Are we brainwashed to overspend at Christmas?

The average person spends over $1000.00 on gifts according to a radio report I heard on our local news. We max out our credit cards and bank accounts and spend money like we are all rich. I would love to know how many people have to file for bankrupcy when all the bills come in.

Are we lead by the annual retail advertising blitz to act this way? Why it is ok to buy five playstation games for our kids during the holiday shopping rush when we would not do this at any other time of the year?

What ever happened to the spirit of the holidays? We go to the malls and see all the generic holiday signs, but not a Santa Claus or Manger scence to be found. No more is the spirit of the holidays emphasized, only the amount in your wallet, and how much you are going to spend.

Instead of being about Mary and the birth of Jesus it is about what did you get for Aunt Mary.Are we manipulated by greedy retailers to act this way? Have we become so commericailized that this is "normal". Now it is not about the thought that counts, but it is counting how many gifts we give.

Definetly! Many people feel they must buy for everyone they know. And with retailers using advertising stuff like "60% OFF ONE DAY ONLY!!!!" many that are guillable fall for these sales and usually end up spending more than they would if they were no spectacular sale

How much?
The answer to this question can get mega-complicated, often pitting childhood memories and tradition against the cold, hard numbers of a budget. The fact is that most people overspend at the holidays for emotional reasons -- to recreate the holidays they had as a kid, to fulfill their childhood dreams of a holiday that never was, to give their child the best of everything.

To address these emotional pulls without overspending, first go purely with numbers. How much can you actually afford to spend over the next couple of months without compromising your food, shelter, education, retirement, and general well-being?


If you are paying with credit cards, how long will it take you to pay them off? By the time most people have paid off the holidays, it's July, and interest charges have added 20% to the final price tag. This is a situation you definitely want to avoid.

And once you and your spouse agree on a number, no fair secretly spending or rationalizing excess spending. This takes commitment.

If this is a worrying time,then think about all the other mass manipulative businees sacreddays of the year....Valentines, and Easter...fathers & mothers day..etc..etc...

Personally, the commercialism is part of what I look forward to.

It's a pretty big rush during those after Thanksgiving sales, and I've saved HUNDREDS of bucks during them...

As for malls, I see plenty of Santas in the ones near me.

I don't celebrate the "Christian" Christmas. For me, it's a season of giving, and for family, so I suppose the commercialism is right in line with that.

I also try to avoid doing Christmas shopping on Credit Cards. I stick to debit or cash...so no after X-Mas bills for me. We usually spend our tax refunds on a vacation...

Yeah, I've tried that agreeing on a number bit...that doesn't fly, hehe...

Personally, I'm far more impressed by a present that shows thought, than the pricetag. In fact, most things on my wishlist are under the $50 mark. I'm also doing some drawings for close friends (the wall mural was kind of an early Christmas present for the couple), and I'm sure they'll appreciate them much more than anything I could buy....

Definitely - it is an art to master manipulate people to buy more and often unnecessarily. You will obviously realise it is not only Christmas, its mothersday, fathersday etc.

BUT it is also business - most of us work to spend.....

I try to see opportunities e.g. waited a year to buy a color laser printer @ 20% discount.

Personly I think its all about people buying I asked santa five years running now for that Doge viper and it still hasent showen up in my drivway.
Beging to think this guy mite just be a Dude in a red suit with a fake bierd.

Originally posted by jgbjgb
Definitely - it is an art to master manipulate people to buy more and often unnecessarily. You will obviously realise it is not only Christmas, its mothersday, fathersday etc.

BUT it is also business - most of us work to spend.....

I try to see opportunities e.g. waited a year to buy a color laser printer @ 20% discount.

You always see all this hype the day after Thanksgiving and around noon the stores will generally announce everything is way ahead of their predictions for the year.

A Few days later they all claim they were wrong and sales are down. It is at this point I think that most humans get the idea well perhaps if I spend a little more it will help them and the ecconomy, which is wrong to do.

I for one am like you I wait for sales i.e. almost three years for the right sale on that plasma I almost bought at 12,000 that is now selling for 7,000. I made my mind up I will not buy one till they get the prices down.

I also use my charge card for everything we need in life. The nice part of this is the frequent flyer miles we get. I just love flying on their money.

Oh did I mention I only have one credit card with a credit limit of 15,000 and yes that is correct it gets paid off each and every month. If we know we are going on an extended trip, we ask for a temp limit hike to perhaps 30K for Europe Etc., but the minute we get back it is paid off and the limit returned to 15,000.

My advice is if you do not have the money in the budget do not buy it. I realize We are lucky and all of you are not, but use good judgement at this time of the year. It avoids bankruptcy.

Self-discipline in fiscal management is not something that is subjected to "brainwashing" unless you allow yourself to suffer that.

You have the power to cut up your credit cards any time.

If you feel bad that family and friends might be overly materialistic and caught up in the Chri$tma$ $pirit and you are not, be yourself... or find new family and friends.

Have yourself a merry little Christmas!

Originally posted by Strigoi
Definetly! Many people feel they must buy for everyone they know. And with retailers using advertising stuff like "60% OFF ONE DAY ONLY!!!!" many that are guillable fall for these sales and usually end up spending more than they would if they were no spectacular sale

I agree one hunderd percent tee totally!.............

I really don't think it has anything to do with brainwashing exactly. People arn't out there like zombies, buying things everywhere, they arn't being forced to, they're just suckers. It's just people being overly materialistic, like MaskedAvatar said. Plus not everyone goes out and does the whole christmas shopping madness. My whole family doesn't. We just draw names out of a hat and you buy one gift for that one family member. That's it. Makes life easier.

Christmas can be a very sad time for a lot of families.
For those in poverty who can't afford all those "gifts" that we are conditioned to believe is a yearly necessity, it can be a nightmare of financial and emotional juggling.
We are constantly bombarded with the fallacy that buying and giving a gift is some kind of selfless compassionate act.
The time of giving is nothing but a nice convenient way for wealthy ppl to off-load some of their guilt for having more than the rest.
Of course this is exploited in the extreme by the unfeeling cold market place.

This is one holiday that is truly bi-partisan. The right wants to celebrate for religious purposes, the liberals are the biggest spenders at this time of year.

Well in my case I have to said that is something about this time of the year that even when I may not have money to spend during any other time, I find it from somewhere just to join in the spending "Joy of the season"

Perhaps it could be some brainwash after all, when you go to the stores and see all the happy people and bright decorations.

Now this year I have been very, very carefully, I am really stretching my money for the first time in this season.

I am avoiding the malls and shopping centers with my daughter coming home from college for the holidays I know that the shopping will start as soon she gets home.

My problem is that not only do i buy for family but i also cant resist to buy for myself! i'll take one of these and two of those!

I want the bag that movie stars have, the latest in fahsion and the newest anti=aging whatever it is being advertised

i'm working on the problem, though.

Of course. They use subliminal messaging in all those cheesey christmas commercials. It sickens me.

I think the way advertising works is this.
You are looking for a new something, lets say a car for argument.
There has been a comercial on TV for a certain model of car. You didn't pay it much attention. Just another commercial break between watching a bunch of men beat each other up over an odd shaped foot(?)ball.
You go to the car dealer, you look at cars. The model is there from the commercial, you think "that's a good car". You realy don't know why but you "have a feeling". Something in the back of your mind tells you "this is a good car."
You see if someone is told something often enough, even if they don't pay it any attention, and then something tiggers that "something" it will surface.
No need for subliminal or hidden stuff, just repetitive viewing is all you need.
"Big brother aint watching you mate, you're #in watching him"...Crass

Originally posted by Croat56
Of course. They use subliminal messaging in all those cheesey christmas commercials. It sickens me.

Subliminal messaging is illegal in most countries.

I hate Christmas.. I wish people wouldn't get me stuff, so I wouldn't have to buy them stuff.. My parents don't make that much money but damn! They go all out on Christmas. We have such a big family, it's impossible to buy everyone a gift at the dollarstore.. it'd still be over 1000... Okay maybe not. :p With our huge family... I might change beliefs just to avoid Christmas... Again, maybe not! But you should understand how I feel. haha.