Nearly every modern technology that I marveled at in 1985, which was unattainable to me at the time, I not only eventually had, I don’t even want it anymore. For instance – a rear projection big screen TV. The first time I saw one was in a rich dude’s house. It was other-worldy, the stuff you’d see in the technology section of Playboy magazine, the TV James Caan would own. The price tag was astronomical for a working stiff. Guess what? Within a decade working stiffs had them. I still have one that I can’t wait to get rid of. If I went back in time to tell that to my 1985 self, I’d laugh in my own face.
What makes this possible is RICH PEOPLE. If rich people didn’t exist and have lavish lifestyles and disposable income I would never have owned a big screen TV. They would still be $6000 and sitting in specialty stores waiting to be sold, if they were ever made at all in the first place.
Progressives are too busy with their class envy and hand-wringing to even see how the presence of the rich elevates the standard of living for all, eventually. Having stuff first is their edge, but it eventually gets to even the poorest in America.
You know it's true. Thank heavens for the rich, because they do, indeed, improve the lives of the rest of us. RTWT and all that.
Ya know Wraith...I have to respectfully disagree here. You selected one item...a TV...and said it was essentially affordable because the rich bought them first.
ReplyDeleteTechnology becomes available when manufacturers are able to market their wares to the widest audience. That is how they make the most amount of money. That doesn't really have a damn thing to with rich people. I think your premise here is flawed. I want a jet, yet the price continues to skyrocket.
That's a pretty wide net you are casting. I'm not sure I can even agree with the premise at the TV level. Prices come down as parts become less and less expensive- demand picks up. Not sure that has a damn thing to do with economic status.
OK, perhaps jets and Lamborghinis are going to be high-end for a long while. Still, think about this...
ReplyDeleteI've bought running cars for less than 20% of what I make in a week. I couldn't have done so if someone richer than me hadn't bought them new, passed them down, and eventually landed them in my lap.
Cell phones: When they started out, they were roughly the size of a small child, had a battery life of 20 minutes, had coverage in like three areas in the entire world and cost a zillion dollars a second. Yet, rich yuppies bought them, and damn the cost. Now, we walk around with computers in our pockets, connected to the world at a price even welfare parasites can afford. If the rich early adopters hadn't made the cell industry profitable, we'd all still be using pagers instead of having the amazing technology available now.
I remember a Betamax costing over $1500. Now, a DVD/DVR costs under $200. Once again, if the rich folks hadn't jumped on this whole recordable-TV thing, we'd never have gotten to this point.
Brian, things are ALWAYS expensive when they first come out. It's the "gotta have the latest" rich folks who cause the demand which raises the production which drops the price which allows us poor folks to buy in. If manufacturers don't see an initial demand, they won't bother to market to the widest audience, because it's too much of a gamble whether it'll take off. Parts become less expensive due to mass production, and there isn't going to be any mass production without initial demand.
I think you're kinda putting the cart before the horse, here.
Ok I am gonna concede this to you becuase I get your point plus I like ya. :)
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