Why do poor people with shifty incomes lease luxury cars and wear high end designer clothes? Then post selfies all over social media showing off a “perfect life” beside boats showing off shiny bling….?
IMHO…. It serves a few purposes.
The first and obvious is “status”. Everybody thinks they’re fucking special… and apparently you need to drive a Lexus to show us just how special you are. (It’s physical proof to delude yourself with.)
The second is again status. “Look how good I am…. People reward me just for being little ‘ol me…. You should too because, quite obviously, I am worth it”. Pure marketing. Putting lipstick on a pig if you will.
However… advertisers have been programming us for years subliminally that we are not good enough without their products… and life is expensive. It’s a rare few who simply just satisfied with being themselves. And no, I don’t mean the ones who can’t afford a $120,000 luxury car and say they don’t need one. (Because if they hit the lottery, it would be the first thing in their new home’s driveway). I mean the people who can afford those cars, and live like you would not know they could. Actual humble people. Warren Buffet does not live in a mansion.