Frugal advertising. . . .

I've noticed that the words 'recession', 'economy', and 'savings' are popping up a lot in the media; however, it also looks like advertisers are actually using these same words to their benefit, to make us feel more comfortable spending at current (or higher) levels during a time when Americans should really be socking away their extra cash in an emergency fund.

The New York Times has a great article that discusses this very issue. Wal-Mart (a place I try to avoid at all costs. . . .) is creating advertising that urges consumers to: “Save money. Live better.” Meanwhile, other businesses, large and small, are using the current economy (which is shaky at best) to tweak our attitudes about spending money. We can "save" money by eating a "Sammie" at Quiznos rather than visiting Subway, we can buy a brand new Nissan that will, again, "save" us money at the pump.

The elephant in the room is the fact that by bringing our own sandwich from home and continuing to drive the five year old (or, in my case 11-year old) car that gets average gas mileage (or, God forbid, using public transportation) we can REALLY save. I suppose it's not surprising to me that advertisers and marketing experts have their own bottom line in mind, rather than advertising true frugality that will help more Americans get ahead financially. It's a short term approach---after all, who will buy all of these products when we're all foreclosed-upon, bankrupt, or have exceeded our credit limits. . .