I don't mean this as a criticism of you, but instead the minimilist movement in general: There is something self-indulgent about middle class, talking about how "cool" it is to throw away stuff, and be minimalistic... It's almost a statement about how privileged you are.
I don't see how it is at all related to privilege; in almost every case he cited, it's cheaper to go minimalist. Let's look at his (perfectly reasonable) list of examples:
- Rent a furnished apartment.
This one you do need more $$ for. I don't have a furnished apartment, but I've spent less than $100 on my furniture (including getting some off the side of the road). I will feel no qualms about leaving it on the side of the road when I move.
- Use car sharing services
This depends. If it's more economical to use a car service, do it this way. For me it's not, so I own a car (but not a nice one, which keeps insurance and body-work costs low).
- Buy ebooks instead of physical books
Here there's no privilege either, since in my experience e-books cost about the same as regular books. (Maybe slightly less, but that will only offset the cost of the reader.)
- Use Netflix/Hulu instead of owning a tv
Again, no privilege. A reasonable cable subscription in the US is going to be $30, a hulu plus subscription is $10. Plus, you can sell your TV.
- Use pdf digital signing software instead of owning a printer/scanner/fax
This doesn't work all the time, because you still do have to print stuff every once in a while (trust me, I've not owned a printer for the last 7 years). However, usually you can just print stuff at work, or in a pinch, at kinko's. I've probably spent less than $5 over the last seven years at professional printing places, and their printers are much nicer than the crappy ink jet you get at best buy.
I think my definition of privilege and yours are at very different levels.
> - Rent a furnished apartment.
You have your own place to sleep at night, with (nice) furniture.
> - Use car sharing services
You have access to cars!?
> - Buy ebooks instead of physical books
> - Use Netflix/Hulu instead of owning a tv
> - Use pdf digital signing software instead of owning a printer/scanner/fax
You have access to high speed internet, and advanced electronic devices, and live in a society that supports them.
Most of the people in the world, don't have these things. It's easy for us to sit in 1st world countries and talk about how we aren't privileged because we didn't go to private school, or we buy cheap ebooks on our iPad... but even these things are out of reach for most of the world... that is what I define as "privilege".
> You have your own place to sleep at night, with (nice) furniture.
> You have access to cars!?
> You have access to high speed internet
Let's be fair - relative to the people around him he's abated his consumption of things considerably and relies on services that are shared or transferable. Sure, if he wanted to be super edgy he could live in a mud hut and write code on a paper pad, testing it out whenever he can access the local community center computer. But relative to the people around him, his consumption profile is conservative and doesn't deserve ridicule.
Even if harping on about it is self-indulgent, it is not nearly as bad as the conspicuous consumption and hoarding that so many 1st world citizens take part in.
I think my definition of privilege and yours are at very different levels
I didn't downvote your previous post in this thread until I read this one. Almost everyone who can read this website is privileged by your standards. Everyone in my apartment block here in Shanghai is privileged by your definition. Some of them are from Anhui province, or other poor ass provinces, where there are people in the Bottom Billion, people who live on less than a dollar a day.
If you are politically tone deaf, you should confine the use of political/sociological terms of art to arenas where you will be understood by everyone or where everyone agrees with your already.
Yes i'm privileged now ... But I grew up in a shed and a caravan in regional QLD, Australia. Went to shitty public schools. Slowly I worked my way to Silicon Valley. It took a LOT of hard work running business in Australia to get the cash to move here.
Life isn't fair. VERY few people are raised in a life privileged enough to move country.
Your post makes me angry. You are privileged and you have no idea. You're on the goddamn internet. You have the opportunity to make a lot of money if you get your shit together. STFU
> Your post makes me angry. You are privileged and you have no idea. You're on the goddamn internet. You have the opportunity to make a lot of money if you get your shit together. STFU
Sorry to have upset you like that. I meant the comment as something to reflect on (I myself have thought "How can I be more minimal")...
As a side note:
Australia (in general) doesn't have 'shitty public schools'. If you were to compare its schools on a global scale. You were born into privilege and became more privileged. It is difficult to see it that way (as I'm sure things were never 'easy') but the "bottom" in Australia is much much much, higher than the bottom elsewhere in the world.
you are living in the US
AND
you have money.
I don't mean this as a criticism of you, but instead the minimilist movement in general: There is something self-indulgent about middle class, talking about how "cool" it is to throw away stuff, and be minimalistic... It's almost a statement about how privileged you are.