to wonder when money and stuff became so important?

[unicornfarts]

Perhaps I'm being nostalgic/ deluding myself, but I thought there was a time when it was normal to be respected/ feel valued by your community as long as you contributed something of use to your fellow man. Now it seems that (especially) if you're doing a low skilled job, no matter how useful it is, you're somehow 'worth' less and get treated badly just because you're not highly paid, or maybe you don't have a sparkly new car/ trendy clothes. Why have we all become so materialistic? Maybe IABU and just need to move in different circles? Hoping for cheering replies that there are less 'grabby' and entitled communities out there!

I feel it is partly regional.

I was shocked when I stayed in the SE of the country recently.

Very money orientated and displays of ostentatious wealth.

It's not like this in my corner of the UK.

The longer and longer working hours mentality is really awful. People being looked down on by their colleagues because they want to go home at 5.30 to see their kids, or being considered unambitious losers because they'd rather be out coaching the local football team, or enjoying an evening of amateur dramatics, than sitting in the office making sure their presence is noted by the bosses.

As long as you have enough money to support yourself and your dependents in reasonable comfort, there are more important things than climbing to the top of the career ladder. We are creating soulless communities where no one knows their neighbours, or wants to join anything or give anything back.

Decades ago, social circles were bigger, going out was a big deal. Families were bigger as were get together believe me consumerism was on full display at community halls and churches everywhere. Wealthy families would buy a church pew with their name on it. Thatcher has nothing to do with the value placed on home and land ownership. All over the world people value owning their own piece of land.

It may be that people doing low-skilled work have been denigrated in the past (I dispute 'always'). Why do we need to continue to do so? Are health care assistants changing the bedding for incontinent elderly people at home alone not really valuable and relatively selfless to do the work for little pay?

If I were speaking to someone doing a low-skilled job I would like to think I would not denigrate them and rather speak to them as a fellow human being just like anyone else.

I do not know anyone where I live who would not consider a health care worker a fellow human being. I live in the SE.

However, personally I could not afford to be a care worker which is why I have chosen not to be in that profession anymore. As valuable as care workers are, their wages would not be enough for me to be able to pay my rent and feed my kids.

It has got nothing to do with being materialistic. The fact is that it is shit that companies get away with paying care workers such a shit wage that they cannot afford to live on it. And this paired up with stupidly high house prices.... Wanting to keep a roof over your head should not be considered being materialistic.

And no, it is not "too expensive" for the government to pay credit workers a decent wage. Their wages will most likely need topping up by tax credits or housing benefit anyway, so why not stop this and pay people a decent wage instead??

Please let this not be a London-bashing thread.

It is expensive to live and work in the SE. Of course there is more money floating around and ambitious people who are prepared to put up with long hours to earn the heaps needed to just stay afloat in this expensive corner of England.

There is greater disparity of income and more bases for comparison. However, there is no excuse to treat anybody like a sub-human just because they don't earn a lot. I frankly have not come across this in any significant way to even remark on. It is not a crime to have a lot of money and to enjoy it. It is however very poor behaviour to behave badly to another person.

I agree OP. I know people who are up to their eyes in debt trying to live a life they just can't afford. It seems to me that people are embarrassed to say no or they can't afford something now. I know a girl who works a minimum wage job who has been invited to umpteen hen do's abroad or weekends away for birthday celebrations etc and she takes out loans to cover the costs instead of just saying no, it just baffles me.

She is still living at home and is desperate to move out but says she can't 'afford' to move out. She genuinely doesn't see that if she cut out all the expensive trips she wouldn't have to pay loans and could save her money and move out. All these trips are of course documented on social media, using her very very expensive phone that could've been a deposit for a rental property.

I am constantly amazed at the lifestyles led by people who I know are earning around the same money as I am. Multiple holidays, expensive phones, new cars, designer handbags ..... there just seems to.be no limit to what they can afford.

I presume many of them are getting into debt or have absolutely no savings for a rainy day, all for unnecessary stuff that they really don't need but have been brainwashed into thinking are important.

I don’t know but I am hoping we have reached the peak of consumerism. I doubt it though because everything is such dreadful quality that it breaks and needs replacing. I remember the days when if something broke (eg a VHS player), you’d take it to a repair shop. These days, it’s not economical to repair anything, just trash and rebuy. I always get so cross when something I need and use breaks. It’s such a waste of everything. My washing machine (just out of warranty) broke recently. Repair estimate = £390. WTF? In the tip now. Shouldn’t have broken after 3 and a bit years of normal, careful use.

Yanbu

It’s worse these days as well

You’re not let wrong, which is why I make a concious effort to be friendly to anyone regardless of them cleaning the bins or being he ceo of a company.

I often get shocked responses from shop attendants in particular when I ask how they are before I tell them what I want. I think that reaction is sad as it shows so few people do that.

I think this probably began in the consumer boom of the 50s, and got massively reinforced in the 70s and 80s as neoliberal late capitalism took off. It's not just materialism that has increased; there's been a decrease in all kinds of collective thinking. You look at the things that were actually proposed as viable, if idealistic, ways of life for the future in the 40s and it's utterly different to anything we hear today. The boundaries around what is thought possible have changed completely, and for the worse in my personal opinion.

My mother was remembering recently how people used to bring their kettles to be repaired. She also has a friend who was downsizing from a large house and had lots of beautiful old furniture that she couldn't fit into her new house. She couldn't give it away, because no one wanted it. People buying houses nowadays would rather have all new stuff from IKEA and John Lewis, than lovingly cared for furniture with a history that would cost them nothing,

This thread is lost on most of MN/most people in general.

Meta the question was; when did money and stuff become so important? Nothing about being valued and everything being great

You clearly didn't actual read the OP.

This thread is hilarious. So much arrogance and naivety in one little bundle.

Ooo the irony, Meta

Oh it's meant to be ironic? I guess the thread would make much more sense if you read it as a piss take!

It seems to me that people are embarrassed to say no or they can't afford something now. You see the other side of that on mumsnet - many posters saying they can't stand people being "stingy" and not going equal shares on a restaurant bill when they have eaten less than others, even posters saying if you can't afford to pay an equal share of the bill, you shouldn't go to the meal.

'I think it started in the 70's when credit became acceptable.
Previous to this if you couldn't afford luxuries you went without.
Greed was the result, and people didn't have to wait and save they could have it now on credit.
The class system became eroded and wc could now have the same as middle class, on the never never.'

How dare people not know their station, eh? Get ideas above their places. Just like in the good ol' days, people should just stay in their places, yep, the 'class system' is really good thing . . .

whiskyowl

Hark at you Totally agree .

The 50's was certainly the start but during the 70's there were majority of poor in my area, especially during Thatcher so later years.
It wasn't the sale of council houses, those poor buggers were doomed as interest rates shot up not much later. They weren't looking down on anyone.
Most of my friends were living on or under the breadline, when I was growing up.