What I couldn’t help but notice with Your Mileage May Vary was just how dedicated and infatuated these individuals were with coupon clipping and the general lifestyle of consumerism. The assumed stipulation here is that they are not spending as much money as the rest of us, therefore their colossal piles of Lipton Iced Tea and other products are, well, less materialistic.
On the commentary, Pocker and others from his YMMV Radio program discuss the purpose for making the film. Essentially Pocker, a “stand-up economist,” wanted something to go along with his Retail Anarchy book (which I will also be reviewing soon). The documentary is another aspect, presenting a “more positive” presentation, and there is also a live show. By the by, YMMV Radio is a talk show about bargains, coupons, deals, and freebies.
As I watched individual after individual discuss their coupon collecting techniques, their shopping approach, their coupon club meetings, and so forth, I couldn’t help but shake the feeling that this was just another form of consumerist hysteria.
There are some documentary subjects who boast encyclopaedic knowledge of coupons, right down to the numerical codes on the coupons themselves that inform them as to whether or not the coupons will double at the cash register. I couldn’t imagine being that ill-fated cashier.
Most individuals featured in Pocker’s film ask why other people don’t do what they do. Everybody could be saving an awful lot of money, we’re told, and we could receive free diapers for years. The rub is, of course, that the Culture of Coupons depends on a select few taking the time to do what they do. Corporations do not lose money on purpose and, when the money begins to dribble out of their coffers, the CEOs and fat cats are not going to be the ones to foot the bill.
What would happen if the majority of shoppers practiced the Culture of Coupons’ philosophy and began to receive free goods or pay nickels and dimes for what others pay dollars for? Would the retail industry be thrown into anarchy? Somehow I don’t think so, although it may be interesting to find out. From where I sit, there would be layoffs of the lower level staff and many young kids working in retail 35 hours a week for obscenely low wages and no health benefits would be the first to lose.
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