10 Things You Really, Really Don't Need

[Liberal_in_LA]

10 Things You Really, Really Don't Need

The Great Recession has shifted our shopping habits. Here are some items you might want to do without.

October 15, 2010 Shopping is an adrenaline rush. How else to explain the talking ceramic cat you had to have, or the face cream that you bought because it was guaranteed to return your skin to the hue it had in the womb? Sure, the Great Recession has shifted Americans’ shopping habits, but we’re still a spending force to be reckoned with. Luckily, there are things we just don’t need on this planet. So take a look at some items you might want to trim from your shopping list.

http://www.alternet.org/environment/148474/10_things_you_really%2C_really_don%27t_need/

I disagree with item number 1, the microwave oven. I need mine!

[TBF]

1. I'm in Houston and also need my microwave (and grill) -

but I'll gladly give up the oven in return because I rarely use it (heats up the house too much).

Everything else on the list can go. :)

[blondeatlast]

6. I bought a countertop convection oven (Phoeni). Oh, so worth it. nt

[jeffrey_X]

17. do we have to define the word "need" here?

sorry, but you don't "need" a microwave.

[TBF]

38. Well, true, we don't "need" indoor plumbing either

but it's nice to have.

[jmowreader]

49. You don't "need" hot food either

I get off work at two in the morning, kids--if I want a baked potato with whatever I'm eating, that little bastard is going in the microwave.

[tabatha]

18. Try a Turbo Oven

It does the work of both a microwave and oven.

[TBF]

39. Thank you for that -

I have never heard of a "turbo oven" - just looked it up. I do have a crock pot, but that is slower of course. I used it a lot in the winter especially.

[tabatha]

51. Cannot begin to tell you how useful, it is ...

and it is so easy to clean in comparison to an oven or even a microwave.

It can be slow or fast. And it is very easy to take food from the freezer and straight to the oven to cook.

One can cook using one of the two grills, or in a corningware pot, or use a grill over a corningware pot to make cleaning even easier.

[tblue37]

44. I store pans in my oven. I never use it to cook. nt

[Kadie]

2. I agree with you on the microwave,

I also like my bread machine. :)

The throw pillows can go, have been thinking it about it anyway. Once less thing for the kids to fight over! :D

[Liberal_in_LA]

4. I stopped buying throw pillows long time ago.

[CTyankee]

5. Certain pillows are important as we get older, tho. More support for the back!

Otherwise, you have to bring down bed pillows and that looks pretty awful on a sofa or an armchair...

[Liberal_in_LA]

7. to be clearer...I still have throw pilllows, just stopped buying them on whim

to change colors. stopped chasing after the Crate and Barrel look.

[CTyankee]

9. I so rarely change anything that hasn't worn thin as a dime that I am unaware

of this phenomenon. I just wish I could throw out clothes that I've had for more than 20 years (that I don't wear). I get rid of some, but a lot are still there...

[InvisibleTouch]

76. I'm the same way.

Every time I can manage to divest myself of even one item of clothing (often with a lot of self-talk and coaxing, i.e. "You have another one almost exactly like this"), it's with a sense of triumph and victory. Intellectually I know that most of this stuff I may never wear again, and I'd like to free up the closet space; psychologically I feel like "What if I need it someday?"

[GoneOffShore]

3. The two I disagree with are throw pillows and

anything new from Apple.

Still haven't got an iPad though.

[Warpy]

8. I don't actually need mine, learned to heat stuff

in a Chinese steamer before microwaves got cheap enough to get, but it heats the kitchen more then the micro does but far less than the oven. When the microwave conks out, I might or might not replace it. It's nice but not necessary. The toaster oven, however, is a necessity in summer.

The throw pillows I have on the couch are what I use to prop my head on when I flop down to watch something on TV, usually when I'm too sick to do anything else. They stay.

The rest of that crap never made it through my front door. I have standards. They might be low standards, but I have them.

[silverweb]

10. Sorry, the microwave stays.

THE two things I rely on and use all the time are the microwave and the computer/internet.

I don't have a range or an oven. Kitchen appliances (other than refrig/freezer) consist entirely of (1) a microwave, (2) a toaster/oven/broiler, and (3) an electric cook pot that steams, boils, warms, and everything in between. The second two I could possibly manage without, but not the first.

My computer/internet is work, entertainment, news source, and communications center -- replacing TV, newspapers/magazines, stereo, landline phone, and office commute. (Don't have/need a car, either!)

Don't have any of the other stuff on the list and never did, except maybe a throw pillow or two in ancient days.

[monmouth]

20. The microwave and my moisturizer. Out of my cold dead hands before I give up..n/t

[wickerwoman]

43. Yep, I'd throw away a lot of crap before my microwave too.

I don't have a dishwasher and don't really like to wash pots every time I want oatmeal or hot chocolate.

Plus when I didn't have a kettle, I'd heat water for tea in it a few times a day.

I don't "need" a microwave, but I use it three or four times a day which is more than you can say about a lot of other things.

[HuckleB]

11. I agree, sure I don't "NEED" the microwave, but it does save time.

It makes leftovers work some magic during the week.

Number 7 really shouldn't just focus on Apple. It should be "you don't the latest phone, e-book device, computing gadget of any brand."

[taterguy]

12. They'll pry the automatic toilet flusher in my house from my cold dead fingers

[Liberal Veteran]

54. Is it because your fingers are cold and dead that you need an automatic toilet flusher?

:P

[fishwax]

13. I don't care to give up my bread maker

The microwave I like for the occasional bag of popcorn, and my wife uses it to heat up various things now and then. But I could probably live without it.

The bread machine, though, is a money saver. Yes, I could (and sometimes do) make bread in the oven, but the bread maker has several advantages. The bread I make in the bread machine tastes great, it's easier than making it in the oven, and it saves energy (and therefore saves money). And I can take two minutes to get it going in the morning and have warm, fresh bread waiting when I get home. You can also use it (depending on the model) to bake a cake, and I frequently also use it to save time kneading various doughs for pizza, pretzels, calzones, rolls, etc.

[frazzled]

14. One more thing you really, really don't need

This stupid article, poorly written and neither informative nor witty. Throw pillows? Really?

This was clearly an attempt at humor, but it was epic fail, imo.

[PDJane]

15. Absolutely disagree with the microwave.

However, agree with all the business about hand sanitizers; blasted things are a disaster.

Also would add to that list big screen televisions, 'home entertainment systems', individual portion coffee makers, electric can openers (unless you are disabled), electric drape openers, kitchen televisions, vibrating shower razors, electric things that you push a button and they spray chemicals on your shower stall.....Lord and Lady. There are more electric things for your hair than anyone could ever need, including a hairbrush that, as far as I can determine, would be a danger to anyone with long hair. What in the name of mother nature do you need an electric nail polisher for? How about an electric thing that applies mascara? Not to mention shoes with wheels and lights, pens and pencils that assure you of your own worth, paper that won't take actual, real ink, books that are printed on acid paper and fall apart.........the list goes on. And yes, I really hate ball point pens, especially the ones you can't refill.

I find an electric reader convenient, but would rather have a real book......and that's something I war with my conscience over.

As for clothes and cosmetics, I'm old. I'd rather have four pairs of dress pants, a few skirts, and a few shirts that are classic in cut and durable in material, a couple of leather blazers that will be still going when I'm not, and a coat that will last, than all the stuff made in China. I'm old fashioned, I know, but all those dyes and chemicals are a hazard to our waterways....and leather is less dangerous to the planet than plastic. I have been, in fact, known to make my own clothes rather than buy stuff that falls apart at the seams. Cosmetics are one of the biggest scams on the planet. Currently, I use a shampoo and body wash that is made from botanicals and many fewer chemicals and is not tested on animals, and is biodegradable.....and it's made here in Toronto, so the transportation to get it to me is less, too. Bonus. I do have far too many cosmetics...I'm trying to break myself of that habit.

I have yet to figure out why we need all the 'stuff' that is in stores.

[tridim]

16. An ad on that page is locking up IE and Firefox. Boo ads.

[flvegan]

19. Of those, I only own a microwave....which I hardly use.

If I use it once a week, I'm surprised.

[angstlessk]

21. I will do you one better.if you own a micro and a table top oven..you don't need your greedy OVEN

I cooked a small turkey for thanksgiving last year..and all the fixins on a table top convection oven and microwave...sorry...no need to use the power hungry electric or gas oven to provide the best food for the family

[Dead_Parrot]

22. Microwaves can save you quite a bit of money

compared to cooking with a conventional oven - you're not heating up the whole room when you use it, just the food.

[Curmudgeoness]

23. What do we really need? I am looking around my house

and 99% of what is here I don't NEED. I need food, but not necessarily the food I have. I need shelter. I need my kitties. Oops, I guess that isn't a need.

But just sometimes we want to have something to pamper ourselves with, things of beauty, or just things to make our lives easier.

[Retrograde]

24. I hadn't know electric wine openers existed!

I like screwpulls myself, and screw-on caps.

I'll take any throw pillows the author doesn't want, though.

[the redcoat]

25. What the fuck? They're missing the most important ones!

Helloooo, what about the biggest rip off of the last two decades: bottled water?

Throw pillows? Ok, ignoring the fact that throw pillows are not the kind of thing putting people on the streets, throw pillows (and microwaves) are one-time purchases. What about stuff like having a thousand tv channels when you only watch 10-20?

And why are automatic toilet flushers on the list? Is that really that big of an industry? Come on. Fire whoever wrote this.

[laundry_queen]

78. no kidding.

I can think of many other things that should come first before microwave or bread maker. How about single serving pre-packaged coffee machines? Or those stupid decorative balls of dried straw or whatever the hell they are that everyone (including me) has as a center piece on their tables? Or those portable dvd players kids have now, you know, the ones parents take on the plane with them. (Yeah, we own that too.) Or umpteen video game consoles. I have a Wii. Love it! Don't need it. Dvr's and Pvr's (whatever your cable/satellite provider calls them). Awesomely convenient. Totally not needed. I'd give that up before my microwave! I've lived without a microwave for a few weeks here and there - it's pretty difficult. Reheating stuff takes ten times as long and probably uses forty times the energy. I go without my oven before I'd give up my microwave or bread maker. And why do we need a single gadget for everything under the sun? Why on earth would someone need a waffle maker, sandwich maker, pizza maker, crepe maker, ice cream maker, a weiner roaster AND a panini toaster. And why not throw in that electric rechargeable salt and pepper mill?

Anyhow....yeah. A zillion other things I'd say were stupid before I'd pick the microwave.

[DireStrike]

83. I don't know which is more disgusting...

The fact that someone got paid to write this, or the fact that that probably means there is an audience for this.

[jmm]

26. I'd lover to add gadgets with limited uses to that list.

Does anybody really need a kitchen tool specifically designed to sliced only bananas, or only strawberries, or only an avocado?

[JitterbugPerfume]

27. I have one or two of those

they are called knives! The only thing on that on that list that I own is a microwave and I rarely use it.

The throw pillows went to GoodWill a long time ago.

[Raine]

28. I'd NEVER give up my microwave oven

one of the best inventions ever, IMO!

[Edweird]

29. All I have to cook with is a microwave and a grill. I need my microwave.

[hunter]

30. What a stupid list. Eco what???

The very first damned thing we don't need is automobiles.

We ought to be rebuilding the nation right now so that most people don't "need" cars. If we don't there will be hell to pay.

We don't need factory farmed meat either.

That was a whole lot of trivial there on that list.

[taterguy]

59. If people have to walk more than a block, they think they "need" a car

At least in my neighborhood.

But yes, restructuring the way we get around would do a lot more for the planet than getting rid of throw pillows.

[Lyric]

31. I have two things on that list

A microwave and the old accent pillows that came with my used sofa. And the pillows are very small.

[Warpy]

60. If they'd specified the dozen or so useless throw pillows

decorators are insisting we need cluttering our beds, they'd have had a point. Those are the most annoying and useless tchotchkes designers have come up with in a very long time, eating time morning and night arranging them and then getting rid of them in order to sleep.

A couple of them on the couch are great, good for propping your head on when you're really flaked out in front of the TV.

The mountain of them on the bed has got to go.

[Lyric]

67. No throw pillows on our bed, thankfully.

Just the ones we actually use to sleep.

[texastoast]

32. Mikey and breadmaker stay

They use less energy.

[GoCubsGo]

69. Yep. The author probably does not cook for one or live in a hot area

I do a lot of re-heating, since I am the only one here. There is no way in hell I'm going to fire up my big oven in the middle of August here in South Carolina to reheat a plate of food. Or,to bake a loaf of bread. With a bread machine, I can have fresh bread in the middle of summer, without taxing my air conditioner.

Furthermore, since I can re-heat on the plate/dish from which I will eat, I won't waste water washing a pot or pan. Ditto for steaming vegetables. I often store my leftovers in the same pot in which I steamed/microwaved them.

I really do not understand the disdain so many people have for microwaves. Yeah, you can do all that on your stove. You can wash your clothes with a washboard and wash tub, too. So what?

And, having made bread the conventional way, I assure you that a bread machine takes up far less of your time. I'm guessing the author forgets the kneading part, or she just doesn't have a clue as to what goes into bread-making.

[Touchdown]

33. I got into a debate about freezer on the top fridges being more efficient.

The statistics are that they last half again longer and use less energy than side by side or refrigerator on top models. The theory behind that is that the freezer is colder and filters down to the fridge so the compresser doesn't have to work as hard.

BUT! It is also said that we access the fridge 20-30 times more than we get into the freezer. However, in most models, it is the freezer that is eye level and easier to access, where the fridge requires us to bend and twist our necks to look inside (those of us who aren't 3 years old). So if a bottom freeze lasts 10 years and a top freeze lasts 15, that is a tremendous savings over time. But we should compare that to the surgeries, physical therapies and lost work time, because we threw our back out bending over to pull a heavy pot roast out of the bottom shelf, just to save those 5 years, as opposed to pulling that roast out of a shelf that is chest level.

I choose freezer on the bottom.

[WolverineDG]

35. I have a bottom freezer for the same reason

when I bought my house 10 years ago, it was really hard to find a bottom freezer model & I was looked at as though I had sprouted another head & my skin was green just for asking. Finally found one though. Since then, I've seen more & more such models available.

dg

[tammywammy]

41. I have a French door model

LOVE IT! I got it a year and a half ago. Freezer on the bottom was my top priority, and it had to be a roll out style not the kind with a door on the bottom. A LG model went waaay on sale so I ended up with the French door style.

[Dappleganger]

72. This is what we have.

And yes, I have had neck surgery and currently have herniated lower discs so bending is a big issue. We bought a Samsung awhile ago that was being discontinued and it holds quite a bit of food (although we pushed the old fridge into the garage for overflow).

[petronius]

34. A list of things you don't need, and herpes doesn't even crack the top 10?

Tough competition... :shrug:

Kind of a strawman list, really - I've never heard anyone call any of those things a "need" (actually, some of those things, I've never even heard of). Sounds like the writer just came up with a list of 10 trivial things she doesn't particularly want, and slapped on some snarky comments. Well, nine trivial things - the animal-tested beauty products is worth discussing and doesn't really fit with the others (but I suspect she added that one as an attempt to gain some undeserved gravitas)...

[IDemo]

36. "skin to the hue it had in the womb"?

Beet red? :shrug:

[laundry_queen]

79. Blue actually.

Yes that would look real perty.

[IDemo]

37. delete -dupt post

[JVS]

40. I was able to live without a microwave in my last apartment but I had a toaster oven.

Eventually my neighbor moved away and I had bought a lamp from him. Later he came over with the microwave, I offered $15 and he accepted.

[TwilightGardener]

42. Need my microwave too (AND it serves as my cooktop vent).

That's how my teenagers make their Hot Pockets and Easy Mac and leftovers, when they're on their own for dinner. And how would I reheat my coffee (without a "burnt" taste)? There's a line between giving up little wasteful luxuries, and totally traveling back in time, or becoming Amish. Just silly.

[shimmergal]

45. I too disagree about the microwave.

But there are plenty of other items beyond the remaining nine that we could easily do without.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

46. Badly written article.

The author didn't think about using a conventional oven, which heats up the house, and then you have to use the air conditioning to cool the house back down. But the author probably lives in New England instead of Texas.

I need my microwave oven. It keeps me from heating up the house.

No bread machine -- I have a big powerful Cuisinart that I make yeast bread in. Saves a lot of effort and is fast. Of course, if it's yeast bread you still have to let it rise and bake it.

Electric can openers -- some people have trouble getting enough force in their hands to crank a can opener. The plastic they wrap a lot of things in is like iron, and you gotta have scissors and knives to get in them.

The rest of the stuff I agree with. I have a sofa with two throw pillows on it. I use them to sit on the floor for some cushioning, sometimes.

[Incitatus]

47. Microwave is #1 on their list? That's ridiculous.

Not only can it heat food in less time, it uses less energy and doesn't heat up your house like an oven does.

Most of the list makes sense, but microwave, WTF?

[csziggy]

48. I'm not getting rid of my microwave or my bread machine!

The microwave is the only way I know to cook vegetables just the way we like them - still slightly crisp. The only way they come out for my when cooked on the stove top is mushy. The microwave is also the best way to reheat most leftovers which are an essential part of my meal planning.

And while I am not using my bread machine much right now, that $10 investment (from a battered women's thrift shop) got me back in the habit of bread making. It's up in the cupboard right now only because I found a vintage Hoabrt Kitchen Aid mixer in nearly mint condition on Craig's List ($80) and I'm making bread with it. But if I get laid up again, I can have hubby get down the bread machine and let it do all the work with little effort.

Somebody in the thread mentioned electric can openers as useless - for me it is a necessity since some days my thumbs don't bend and I can't use a hand crank can opener.

[PDJane]

50. That was me........

with the caveat that if you are disabled (read arthritic) you get a pass on that one.

I don't buy pills in those child proof bottles either; there are no children in this house and none who come to visit, and I'm not going to struggle every day so that a hypothetical visitor doesn't have to watch his or her child. I, too, have arthritis in my hands.

There are a lot of things that are useful for some that are a general waste of time, however!

[SoCalDem]

62. I LOVE my new can opener... Best one I ever had

Hamilton Beach 76606 Pop-Top Electric Can Opener, Black and Chrome



Deluxe can opener opens all can types- including pop-tops with the side cutting action that lifts the can top off and leaves a smooth edge . Large ergonomic lever is easy to operate. Extra tall design in black & Chrome to fit any kitchen décor .

[Stevenmarc]

88. I'm with you on this one

Obviously the author doesn't have a bread machine, sure I could, and do, bake bread without it but if you want to wake up a freshly baked loaf of bread you're going to have a hard time without one, well unless you have a personal chef and they're a tad pricier.

If all I used the Microwave for was making microwave potato chips it would be worth it.

[Mudoria]

52. Other than the microwave I don't have any of those things...

and the 'wave gets used every day so it is something I need.

[MrScorpio]

53. I need mine too

The rest, not so much.

[Odin2005]

55. I agree with everything there except the microwave.

[WinkyDink]

56. This stupid junior-high-quality essay would top my list.

[TheManInTheMac]

57. I don't need this stuff, and I don't need *you*.

And that's the only thing I need is *this*. I don't need this or this. Just this ashtray... And this paddle game. - The ashtray and the paddle game and that's all I need... And this remote control. - The ashtray, the paddle game, and the remote control, and that's all I need... And these matches. - The ashtray, and these matches, and the remote control, and the paddle ball... And this lamp. - The ashtray, this paddle game, and the remote control, and the lamp, and that's all *I* need. And that's *all* I need too. I don't need one other thing, not one... I need this. - The paddle game and the chair, and the remote control, and the matches for sure. Well what are you looking at? What do you think I'm some kind of a jerk or something! - And this. That's all I need.

The ashtray, the remote control, the paddle game, and this magazine, and the chair.

And I don't need one other thing, except my dog.

I don't need my dog.

[bvar22]

58. I'll keep the microwave.

It saves energy.

My list of 10 things nobody needs would be MUCH tougher:

*A house in the suburbs

*A lawn

*More than one TV (or none)

*Hand held texting devices

*More than one credit card (and that one preferably a debit card)

*Wall Street

*Las Vegas

*High Fructose Corn Syrup

*Genetically modified Franken Food

*Fast Foods

*Anything with headphones worn in public

[SoCalDem]

61. Your list is pretty much like mine, except

I DO enjoy my annual trek to Vegas :P

I would add cell phones to your list:)

[uncommon]

68. Just an aside - a debit card is NOT a credit card.

You can't rent a car with a debit card unless you have good credit - something people with 0 credit cards are unlikely to be able to build.

That said, judicious use is vital.

[bvar22]

70. I rent cars, motel rooms, and make internet purchases with MY debit card.

It has a little VISA emblem on the front,
but it IS a "debit card".
If the funds are NOT in my checking account, the card is declined.
There is no credit available.

[Marengo]

73. Ouch! Good thing you're not in charge ;)

My backyard is crucial for maintaining my sanity.

[bvar22]

77. Backyards aren't a problem.

Chemically treated, pesticide/herbicide laden artificial "lawns" are a big environmental problem.
I have spent time exiled in the suburbs.
Backyards ARE a refuge for sanity.

[Marengo]

87. Understand and agree N/T

[kctim]

63. The number one thing I need

is for know it all jackasses to stop believing they have any clue at all about what is best for me and what they think I need.

[Ignis]

64. Somewhat silly overall, but #7 is spot on.

:thumbsup:

[uncommon]

65. Bread machines are WAY faster than making bread by hand. Clearly the author has never done so.

Other than that, I agree, although I find the microwave to be a very useful convenience.

[AmandaMae]

66. My oven has been broken for years. I think I'll keep my microwave.

[slackmaster]

71. Fuck fucking fucktards who fucking try to fucking tell other people what the fuck they don't need

The fuck.

[begin_within]

74. I would argue that the microwave can save you money

If you need to heat a small amount of something, you can do it in a minute or less in a microwave, versus several minutes or longer on the stove or in an oven. So I'm guessing that the microwave would use less energy in total to heat the same amount of food, therefor it would result in lower cost to you. Probably not that much of a difference, but if you cook batches of something and then microwave individual servings later, you could save a significant amount on energy usage.

[kgnu_fan]

75. I don't have any of them.

[Gabi Hayes]

80. some things we really don't need: PATRIOT Act, charter schools, union busting, outsourcing,

privatization of EVERYthing

stuff like that

DINOs, Citizens United, legalized bribery (read corporate funding of political campaigns), neo-fascists on the SCOTUS, Sarah Palin speaking every time you change news channels, FOX news giving millions to republicans

[zorahopkins]

81. How About Telephones, Cars, and Computers?

No one "really" needs a telephone.

If you need to contact someone, just sit down and write a letter, and then have the US Post Office deliver it.

No one "really" needs a car.

If you need to go somewhere, then walk or take public transportation or bicycle. Or buy a horse.

And no one "really" needs a computer.

:sarcasm:

[stuntcat]

82. I only use hand sanitizer when I'm travelling!

It does seem like a waste but at least it's in a recyclable bottle. Anyway I only buy it like twice a year!

I need my microwave, but not the rest!

I get all my clothes at Goodwill (except undies!) and most of my furniture is used too.

[ProfessorGAC]

84. Some of These Are Just Silly

But, i am really concerned about hand sanitizers. I think washing provides nearly equal efficacy and doesn't encourage evolutionary development of stronger germs.

I also think the motion activiated thing has gone too far. Toilets, sinks, paper towel dispensers. That's going overboard. Is it really that hard to pull on the lever for a paper towel?

And, to be honest, i've never heard of an electric wine bottle opener. I didn't even know they existed.
GAC

[JerseygirlCT]

85. Yeah, I agree with you

I use my microwave daily.

The rest? Can live without.

[guardian]

86. Why is it that some people

feel the need to tell others what they need or don't need. It is interesting how the things people "don't need" are always the things unimportant to the person telling others they don't need them.

Narcissism at it's finest.