Saving Money Is Not Saving Anyone
John Greavu 1
Writing Assignment 4: Saving Money Is Not Saving Anyone
We, the consumers of America are always trying to get the most “bang for their buck”, often times without realizing the true consequences of such actions. In a world where we’ve been told most our lives that saving money is good thing, you can’t really blame us. We shop at Wal-Mart, clip coupons and sometimes turn into savages on Black Friday. However, we tend to forget the saying “there is no such thing as a free lunch”; there is always someone who suffers when someone benefits. So cheap shopping is really just cheap buying which in-turn means cheap wages on the other end. Furthermore, we seem to think that all these rock-bottom prices and blockbuster deals are necessary and almost justified because of our false perception that prices have continued to go up over the last decade. Since most production is now being done overseas, the consequences of our “addiction” don’t seem to be noticed by most Americans. Before watching this video, I would have definitely said that prices have been on the rise for the last 10 years. Looking back, I realize that this assumption was largely due to the media coverage of one of the most consumed American goods: gasoline. Anytime that gas prices spike up even the slightest, you are going to hear about it. I can’t believe that I’ve lived as a consumer over the past 10 years and now (after watching the video) am just starting to see that prices of most items are really going down. I was at the Mall of America at midnight on Black Friday and noticed this on a number of things, and not with the new Black Friday crazy-low sales prices, but with the original price. For an example in one of the most prominent areas (toys), I saw that the famous Star Wars Millennium Falcon Lego set was now actually affordable and has dropped a couple hundred dollars in 10 years or less. I was completely taken aback by the statistics in the video that have thoroughly switched my
Writing Assignment 4: Saving Money Is Not Saving Anyone
We, the consumers of America are always trying to get the most “bang for their buck”, often times without realizing the true consequences of such actions. In a world where we’ve been told most our lives that saving money is good thing, you can’t really blame us. We shop at Wal-Mart, clip coupons and sometimes turn into savages on Black Friday. However, we tend to forget the saying “there is no such thing as a free lunch”; there is always someone who suffers when someone benefits. So cheap shopping is really just cheap buying which in-turn means cheap wages on the other end. Furthermore, we seem to think that all these rock-bottom prices and blockbuster deals are necessary and almost justified because of our false perception that prices have continued to go up over the last decade. Since most production is now being done overseas, the consequences of our “addiction” don’t seem to be noticed by most Americans. Before watching this video, I would have definitely said that prices have been on the rise for the last 10 years. Looking back, I realize that this assumption was largely due to the media coverage of one of the most consumed American goods: gasoline. Anytime that gas prices spike up even the slightest, you are going to hear about it. I can’t believe that I’ve lived as a consumer over the past 10 years and now (after watching the video) am just starting to see that prices of most items are really going down. I was at the Mall of America at midnight on Black Friday and noticed this on a number of things, and not with the new Black Friday crazy-low sales prices, but with the original price. For an example in one of the most prominent areas (toys), I saw that the famous Star Wars Millennium Falcon Lego set was now actually affordable and has dropped a couple hundred dollars in 10 years or less. I was completely taken aback by the statistics in the video that have thoroughly switched my