When Does Collecting Become Overconsumption?

Collecting and consumerism is a fine line that people can't seem to tell when they've crossed it until they've already overshot it. People have been collecting trinkets and memorabilia since we invented fire. However, in the era of late-stage capitalism, we've kinda hit a point of absurd excess. You've seen the trends online. If you haven't, I gotta ask you, how was your trip living with the Amish for the last 4+ years? Labubus are today what Beanie Babies were in the 90s. However the difference now is we have injected gambling culture into the mix with the upswing in mystery box toys like the aforementioned Labubus. You'll have people going fucking ape shit over these $5 squishy bun surprise box things. Kids I can understand, but you've got adults doing this shit and often stepping over children to get their grubby mitts on whatever the latest tiktok trend is. Usually it's middle-aged, petite-bourgeois white women doing this kinda shit. Men got their own demons with Pokémon cards.…