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doctorwho42 4 hours ago

Lower cost of living and higher incomes when compared to purchasing power of a dollar.

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armchairhacker 3 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Do you have sources? Because my understanding is that medium income/inflation increased

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joe_mamba 4 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

That and also people weren't paying for Netflix, Disney+, PlayStation online, ChatGPT+, etc

Edit: Also people were having more kids back then and earlier in life, so they had less time for hobbies and "finding one's self", they'd be busy with their kids and work.

The bored DINKS with free time looking for hobbies is a relatively recent phenomenon in western societies (10-15 years).

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ninth_ant 3 hours ago | parent | next [-]

> That and also people weren't paying for Netflix, Disney+, PlayStation online, ChatGPT+, etc

Its disingenuous to describe those new expenses without considering those that largely have been replaced.

It used to be normal to pay for cable TV which was outrageously expensive. They used to go to movie theatres on a regular basis, and collect physical media for movies and music and games and tv. Etc.

	▲	ghaff an hour ago \| parent [-]
		And pay $1 a minute for long distance and even not so long distance calls. Not sure how everything balances out inflation and function adjusted but not convinced entertainment is broadly more expensive these days.

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simianparrot 3 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Nobody needs to pay for any of that

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joe_mamba 3 hours ago | parent [-]

Says who? Please define your definition of the word "needs" here in this context.

With this logic, nobody also "needs" to buy a Ford F-250 Super Duty, a MacBook Pro M5, an RTX 5090, a recreational boat, drink Starbucks daily, etc if your definition of "needs" is just limited to day survival meaning just providing food and shelter but nothing more, and yet people buy them anyway, because it's entertainment, not because they need them to survive.

People will still want escapism and entertainment ESPECIALLY when their lives suck, like in times of economic depression, be it cigarettes, booze, junk food, porn, games, gambling, movies and TV shows, etc, even if you think people don't "need" them. This is how people function. It's scientifically documented.

	▲	dgellow 3 hours ago \| parent [-]
		What a stretch to go from cars and luxury laptop to daily survival

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nickthegreek 3 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

People were paying $150/mo cable bill.

	▲	AlexandrB 9 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		Don't forget that's $150/month in 90s dollars! It's like having a $300/month subscription to streaming services today.