internal medicine book|The Six Minute Book Summary of Lauren Weber?s In Cheap We Trust: The Story of a Misunderstood American Virtue

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|The Six Minute Book Summary of Lauren Weber?s In Cheap We Trust: The Story of a Misunderstood American Virtue

Executive Summary

            Lauren Weber bases the book, In Cheap We Trust, on a concept that she knows well from her own childhood experiences. Her father was a frugal man and though she considered him cheap at the time, she would later pick up some of the same, or similar, habits that she didn’t understand as a child. Weber traces the word cheap back to its origins and shows us how it was turned into a term of derision. Through stories of frugality and consumer spending in the past and relation of frugality to the world we live in now, Weber takes us on a journey of thrift.

            Though we often hear the phrase, “a return to thrift,” our past is not a solid history of devoted cheapskates as we may assume. History is instead a cycle of spending and saving. The earliest settlers may have been frugal, but this was more of a necessity than a choice. From the earliest years to the present, Americans found a way to be thrifty when the times demanded it, but were quick to jump back into spending when the opportunity arose.

            Through the last few decades, our spending has grown more than ever before. Our savings have dropped and our debts have multiplied. We are consumption hogs in comparison to other countries with seemingly no plan to change our ways. We spend more and save less, even as the debt of our country grows to unimaginable amounts. We consume and waste, knowing that our waste is doing nothing to help our environment.

            While most of our citizens are freely spending, there are those who decide to rebel against the majority and to be sensible with their money. There are a variety of different types of frugality. There are those who simply try not to waste. There are some who refuse to buy new goods (other than food or medicine). There are even those who “dumpster-dive” for food rather than pay high prices while good food is going to waste in our country every day.

            The psychological drive behind this thrift is an amazing story in itself. Some research studies have proven that people feel anxiety, and even a slight amount of pain, when required to spend money. That, along with guilt and fear, aid in stopping a portion of the population from caving in to the pressures of society to consume.

            There are many things that we can easily do to help save our environment, better our economy, and secure our own financial futures. Some of the simplest methods could help us stop the historical cycle of spending and keep our country and our citizens on track for saving and an altogether better future.

The Ten Things Managers Need to Know fromIn Cheap We Trust

1.            The word “cheap” has evolved from originally meaning tradesman, to becoming a term of derision.

2.            Women had an early role as the “budgeters” for the family. They had to learn how to reuse and not be wasteful.

3.            There are many stereotypes, generalizing certain cultures as cheap. These stereotypes are often untrue.

4.            War has throughout history, been a big driver for the back and forth cycle of thrift and spending.

5.            A large percentage of people are unprepared for emergency or retirement in terms of savings. Many people don’t save at all.

6.            By being frugal, we can also help our environment.

7.            Fresh food is thrown out every day, and salvaged by groups of people who want to be more frugal.

8.            According to research, thoughts of purchasing items can cause anxiety and even pain for some people. Frugality is also driven by guilt and fear.

9.            It is possible to break the cycle of spending and saving. The spreading of knowledge about how consumption effects our environment may be what it takes to finally break the cycle.

10.            There are many little things we can do to be more frugal and save more. By doing so, we help our environment, we can help our country, and we can secure our own financial futures.

Full Summary of In Cheap We Trust

Cheap Thrills

In this chapter, Lauren Weber introduces us to the topic of thrift by telling stories about her father’s thrifty ways throughout her childhood. He saved money by turning off lights, hand washing dishes, reusing tea bags, and even by attempting to monitor toilet paper usage. He did all of this to save, yet still indulged in expenses such as gas for long drives and expensive college tuition for his children. Weber also tells us that though she resented these things as a child, she now sees this quality in herself as well.

Weber tells us about the origins of the word cheap. “It derives from the Latin word caupo, or tradesman; evolved into the noun ceap (a trade) in Old English; and came to be used in Middle English mostly in the phrase “good chepe,” meaning “good bargain” or “good price.” The opposite phrase was not “bad chepe” but “dear chepe,” which referred to high prices. By the sixteenth century, cheap was employed, without judgment, as a synonym for “inexpensive.”” (p. 3) She then goes on to discuss how the word was later transformed into a derisive term.

Weber also speaks of the idea of a “return to thrift.” (p. 7) She discusses the idea that thrift was not a virtue, abandoned over time by a lazy population, but more a necessity for the time. Americans were quick to give up their thrifty ways when the opportunities for them to spend started being more prevalent.

The Crowd Approved the Doctrine, and Immediately Practiced the Contrary

            In this chapter, Weber discusses the history of thrift with the Puritans and the Quakers. The Puritans believed that indulging in worldly possessions interfered with their worship of God. Laws were put into place to restrict the purchase of vanity items. The Quakers also believed that they were supposed to live a simple life. Almanacs became popular as guides to thrift. One of the most popular was Poor Richard’s Almanack, written by Benjamin Franklin. But as through the rest of history, this time in the past was filled with a back and forth sort of thrift. As money and opportunities increased, so did spending.

A Nation of Savers

            In this chapter, Weber discusses the beginning of savings banks. These banks were created as a means for the poorer population to learn to save, rather than waste their money. One of the people who took advantage of savings banks is Hetty Green. She started depositing her money at a young age and grew up to be the world’s greatest miser, according the Guinness Book of Records. She is the model of frugality. Though she had saved a fortune, she lived like a pauper.

            Weber also discusses the effect of the end of the Civil War. This was a time when money was accumulated as wealth by many. The wealthy spent their money on parties and luxuries as they never had before. But this new spending wouldn’t last forever. Once again, thrift became a way of life for many. Even school children started depositing their money through a special educational savings program.

What Use Can a Woman Have for Arithmetic?

            In this chapter, Weber discusses the ways thrift has lived in the female population. In early years, women had no choice but to be thrifty. She includes the typical morning of one thrifty American woman in history. Sarah Tabitha Reid “woke up at four a.m., swept the kitchen floor, collected eggs, fed the family’s chickens and turkeys, fetched water from the well, and made the fire-and that was all before breakfast,” (p. 80) but as populations grew, families migrated towards the central hubs of the towns and women became less of producers and more of consumers of goods.

Weber goes on to discuss how women became the financial budgeters of the family. They learned how to reuse old products and shop for things before they became scarce, and therefore more expensive. This was the beginning of modern home economics.

Cheap Jews and Thrifty Chinese

            In this chapter, Weber discusses the stereotypes of Jews and Chinese as cheap. As many Catholics were afraid to get into the business of lending, Jews took advantage of the opening. In this profession, as creditors and then as collectors, they were easy targets though they lived modest, respectable lives. The Chinese were stereotyped because of their simple, inexpensive diet and their early willingness to work for much lower wages. The gold rush brought many Chinese immigrants in a desire to strike it rich and return to China with their newfound wealth. Later in the chapter, in discussing why these stereotypes are still continue today, Weber poses the question, “are they successful because they’re thrifty or are they labeled thrifty (derisively, admiringly) because  they’re successful?” (p. 126)

Use It Up, Wear It Out, Make It Do, or Do Without

            In this chapter, Weber begins by discussing the effect of war on American thrift. War bonds and stamps were sold, often by pressures such as pamphlets asking, “Have you helped your country by investing in the war loan, or have you helped Germany by keeping your money in your pocket?” (p. 135) Americans were urged to contribute what they could to the war effort by

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