people buy things they do not need

Yeah, money certainly is big issue when it comes to buying stuff we don't need. Sometimes the more money people have the less they know where to spend it

money is a devilish thing you know, once we have it we must get rid of it... but hey wait, there's actually something to it... maybe it's the subconscious fear that it could lose its value. We cannot eat money, we cannot use it as a tool, all we can do with it is either burn it or throw it out of the window. So we think we better spend it before it loses it's ''magic''

I too have seen this corralation. We are strange beings indeed. The money will burn a hole in our pocket, we think, so we must spend it right away.

good points you mention there. I think it's similar to buying things for just putting them onto a shelf or into a display cabinet that nobody is going to touch but only to look at. Some people need the recognition of others or they have a need to show off or to show what they have. A museum which puts things on display for teaching people is a different issue though Thanks for your comment!

Many years ago, some people bought nice books to put on a shelf and they never read them. Now this is extended to every material thing as people are not thinking of beauty but centering on the verb "to have".

oh, now that you mention it. I have bought lots of books in the recent years. They are also standing on the shelf but I read them and still read them. Maybe that prevents me from extending to other material things Perhaps that's the key anyway: reading and learning and finally comprehending

yep, that sounds indeed familiar. Sometimes it is just the act of buying itself that makes people buy an item. Waiting for the item makes it even more ''attractive''. But once we have it it won't last long until we lose interest in it or it wears off as you say. Thanks for your input!

Some things which years ago used to be just wants have now become part of our needs. Things like cellphones are indespensable now and have become as essential as someone's wallet.

yeah, that's also what I think. If you have the money you don't have to worry if the stuff you buy is actually useful or not. So people become careless in regard to waste.

agree but temptation works on a cunning way often times picking on "hot items" as bait to weaken resolution and defenses so the best way to do when there is a sale is: don't go if there's no need .

yep, discounters have a certain attraction on me as well. The price labels reading ''50% off'' or so are almost irresistable especially if you like the product. Then I have to force myself to not buy it if I realize that I don't really need it. I think the best way to deal with this issue is to go into a shop with an item list that only contains the stuff you definitely need and a big red remark reading ''Don't buy anything else''

yes, a priority list helps you to decide what to buy and what not to buy. Thx for your comment!

clothes are a big issue, that's true. Everyone needs them but many people buy more than necessary. Maybe your brother wants to have a wider choice to select from. I hope in the future he will follow your way of dealing with clothes

yep, all to often our hunter-gatherer instinct ''breaks through''. We have to ''grow out of our infancy'' (quote from Star Trek Cpt. Picard but true) to realize what we really need in life and what we don't need.

haven't thought about that one. Yeah, peer pressure certainly makes people buy a certain brand even if that brand is much more expensive than the no-name product which may be just as good but less expensive.

it's good that you do a lot of thinking before you buy an item. Sometimes it's impossible though to know beforehand if the product will be useful or not. In order to find out we have no other choice than to buy it. The seller may be obligated to return though in which case we have an advantage Thank you for your comment!

that is a very good idea to do a self-test by asking yourself if you really need the product you are going to buy. And yeah, products are presented in a fashion that makes it hard for the customer to resist. Thank you for your comment

good points. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

to be honest, I don't even know what Ipods, IPhones and all the other stuff is as I don't use it. I guess it's from a company called Apple? Anyways, I only see them kids with ear-phones running across the streets while the music is so loud that I can hear it, too I could imagine though that those little computers with additional functions are useful to some people, e.g. researchers or scientists that are out in the wild. That is certainly more handy than carrying a laptop all along. But on the whole I agree. Those things are more like toys than tools for most people.

yep, that is true. I know a couple of people who show me their expensive stuff each time I visit them. Sometimes I cannot help thinking they just buy those things to show off and not because they actually need it. Thanks for your comment!

to live the 'minimalist' lifestyle does not necessarily mean that you will lack something. On the contrary living that way will actually broaden your horizon. You start assessing things and living beings at their true worth. There will be no lack of joy or pleasure and it may be good for health, too (if you resist eating sweets for example or even become a vegetarian like I am one). However, you will become more critical of what's going on around you. You will perhaps discover that things and people are not like they are supposed to be. Of course you can also (try to) live this way when you are rich but temptation will always be in reach and I don't know a single person (who's rich) that would choose the minimalist lifestyle over the decadent and luxurious lifestyle. In other words greed is stronger than need. But greed is what destroys this planet and its inhabitants. So we have to ''grow up''

you mention food. That's indeed a big issue in modern society. Not only its waste (which is enormous) is shameful but also the products that are used to store or hold it only have a short lifespan. Paper cups, plastic foil, tin foil, plastic cutlery etc are often totally unnecessary. I remember some efforts that were taken in the 90s in Germany where they proposed to sell liquid products as pure liquids from a machine. Customers would have to bring their beakers for storage with them. Unfortunately that method never made it from the development stage to the stores. You are not the first person in this discussion who says that the availability of money is responsible for waste. So I guess we can take that hypothesis to the bank

that's the hardest thing that can happen to people. If they are evicted. For this reason I have always thought that having to pay taxes for one's property is not justifiable. Every family should have a home and that should not depend on the social status or on money at all. But most governments in the world have no scruples to demand taxes for property. It's ridiculous but unfortunately it's true. I guess if someone wants to know if he needs a product or not you would be the right person to ask as you know the meaning of the word ''need'' very well and what it means to be ''in need''. All the best and thanks for your comment

brainwashing, yeah, that's another way to put it Absolutely. Kids first need to learn what need is. It is important for them to have toys. Toys will later turn into tools.

No, all those other things are optional. Needs are things you must have in order to survive. Water is more important to the body than food; shelter is important, but you don't need to purchase a home to have protection from the elements and be able to survive. If we had to live without conveniences and even tools, we would find a way to do so. After all, our ancient ancestors once did just that.

Yes, and sticks and stones do not have to be purchased and in an area where there are natural shelters such as caves you could construct a home of sorts from whatever available resources, etc., etc. The point here was that we all have a lot of clutter in our lives that we could stand to do without. To survive in life you NEED water, food, at least one change of clothes, a way to protect your feet (obviously shoes is the best choice, but many in the world don't have them), and shelter from the elements. How you will go about getting those things will depend on where you live and what resources are available to you.

Food, clothes and more importantly a home and some land of course. But some even don't have that. And if you think about it you will probably find lots of other things we indeed need for life, e.g. certain tools etc. Yeah, no one needs a TV or radio unless perhaps for information. For the weather forecast for example . Personally I rarely watch TV (watched much more in the past). Maybe 1 hour a week. Hanging on the net and on Mylot for most of the time instead Think of items that - as many in this discussion have put it nicely - will very soon just end up unused on a shelf or as a dust catcher. I guess those are things we really don't need but which we buy for whatever reason

yep, it pretty much comes down to the destruction of our environment (fauna et flora both in the oceans and on land). One person alone only wastes little but make that x billion people and it turns out to be a huge problem. So we all - i.e. every single person - need to restrain ourselves. One more, one less. As for mineral water... maybe they're trying to solve the CO2 problem this way