When we see millionaire athletes and entertainers with millions who live within their means we feel that we should be able to as well.

The problem is that we do not earn the same salary. Living within your means and buying quality items would make a definite shift in the social and cultural landscape.

The espousal of frugality does not mean that some people will live in really small homes or that everyone will live near public transportation. If you could afford something larger or better than you might be willing to pay more for it.

As people spend more for quality, there will be a trend to repair instead of replace items because the purchase is worth mending.

The issue of frugality really should address personal debt, responsibility and consumption. If a person decides to have a large home because he/she can afford it this may be a frugal move for that individual but foolhardy for another because of the amount of money spent. When I see someone spending money on an item that I consider to be junk which will have to be replaced well before it is time, then that is foolhardy.

Frugality is in the eye of the beholder!

I’m all for frugal living and responsible spending, but a complete “cultural earthquake” would destroy our socio-economic balance.

I don’t agree with what you say about people being able to retire earlier because they would have more money. If the majority of “luxury” businesses were to close down, a good majority of people would be out of work, and demand for work would cause wages to decrease and many people would go hungry, much less be able to retire earlier with more money.

This could actually be very good for the economy, and especially for truly skilled workers who take pride in their work.

Thanks for reading the article and thinking about it! I agree that living below one’s means is not the same as rejecting consumerism. I see it as two separate things, and both would have to occur to see major changes. (Sorry if I didn’t word that statement clearly.)

Also, for purposes of this article, I was imagining these changes to occur worldwide, though I agree America could become a Third World country if we all embraced frugalism. As a culture, we need balance between overconsuming and underconsuming — I do, however, believe the scales currently tip way too far toward overconsuming.

To What is that? –

To answer your question briefly, though I’m not sure you really want an answer — I believe it’s valuable to think through the consequences of our actions.

I suppose you think all fiction is useless, too. I disagree — many times, people learn more from imagining things as they might be than from examining things as they are.

To everyone else —

Thanks for adding your ideas about what might happen if we were all frugal. I hope to hear more.

One thing that came to mind as I read it is that we could become less of a “throw away” society. Years ago, there were shoe repair, TV repair, sewing machine and vacuum cleaner repair shops all around. Now, they hardly exist. Something breaks. Toss it out and buy a new one. Sole wears out on your shoe. Buy new ones. Fixing things is a lost art. Part of the reason for that is that good have become so inexpensive thanks to China and other places. It is cheaper to replace than to repair in most cases.