You see this travesty of a person here? Yes, i'm judging and i'm sure many of you out there who have had the unfortunate "opportunity" to run into people the like would have muttered something opinionated or thought about it.
These people are colloquially known as "hypebeasts".
What are hype beasts exactly? Like people who hype up beasts?
Not quite.
Urban dictionary defines them as :
"A person who follows a trend to be cool or in style. A person who wears what is hyped up."
"A Hype Beast is a kid that collects clothing, shoes and accessories for the sole purpose of impressing others. Although the individual may not have a dime to their name, they like to front like they are making far more than everybody else. Equipped with mommies (or daddies) credit card, the hype beast will try their hardest to make sure they have every pair of Nike's he saw Jay-Z wearing.
The first definition isn't really all that offensive to me. What's wrong with wanting to be trendy, to express a style that is up to date? Part of the way society works is that people like to fit in and wearing clothes deemed to be popular is part of that.
My issue is with the second definition which is closer to how I interpret what a hypebeast is. That is, someone who "purchases things they can't afford, to impress people who don't care." What happened to humility? Yes, be proud of a big purchase if it is truly something you see value in for yourself but most importantly, be proud because you EARNED it. The problem with most hype beasts is that their concept of money is so skewed from never having to earn it for themselves. What's to show off if everything you own was not from your own hard work?
That brings me to core of the problem.
Parenting and education.
Parents with significant financial means must educate their children on what value is. That is, teach them economics, teach them utility, heck, teach them how to make a fucking fortune for themselves. Don't teach them how to spend hard earned money because anybody can do that.
Honestly, I'm surprised that wealthy people aren't more frivolous with their money given that they most likely had to persevere to earn it.
Now, if you're part of the later definition of people who want to give the illusion they earn a lot more than everyone else.. well, all I can say is, good luck living on the damn streets. Seriously, people don't give a crap about how expensive your outfit is. We all die alone and we cannot take our money with us. What is deemed successful in a person should be viewed at the end of their life. In our capitalist society, if you provided value to a large number of people, it is likely you'll receive good compensation for that, but more importantly, society as a whole was made just that bit better because of you. That's real value and that's something no amount of luxury branded "hypebeast" items will ever replace.