So, hobbies. You're talking about hobbies.

No, he talks about status signalling.

They might pass the time doing those things, but not as a mere passtime or hobby, like if they were sewing or playing CoD. Unlike those, doing them and telling about doing them serves a specific social purpose.

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jvanderbot 3 hours ago | parent [-]

I'm not arguing with you - you have a valid point.

But I don't view hobbies as that separate from status signals within the hobbying group. Oh you play games? What games? Did you beat it? etc etc.

Esoteric knowledge/practices here are status signls (Oh you reached shattered planet without xyz??).

That starts to sound a lot like "Oh you aquired a lambo XYZ without usual steps abc" and that's a really fun convo in the in-group, and a total miss with the out-group.

	▲	coldtea an hour ago \| parent [-]
		>But I don't view hobbies as that separate from status signals within the hobbying group. The difference though is that this is not meant to serve "within the hobbying group". They serves the status signal purpose when showing them to "laymen" and other rich people in general, not necessarily to other expensive car buyers or luxury watch buyers. In other words, the, typically quiet, flaunting, is done to people otherwise uninterested about the specific ting, that nonetheless recognize the exclusivity and the knowledge that it's a subtle signal of "elevated taste" and that they belong to the tasteful-rich club.

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scubbo 2 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

I have several hobbies, and none of them revolve around artifical scarcity or gatekeeping.

(Well, the way that _some_ people play Magic: The Gathering does - but I wouldn't want to play with anyone who raised a stink about proxies)

	▲	jvanderbot 2 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Look, I dont want to be argumentative, but my (perhaps cynical) view on people who say they don't do status signaling when they "avoid status signaling" is it's just like the fish who goes "what's water"? It's worth thinking about whether you're doing it by accident.