A poll's results were released by the Pew Research Center yesterday revealing a significant realignment of priorities among Americans. Throughout the decade most of life's conveniences like microwaves, air conditioning, TV, and computers had been collectively moving up the necessity scale. But recent findings speak of a tide change. For instance, in 2006 70% polled felt that air conditioning was a necessity, now just 54%. Only 52% asked felt that TV was a necessity, the lowest number since 1973. Only 38% of those polled between the ages of 18-29 believe television is a necessity. 50% of those polled felt that a home computer was and on 4% felt they couldn't live without their I-pod. Click on the title above to get a broader scope of results and comment on how your sense of necessity may differ.
Any disaster causes Americans to re-evaluate their lives. 9/11 for example brought the country together and people started being more religious. Hard times cause people to think. The same goes for economics. Economics is all about a person's choice to do something and people are changing due to the recession. Everyone is effected and it is all over the news so it's on the mind of every American rich or poor. Of course it weighs more heavily on the middle class and lower class folks but that's natural. Again going back to the 9/11 example everyone was effected even if not directly. Personally the things polled as options of necessities I don't really agree with any of them. A television and a microwave are not necessities, nor are ipods or cell phones. Trust me it is nice to have them I'm sure but you can live without them. I have pretty much my entire life. I just got a cell phone last summer and I don't have an ipod. Yeah I know crazy right? I don't really think so but I'm pretty sure a lot of kids at River would disagree with me. But then again I take into the account that I have been really cost oriented my entire life and if something costs too much in my eyes I won't buy it. It gets ridiculous sometimes and people call me a jew (but they're joking obviously) but that's just me. :)
ReplyDeleteIn these hard economic times, people are re-thinking what they really need in life, versus what is a "want". Just a few years ago, the country lived effortlessly without ipods and blackberrys. Now, we can barely go for a day without them and think the world is ending if god forbid we lost our precious technology. But when we barely have money to pay our bills, do those relations change? I personally do not agree with the poll results. As the cartoon shows, everyone views things differently. There are people who will strive and work for everything they want and need, and then there are people who will sit on the side lines and watch the world pass them by.
ReplyDeleteSarah Michaud