“Next to hydrogen, stupidity is the most common thing in the universe” -Albert Einstein
Recklessly wasteful, spendthrift, uneconomic, extravagant…these are all terms that could be lumped together as ‘anti-thrift.’ In an effort to create a word that is the polar opposite of ‘thrift,’ we have to look at the definition of thrift. Minimalism is associated with thrift. Frugality is related, but thrifty doesn’t mean cheap. One popular American poster from 1929 stated, “Real thrift is the saving and intelligent use of health, time, and property of all kinds, including money.” So, if we are to use this definition then ‘Anti-Thrift’ could be defined as, ‘the stupid use of health, time, and property of all kinds, including money.’ Squandering resources is the opposite of being thrifty.
However, we also have to look at the prefix ‘anti’ more closely. Basically, it means opposed to or against, opposite of, or preventing.
To boil it all down, in this ongoing description of what we’ve decided to call ‘Anti-Thrift,’ we will discuss individuals, businesses, and governments from history and around the world who have been recklessly or stupidly wasteful with resources of all sorts, including but not limited to, health, time, and property, which includes money. There should be no shortage of material.
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