Consumerism is like a bad gossip. It searches for its next topic or the latest "cool" news and latches on to it. It bleeds it dry by encouraging people to believe its stories and advice. When the topic is no longer an interest, it's on to the next best or more popular thing. Consumerism is very in the moment; one minute men are simple creatures that don't have to do much to look hot, next they need more product or finer clothes for them to be superior and sexy. For men, consumerism tried to create a complete new market and concept to make more money: the metrosexual man. Metrosexual men are men who take good care of themselves and aren't afraid to buy many products for fear of being "gay". Consumerism bled women dry using their insecurities to sell products, why not switch to men?
Consumerism uses gender and manipulates it to feed the market and shake things up. Women are portrayed as creatures that can always be worked on or molded; it's never enough. The market loves this! They invented it! These new insecurities ensure these women will come back time and time again for their "necessary" products. Consumerism sat there on its high thrown and saw the women emptying their wallets while men huddled in the corner playing cards and video games. What did consumerism decide to do about that? It spread a rumor that men were "allowed" to buy clothes and products and not be labeled as "gay". It generously crossed the "female" ideas on shopping toward the men in a way that was deemed acceptable. This hybrid made materialism universal, also. No longer are just women labeled as materialistic and needy. Men can now be obsessed with their latest gel or finest suits. The gap was filled between materialistic woman and simple men but slowly it is beginning to separate again. In current times, men are reverting back to the simplicity of being hot. Consumerism got its fill for a while of the men's insecurities, I guess it's time for them to move on and latch on to their new hot topic to gossip about.
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