I vividly remember the moment the IPhone 4 was released. This combination of glass, metal and computer chips become more coveted than the tablets on which the Ten Commandments were carved. Everyone was suddenly unreasonably jealous of the people that possessed the newest and greatest phone of all time. In reality, there was good reason to be jealous, the technology was pretty incredible. Even though I never had that phone, it affected me unlike any other piece of similar technology. All of a sudden, the phone was the talk of the school, the national news, and pretty soon the world.  But that was several years ago.

Around a year after the IPhone 4 was released, came the IPhone 4S. I don’t remember that release nearly as well. I am convinced I don’t recall its existence very well because I never had one, and the frequency of new products like Apple’s phones made the release unexciting for me. For those who bought it, the 4S represented a new beginning, or that’s what Apple wanted them to believe. In reality,  most people who purchased the new phone couldn’t tell you five things that made it better than the IPhone 4. Logically, it makes sense that the buyers were not attracted to the phone because it was so much better than anything else; they sought the attention that a new piece of technology brings. In other words, materialism.

I am not against materialism at all. In fact, I believe it is a great thing. The drive to have more of anything allows people to have ambitions. Everyone at St. Paul Academy is becoming educated to make money, and then spend it on whatever they so desire. Materialism has so many benefits for everyone, like offering many forms of employment, thus generating more drive for newer better objects.

In short, while I may not care about the future of Apple’s products, possibly like an IPhone 8, I do care about maintaining a materialistic consumer base.