• kava@lemmy.world
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    10 months ago

    something that is objectively unnecessary but gives comfort or at least the illusion of comfort

    i think of it like the laws of diminishing returns

    think of a shitbox $3,000 used car. assuming the engine is more or less running, you get like 80% of the benefits of a car

    it gets you from point A -> B - the primary purpose of a car

    then you spend another $10,000 for a $13,000 5~6 year old Toyota or something. now you have A/C, that gives you an extra few % benefits. You get a carplay so you have a nice little screen for a GPS, another few %. you get a key that unlocks your car, etc.

    so you went from 80% to lets say 90%. but that base 80%, getting you from point A -> B hasn’t changed.

    that extra $10,000 bought you 10% extra

    then let’s say you spend another $100,000 for a $113,000 car

    you get all the benefits of the previous cars, but you maybe can speed up a little faster. you have heated seats. you have a sport mode or something.

    that extra $100,000 bought you another like 7% so now you’re at 97%

    Luxury is that last 20%. The closer you wanna get to 100%, the more expensive each % costs. This is a status symbol

    • virku@lemmy.world
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      10 months ago

      I agree with your example, but I disagree that the luxury cutoff is at 80%. For me it is at 90% in your example. A car that only mostly runs is a liability and may even end up costing more per year than the 90% one because of repairs. At least it is like that here in Norway.

    • AnxiousDater101@lemmy.world
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      10 months ago

      No offense but i get an artist vibe off you. You got me thinking about the media, Artist, narcotics and crypto links. You can top it off with surveillance and psychological manipulation from the media.