Originally Posted by
peace_piper
I think it has more to do with the cultural bias we see in America and most "First World" countries in the world today. That is, if you're not climbing the corporate ladder and spending as much money as you possibly can on cars, houses, vacations, having the "best of the best" and you're simply breaking even and chosing a life that's right for you, you're a "cheapskate". As I noted, the nickname of "ultimate cheapskate" was given to him by the corporate media, he didn't come up with it himself.
Frugality and simplicity used to be traits that were valued in this culture. But now they're looked upon as "weird" or backward. The fact that people say "it's not for everyone" with their implication that the caged life is for everyone is incredibly biased.
Perhaps. But another way of looking at being "cheap" in this country and elsewhere in the First World is the vast majority of the population just getting by even with 2 or more paychecks, wearing department store reject clothes, and worrying that they might hit the streets and become homeless next month does that to most people. I have been getting letters from people who visit my web sites barely making ends meet and needing help in channeling their livestyles into something that they can manage and still exist in this madhouse of a money grubbing society.