I was waiting for my bus the other day and at the bus stop I saw a homeless guy I've seen around town for a couple years. He was talking to someone else whom I didn't recognize but could tell was not homeless. He was one of those chatty homeless guys who will approach you and start talking about things he thinks you might care about. I've never heard him ask for money, but I've overhead him talking about not having a home and he sure dresses as though he doesn't make much money--not that I'm some fashion plate, mind you. You know what I mean--he wears a jacket with a high school logo on it that suggests he went to school in a city far from California or a pair of stone-washed jeans from the 1980s. One thing he had on his person struck me as very interesting--he had, hanging from his belt, a fake leather cell phone case. The thing is, it was empty. This is how immensely powerful the feeling of inclusion is. The dude is homeless, jobless, probably found his clothes in a dumpster or at best an "Out of the Closet" charity thrift shop. He can't afford a cell phone, but he wants to look like everyone else so bad, he carries around an empty cell phone case. This seems like a pretty good example of how society programs us all to believe that status symbols are important, and that even if we don't have the means to obtain them, at least the trappings are better than nothing. Now, I like a cool gadget, but I don't believe I like a cool gadget because of the "status." Hell, I don't own a car and take the bus around Los Angeles. It's pretty obvious I don't give a crap about status. Still, I'm glad I have a job, a home and something to put inside my cell phone case.
Orignal From: SOCIAL INCLUSION: A POWERFUL THING
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