at the moment, you can still make small talk: "I left school and I'm looking for something in high-end retail now. I've gotten back into playing the piano, too. What about you?"

Duuuudddde, thanks for the translation, man. This beebop dude sounded so, I don't know, half baked or something...I just couldn't understand him, you know? I think maybe he got the wrong generation or something...sounds like some of the kids in my graduation class back in the seventies.

Except more whiney. Guy needs to mellow out and stop worrying about people not allowing themselves to even talk to him.

Ye gods.

Another thing: it's funny that some people have assumed I don't have a car because I ride the bus. Someone else asked me where I grew my roses. He seemed surprised that I had a house and yard.

Crap. I forgot to add an "Oh, wow."

I don't dress up very much, so I'm not going to worry if somebody whines about why I don't have a better wardrobe for my income level. Or whether they "allow themselves" to talk to me or not.

I wish more people wouldn't talk to me. I don't understand the desire to have MORE people yapping at me.