Consoomers / Consoomer Culture - Because if it has a recogniseable brand on it, I’d buy it!

[Alouatta Simia Belzebul]

Sumptuary laws often restricted the rich, who presumptuously appropriated the dress of the nobility, which actually had a legally enforced higher social status. This was an important feature of society that was subverted in countries like the United States where social and economic status were linked (hence the new term "socioeconomic status" was coined); historically, a poor nobleman still stood above a wealthy commoner.

I'm aware, but they did restrict every level of society in some way. A lot of consuming comes down to demonstrating your purchasing power, and that you can participate in social signalling even if you're not actually in the same circumstances as the originators, so that seems like the exact scenario sumptuary laws would have applied to. It just has a broader application now because almost everyone considers themselves middle class with some degree of recreational spending.

 

[WelperHelper99]

Some individuality and creative thinking is required for that, which the consoomers do not have. These people get mental fatigue after folliwing pictures to assemble an ikea shelf or painting their macbook with glitter nail polish. Anyone who is able to create anything has enough aesthetic sense is not behave like a consoomer and fill their house with Wish specials or the dreaded funko pops. Consoomers spend loads of money on these mass manufactured pieces of trash because they think it makes them unique and reflects their personality, while its the opposite. The only way to truly reflect your personality is to create new and unique things.

This is why I like hobbies like gundam. You have to file and sand it, and even then you can paint it, kit bash it with other kits, or just leave it completely plain if you want, scuff marks and all. Either way, it's one of a kind once it's done. Consoomers don't understand how valuable engaging your brain is, solving puzzles that aren't in Zelda. Once you start doing that, you start seeing things like a mask as a canvas.

 

[Zbk3VmLfujjzjxBd43tL]

Sumptuary laws often restricted the rich, who presumptuously appropriated the dress of the nobility, which actually had a legally enforced higher social status. This was an important feature of society that was subverted in countries like the United States where social and economic status were linked (hence the new term "socioeconomic status" was coined); historically, a poor nobleman still stood above a wealthy commoner.

In East Asia those laws affected everyone and were the government's way of trying to make nobles not spend money on useless things and devote more time to moral pursuits.

its interesting how individuality has always been 'sold' to us
"hey kids, wanna be DIFFERENT and express YOURSELF? well come pick your choice of mask color to pair with your safe and inoffensive mainstream tv show tshirt and your side shave haircut. now THATS what i call being original, isnt that right, number #18873?"

How long has that been going on? Like to me that makes me think of Hot Topic at the mall where you can buy your made in China anarchy t-shirt and baggy jeans with all the chains and pockets, but the whole shit has to predate the 90s.

 

[The Real Slim Shady]

How long has that been going on? Like to me that makes me think of Hot Topic at the mall where you can buy your made in China anarchy t-shirt and baggy jeans with all the chains and pockets, but the whole shit has to predate the 90s.

I would say late 80s, along with the dawn of modern advertising - which focuses primarily on persuading the customer using psychology and manipulation instead of hilighting the product's features. You would have to trace back when the expensive, but sought after items (like walkmen and other fashionable things that you would likely buy to impress or show off to your friends) started to become available in different colors across one model. That point is where I would draw the start line. At that point mass produced items were marketed as unique and reflecting your personality because they were available in your favourite color (choose from blue, red and black).

In fashion it probably came earlier, in mid-80s. Here's a jeans advert, for mass produced jeans. The text reads "I can really be me" in my mass produced Lee jeans. In this case you don't get any actual personalization going on, except for the standard different sizes of clothes, but the advert persuades you that these jeans will fit you perfectly and let you express yourself by wearin them because they fit your ass.

 

[Jimjamflimflam]

Sure, I could hire a guy with a bushwhacker to go whack my bushes, but then I don't get to do it. With a fun tool. While listening to something on my headphones. While being outdoors, enjoying the weather and being alive

Hank Hill, is that you?

Kidding aside, I've had that conversation with my parents far to many times. Anytype of toil outside like cutting/stacking logs and I have to hear "Why don't you just hire someone to do that?". Why are so many people allergic to working outside when its beautiful?

 

[FILTH Tourist]

Hank Hill, is that you?

https://youtube.com/watch?v=x7W-ikMtCm8
Kidding aside, I've had that conversation with my parents far to many times. Anytype of toil outside like cutting/stacking logs and I have to hear "Why don't you just hire someone to do that?". Why are so many people allergic to working outside when its beautiful?

Honestly mowing the lawn is one of the most cathartic chores out there. It's so simple it's basically mindless and you are greeted with immediate results of a prestine lawn once your done. Also a cool morning along with the smell of mulched grass with the sounds of ducks overhead is just pure kino.

 

[NoReturn]

express yourself by wearin them because they fit your ass.

 

[John Titor]

The Titan disaster did not deter danger tourism.

London-based travel agency Brown and Hudson — which offers white-knuckle experiences including heli-skiing, mountain climbing and trekking in remote locations — said its rich clientele have not been deterred by the disaster.


“Tragedies sometimes generate interest in other areas of extreme travel,” Philippe Brown, the firm’s founder, told The Post on Wednesday.

Sounds like X-Treme Sports, not my thing but innocuous enough.

Through Brown and Hudson doesn’t advertise membership pricing on its site, members reportedly pay annual retainers of between $12,350 and $127,400, plus taxes, Brown said.

On top of retainers, trips can cost well into six figures.

Seriously?

Some wanted “bragging rights” or had always been fascinated by the wreck, while others saw it as an investment and hoped to sell their spot in the future, he told the outlet.

“Beyond a certain point of wealth, you are not interested in another flashy car or the latest iPhone,” Brown said, noting that the world’s top 1% are instead looking to gain adventurous experiences rather than material objects as a symbol of their status.

“Stuff tends to have less value and you don’t need to show off quite as much because you know that you are worth a billion, so you don’t need to display your wealth. It’s just part of you,” Brown added, according to Insider.

He continued: “For some people it might be connected to one-upmanship or being the first to do something, being able to tell a cool story to your family or friends.”

Rich people, believe us when we say this: no one gives a shit.

 

[Raging Capybara]

I often think about what it would look like if sumptuary laws made a comeback - unquestionably good for the environment, obviously - what effect that would have on social signifiers of the present day, which ones would we lose and which ones would remain?

Fuck off, commie.

 

[306h4Ge5eJUJ]

Rich people, believe us when we say this: no one gives a shit.

Other rich people do, which is what matters to them.

 

[𝕺𝖑' 𝕯𝖎𝖗𝖙𝖞 𝕱𝖆𝖙𝖘𝖔]

speaking of, not this, i've been scrolling thru this thread to find something specific and, altough i didn't, i found something that i've determined to be one of the gayer forms of consumerism- consuming products for aesthetics that are actively anti-consumerist

everything from the tie-dye and hand painted acessories of hippie culture which was born as a rejection of modern sensibilities and popularized the trend of handmade fashion,
to the "witchy" aesthetic which is modeled after the actively rebellious and antisocial practices of old witchcraft yet can be bought at Target for 9.99$, (and really, the whole punk movement in general. its not particularly counterculture if your patches are mass manufactured in china and your boots cost several hundred dollars at a brand name store)
to "Cottegecore", an aesthetic emulating farmhouses and simple living where one owns whatever they can build or get their hands on, yet now seems to neccesitate buying a very specific and expensive matching set of cutesy decor...
all these "aesthetics" are built on cultures that actively resisted common society at the time, yet are now being marketed to the masses
rule of thumb, if your whole movement can shop at Target and Forever 21, youre probably not counterculture

I feel like this whole paradigm of consoomerism started with Hot Topic. It really was the first company that commercialized youth subcultures and brought them to a mass audience of teens who were bored with their suburban middle class, mall-going lives.

Before that, youth subcultures tended to be urban and poor and more DIY focused because they had no money, on top of the fact that the styles really just didn't exist yet. When it caught on, it created a whole generation of people whose main method of expressing their "alternative" style is through consuming the material trappings of a subculture, rather than living the lifestyle.

Now that you have a significant number of people living soulless lives mostly on the internet, the lifestyle itself has now become a contrived consumable product. People who actually live in homesteads and such don't garden and can because they think theyre fun and cute "cottagecore hobbies" that'll get them away from their screen, they do it for self sufficiency and to preserve the produce they grow.

 

[whogoesthere]

I feel like this whole paradigm of consoomerism started with Hot Topic

Nah, it was around before that, just not gothy emo stuff. You can go back to the early 1900s to see the start of it. Styled home furnishings, that were about hitting a new fashion trend. I would say it was about the 70s through to the 90s that was the rise of that sort of thing being available to the masses, but shit like House of Fraser are aspirational. Instead of a look with nothing more, it was a look with a statement "yeah, I work in a bank, and I drive a mid range BMW, but I also listen to the lighthouse family and enjoy IKEA".

Politics is exactly the same these days, its about being part of the cool crowd, however you define that. You wanna be an educated, urbane free thinker? well vote left wing and wear a jumper made by a black tranny with no eyes. Maybe you think chuds are cool, here is a tacticool shirt with a marvel IP logo on it to show how much you hate that blind black tranny who makes shit jumpers. Either way, we have a whole algorithm on amazon to fine tune a look that speaks to your YouTube sub list leanings.

I think Simulation and Simulacra touched on this subject a lot, if that sort of thing would be of any interest to you.

 

[Corpun]

Speaking of school trends, anyone remember silly bandz? Those things were trades around for an entire school year when they were popular. By the time summer ended and it was time for school again, literally no one but a few kids had them on in school, and they mysteriously dropped them when they saw no one else was earing them.

I was actually surprised to find out those are still being made when the market peaked and crashed within a school year. I think a lot of this shit that trends in schools follows the same pattern.

 

[Cuntspiracy Man]

Nah, it was around before that, just not gothy emo stuff. You can go back to the early 1900s to see the start of it. Styled home furnishings, that were about hitting a new fashion trend. I would say it was about the 70s through to the 90s that was the rise of that sort of thing being available to the masses, but shit like House of Fraser are aspirational. Instead of a look with nothing more, it was a look with a statement "yeah, I work in a bank, and I drive a mid range BMW, but I also listen to the lighthouse family and enjoy IKEA".

Politics is exactly the same these days, its about being part of the cool crowd, however you define that. You wanna be an educated, urbane free thinker? well vote left wing and wear a jumper made by a black tranny with no eyes. Maybe you think chuds are cool, here is a tacticool shirt with a marvel IP logo on it to show how much you hate that blind black tranny who makes shit jumpers. Either way, we have a whole algorithm on amazon to fine tune a look that speaks to your YouTube sub list leanings.

I think Simulation and Simulacra touched on this subject a lot, if that sort of thing would be of any interest to you.

all marketing is now about evoking a theme, an aesthetic, "what kinda person do you wanna be? are you a pepsi person or a coke person?"
thats what those ads of a buncha teens jumping around playing the basketballz looking all keeewl and urb-y are trying to evoke, theyre not selling you the taste of cola, theyre selling you the affiliation. join us, be a "coke-girly", and THIS can be the aesthetic that YOU evoke!
politics are just an advanced version of that. really, all that SHOULD matter in terms of a company's political affiliation is what theyre doing with your money, but why do that if its enough to just make an ad where a buncha people you wanna appeal to are jyrating around the topic you wanna pretend to #support, and people will now associate your brand with their identity, and subsequently their identity with your brand
this is especially easier to do if you live in a world where people have a very limited identity. if im a well rounded person whos confident in themselves, im not going to see a corporation advertise themselves standing with my gender or my favorite movie, because thats a tiny and inconsequential part of who i am. but if those things make up the entirety of my personhood, its not hard to feel like that brand represents me as a human being

they tried marketing vaccines to us the same way, like its this hip, trendy teen thing to do

 

[FILTH Tourist]

all marketing is now about evoking a theme, an aesthetic, "what kinda person do you wanna be? are you a pepsi person or a coke person?"
thats what those ads of a buncha teens jumping around playing the basketballz looking all keeewl and urb-y are trying to evoke, theyre not selling you the taste of cola, theyre selling you the affiliation. join us, be a "coke-girly", and THIS can be the aesthetic that YOU evoke!

That's literally how marketing always been. Companies quickly found out that it is easier to sell a lifestyle than just a product.
Marlboro is a pretty good example:
Early Marlboro advertising was aimed at women and it sold women on the idea that smoking is sexy, rebellious, and alluring to men.

Then they rebranded from focusing on sensual women to selling the rugged man's man image.


What we are seeing is nothing new, just more people catching on to literally centuries old marketing strategies.

 

[WelperHelper99]

Speaking of school trends, anyone remember silly bandz? Those things were trades around for an entire school year when they were popular. By the time summer ended and it was time for school again, literally no one but a few kids had them on in school, and they mysteriously dropped them when they saw no one else was earing them.

I was actually surprised to find out those are still being made when the market peaked and crashed within a school year. I think a lot of this shit that trends in schools follows the same pattern.

Silly Bandz were a plague lol. A fun one though. Selling cheap Chinese junk to children has been a thing for a long while. Then it spreads outside to social media, becomes cringe, trend dies, rinse repeat. If anything social media has made trends rise AND fall faster than before.

 

[Alouatta Simia Belzebul]

I'm not sure a teenager's blobby hp fanart demonstrates a concentrated marketing push for vaccines as a lifestyle choice. Got any other examples?

 

[Cuntspiracy Man]

I'm not sure a teenager's blobby hp fanart demonstrates a concentrated marketing push for vaccines as a lifestyle choice. Got any other examples?

oh, thats not the only example, just looking up "vaccine hogwarts houses" online gives you plenty of results, it was a big meme early on in the vaxx days
the general consensus is that non-vaxxed are either muh evil house slytherin, or muggles

 

[Alouatta Simia Belzebul]

Okay, but do you have any examples that aren't vaxxed people making an in-group club out of something they've already done? I don't think that's consumerism, because it's not like it would send anyone out to complete the collection and get all the different pharma brands, and you can't buy pfizer or moderna merch to show off your 'house'.

 

[Cuntspiracy Man]

Okay, but do you have any examples that aren't vaxxed people making an in-group club out of something they've already done? I don't think that's consumerism, because it's not like it would send anyone out to complete the collection and get all the different pharma brands, and you can't buy pfizer or moderna merch to show off your 'house'.

id argue that turning your participation in the worldwide covid PVP event into a display of one's corporate loyalty is pretty fucking gay and fitting for the thread
using your choice of jab to define yourself is just another level of corporate dicksucking

but if you want merch after all....