Affluenza

The article we read about "affluenza" was quite an eye opener to me. I never exactly thought about how America revolves around material items and how inclined we feel to constantly spend our money. It was interesting to see the habit of spending compared to the flu. I think that it's terrible how shopping can become like a sickness or addiction. We've become so accustomed to receiving gifts that it's become normal for us to get presents. It may depend on the person whether they appreciate what they get, but for the most part, we expect to get things on our birthdays or during the holidays and I feel like my generation barely appreciates things anymore. Also, while I was reading the part of the article that mentioned how we often go to malls to waste time, my friend was asking me if I wanted to go to the mall because we were both bored. I was able to make that connection right away and realize how it really is true that we usually spend money out of boredom. The article really elaborated on how materialistic Americans have become. It's unfortunate that our lives revolve around spending money on many things that we don't need because if that wasn't the case, everyone would be a heck of a lot richer and more appreciative of what they have.