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9/ But you aren’t really buying a JPEG or a bag, you are buying a status symbol, positioned in a complex series of overlapping social and cultural networks that give it rich historical value.

elena.eth x.com

Given that everyone can now buy designer handbags and new cars, the rich have taken to using much more tacit signifiers of their social position.

bbc • The new, subtle ways the rich signal their wealth

Someone who wastes time and money on expensive luxury goods and hobbies sends an unambiguous signal: I have the wealth to afford these pointless things. I am an elite. In such cases, even fundamental laws of supply and demand break down. The high price of a luxury product is the point. If it becomes cheaper, people will buy less of it.