Are you familiar with Thorstein Veblen? I guess some background is in order because a family member made a casual reference to him several years ago, and I had never heard of him. He said Veblen was known for his 1899 book titled The Theory of the Leisure Class. The genesis of the conversation was “conspicuous consumption,” which Veblen went into great detail about in his book.
I highly recommend The Theory of the Leisure Class as I find much of it very applicable today, 127 years later. Veblen actually gets into how there are two varieties of the leisure class: the aristocracy and the bums. There is some symbiosis between both groups in that the bums will accept handouts and other gestures of resources and policy. The ruling class, be it the donor class or the political elite, are happy to use the bums as tools whenever the opportunity to advance their agendas presents itself. Goodlander(a trust funder from the Tamposi family) is one such person. Goodlander’s campaign is conspicuous consumption on full display.
Would Goodlander ever live modestly, even if she wanted to? I think not. She was born into privilege and is incapable of practicing “vulgar thrift,” a way of life Veblen mentions as an object of disdain for the wealthy leisure class. Look at her campaign war chest, which is certainly not just her own money. I have to say that just for the record. As for vulgar thrift, consider Lily Tang Williams. She was born to illiterate peasants in China and borrowed $100 to immigrate in 1988, earned every penny of what she has of her own personal money and what she fundraised as a candidate. She knows the value of a dollar and will bring that much-needed stewardship of the public treasury to Capitol Hill. Remember that the House has the power of the purse.
Lily has lamented about how expensive campaign signs have gotten, especially the large ones, and that’s what inspired this article. As a volunteer member of Team Lily, I’m here to tell readers about our strategy on dealing with the ubiquitous and expensive clusters of Goodlander signs. I’m not talking about signs on private property. To be clear, one should always get permission to place signs there. I’m talking about excessive roadside eyesores that could technically disappear without notice if the highway department or local public works decides to round them up.
Remember that hundreds of dollars’ worth of campaign materials suddenly disappearing is small change to Goodlander. It’s usually one of her giant signs on the side of a highway that’s not “closed access,” and they’re accompanied by a multitude of small “trash bag style” signs. Our strategy is to place JUST ONE Lily sign in a visible spot among the Goodlander cluster.
The message that motorists will hopefully receive is that Goodlander represents conspicuous consumption and Lily will be just as judicious and frugal with how public funds are spent as you would be with your own money. Please consider keeping a few Lily signs in your trunk, even if you vote in that darling OTHER district, and stopping to place one among any Goodlander clusters that you see without a Lily sign nearby. Be a team player. This is an easy way to do your part.
