I’m another Blue Meanie. I find, after reading the comments by BobcatJH, Stevietheman, and mademark, that I’ve got little to add to your post. To tell you the truth, I don’t think I got all of the things out of it that they did. Which is not to say that I got nothing at all out of your post. No, indeedy. In fact I got exactly two things out of your post, both of which I make bold to share with you now, it being the season for giving and all that.

1) The first thing I got out of your post is that to be sincere, unspoiled, and virtuous like your kids, I should make about $6.00 per week like your kids, and that, like them, I should only be permitted to keep about half of that. This would leave me with funds insufficient to make any meaningful purchases, and thus, I would be unable to vote with my dollars, because I’d only be able to amass around $144.00 of the darn things a year.

(BTW, I think you are absolutely right about one thing. People who only have $144.00 a year to spend can’t “Make A Statement” with respect to what they do or don’t buy, because they’re in a situation where they can’t buy a whole lot. Self-evident, no? If the making of significant purchases [purchases that Mean Something] corrodes the soul, then probably one of the simpler ways to make certain that nobody’s soul gets corroded is to make sure most people don’t have access to much money.)

And there will be no follow-through here about what people who work at WalMart make, what they can therefore afford to buy, and where they will find that they inevitably have to shop. No sirree, none at all.

2) I’m overjoyed to learn that every time I, as a Blue State Meanie, buy a Valu-Sized bottle of tonic water at a Dollar Store, or acquire a new pair of odd-lot woolly socks at the same venue, I’m acting out of a hunger for significance, a hunger which causes me to hunt for products, and to shop at outlets, which exude hipness, style, and je ne sais quoi. I’m overjoyed to learn this because I never would have guessed it for myself. I always thought I was just a dull person buying dull stuff. I never even knew I was prowling around after significance–imagine, all I ever thought I was looking for was tonic water and woolly socks. Now I find that what I really wanted was flair, coolth, and the ability to save the planet. And I actually couldn’t be more thrilled; in fact I don’t think I’ve been happier since I got a secret decoder gizmo for my tenth birthday–though of course the gizmo didn’t work.

Merry Christmas.

I’m another Blue Meanie. I find, after reading the comments by BobcatJH, Stevietheman, and mademark, that I’ve got little to add to your post. To tell you the truth, I don’t think I got all of the things out of it that they did. Which is not to say that I got nothing at all out of your post. No, indeedy. In fact I got exactly two things out of your post, both of which I make bold to share with you now, it being the season for giving and all that.

1) The first thing I got out of your post is that to be sincere, unspoiled, and virtuous like your kids, I should make about $6.00 per week like your kids, and that, like them, I should only be permitted to keep about half of that. This would leave me with funds insufficient to make any meaningful purchases, and thus, I would be unable to vote with my dollars, because I’d only be able to amass around $144.00 of the darn things a year.

(BTW, I think you are absolutely right about one thing. People who only have $144.00 a year to spend can’t “Make A Statement” with respect to what they do or don’t buy, because they’re in a situation where they can’t buy a whole lot. Self-evident, no? If the making of significant purchases [purchases that Mean Something] corrodes the soul, then probably one of the simpler ways to make certain that nobody’s soul gets corroded is to make sure most people don’t have access to much money.)

And there will be no follow-through here about what people who work at WalMart make, what they can therefore afford to buy, and where they will find that they inevitably have to shop. No sirree, none at all.

2) I’m overjoyed to learn that every time I, as a Blue State Meanie, buy a Valu-Sized bottle of tonic water at a Dollar Store, or acquire a new pair of odd-lot woolly socks at the same venue, I’m acting out of a hunger for significance, a hunger which causes me to hunt for products, and to shop at outlets, which exude hipness, style, and je ne sais quoi. I’m overjoyed to learn this because I never would have guessed it for myself. I always thought I was just a dull person buying dull stuff. I never even knew I was prowling around after significance–imagine, all I ever thought I was looking for was tonic water and woolly socks. Now I find that what I really wanted was flair, coolth, and the ability to save the planet. And I actually couldn’t be more thrilled; in fact I don’t think I’ve been happier since I got a secret decoder gizmo for my tenth birthday–though of course the gizmo didn’t work.

Merry Christmas.