14 Eye-Opening Posts That'll Make You Hate Capitalism Even More Than You Already Do

    Dry January should also mean taking a break from consumerism.

    Daniella Emanuel
    by Daniella Emanuel

    BuzzFeed Staff

    Black Friday and Christmas might be behind us, but buying "stuff" is definitely alive and well in the New Year. Here are 14 photos from r/Anticonsumption that'll make you think twice before your next unnecessary purchase:

    1. This revelation about forests:

    "When you understand that under capitalism a forest has no value until it's cut down, you begin to understand the root of our ecological crises"
    u/Zxasuk31 / Via reddit.com

    2. This creepy realization about the "minimalism" trend:

    "Minimalism is a scam created by big small to sell more less"
    u/stormbeard1 / Via reddit.com

    3. This devastating story stemming from obscene pharmacy prices in the US:

    "Diabetic groom-to-be dies after taking cheaper insulin to pay for wedding" post, with prices of insulin in countries around the world, ranging from $0 in Norway, and Scotland to $51 in Greece and $700 in the US
    u/lemongrasssmell / Via reddit.com

    4. This disturbing sign in Dubai:

    "Because when I shop the world gets better"
    u/MissDastardly / Via reddit.com

    5. This upsetting image of Times Square after New Year's Eve:

    Times Square with the street covered with a massive amount of colorful debris
    u/kenobrien73 / Via reddit.com

    6. This person who owns an unreasonable number of water bottles:

    A kitchen counter with an array of water bottles with silicone covers in different colors: "Discovered Bkr water bottles back in March, ended up becoming obsessed with the many different colors, so I started collecting them"
    u/Silent-Composer-873 / Via reddit.com

    7. These "old person traits" that are completely valid:

    Several "My old person trait is that" comments, including "I think a website should work in a web browser and not try to open an app" and "I think when I purchase a product, it should be complete and functional and I should actually own it"
    u/adhereczxcscsa / Via reddit.com

    8. This painful dichotomy:

    "Me: *sipping from a mushy straw to help save the environment* and Billionaires:" (with a photoshopped image of a huge yacht on top of a jet airplane)
    u/ClearAd3159 / Via reddit.com

    9. This overwhelming visual of private jets departing Arizona after the Super Bowl last year:

    A map of the US with many lines extending out from Arizona across the country
    u/Bernhardstock / Via reddit.com

    10. This Christmas tree rental service that makes you wonder why this isn't more common:

    "London Christmas tree rental lets you RENT a tree in a pot; in Jan he goes back to live on a farm (can get the same one back next year); when he reaches 7 ft he 'retires' and gets planted in a forest"
    u/Brrrrrrtttt_t / Via reddit.com

    11. This dumpster overflowing with frozen food and meat:

    A dumpster overflowing with frozen pizzas, shrimp, chopped meat, and other food
    u/ToughMeasurement7053 / Via reddit.com

    12. This dramatic pro-consumerism sign in Denver:

    "Nothing haunts us like the things we didn't buy"
    u/[deleted] / Via reddit.com

    13. This eyesore ocean advertisement in Miami:

    A boat with a holographic sign at the beach
    u/_Hologrxphic / Via reddit.com

    14. And finally, this boiling-hot tea about the term "ugly":

    "If you're feeling down about how you look today, just remember 'ugly' is some made-up bullshit by capitalism fueled by greed in a system designed to make us see flaws that don't exist to sell us things we don't need to fix it"
    u/coffeeblossom / Via reddit.com