In cheap we trust : the story of a misunderstood American virtue

Considers our hot-and-cold relationship with thrift and offers a colorful ride through its history in America, from Ben Franklin and his famous maxims to the branding of Jews and the Chinese as cheap in order to neutralize the economic competition they represented. 'The crowd approved the doctrine, and immediately practiced the contrary' -- A nation of savers -- 'What use can a woman have for arithmetic?' -- Cheap Jews and thrifty Chinese -- 'Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without' -- Lively golf balls and two-Ford freedom : the postwar years -- Spendthrift nation -- Eco-cheap -- Living cheap in the age of mass consumption -- Cheapskate psychology -- Conclusion Cheap. Cheap suit. Cheap date. Cheap shot. It's a dirty word, an epithet laden with negative meanings. It is also the story of Lauren Weber's life. As a child, she resented her father for keeping the heat at 50 degrees through the frigid New England winters and rarely using his car's turn signals-to keep them from burning out. But as an adult, when she found herself walking 30 blocks to save $2 on subway fare, she realized she had turned into him. In this lively treatise on the virtues of being cheap, Weber explores provocative questions about Americans' conflicted relationship with consumption and frugality. Why do we ridicule people who save money? Where's the boundary between thrift and miserliness? Is thrift a virtue or a vice during a recession? And was it common sense or obsessive-compulsive disorder that made her father ration the family's toilet paper? In answering these questions, In Cheap We Trust offers a colorful ride through the history of frugality in the United States. Readers will learn the stories behind Ben Franklin and his famous maxims, Hetty Green (named "the world's greatest miser" by the Guinness Book of Records) and the stereotyping of Jewish and Chinese immigrants as cheap. Weber also explores contemporary expressions and dilemmas of thrift. From Dumpster-diving to economist John Maynard Keynes's "Paradox of Thrift" to today's recession-driven enthusiasm for frugal living, In Cheap We Trust teases out the meanings of cheapness and examines the wisdom and pleasures of not spending every last penny. The people approved the doctrine, and immediately practiced the contrary A nation of savers "What use can a woman have for arithmetic?" Cheap Jews and thrifty Chinese War, depression and sacrifice Lively golf balls and two-Ford freedom : the post-war years Spendthrift nation Eco-cheap Adventures in low-cost living: economic rebellion in the age of mass consumption Cheapskate psychology Conclusion.