Recession-core in figurine form
Jul. 22nd, 2025 10:41 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rynlingYour Labubu Might Be the Most Honest Indicator of a Global Recession
https://www.milleworld.com/labubu-economic-recession-indicator/
All of this points to the same underlying truth: people are adapting to scarcity by aestheticizing it. When people can’t afford abundance, they turn to objects that feel meaningful, compact, and emotionally loaded. That’s where Labubu enters the chat — not as a toy, but as a talisman.
For real though. I think it's telling that it's not actual teen girls who are into these toys, but grown Millennials who are pushing 40 and still can't afford to buy a house. So on one hand, these stupid little things aren't that deep; but also,
As philosopher Byung-Chul Han notes in The Burnout Society, modern individuals are no longer disciplined by external forces. Instead, they’re coerced internally by a need to perform, optimize, and consume under their own volition. In this framework, buying a Labubu isn’t a childish indulgence, but a full-on coping mechanism as a small act of self-soothing in a system that’s rigged for extraction.
https://www.milleworld.com/labubu-economic-recession-indicator/
All of this points to the same underlying truth: people are adapting to scarcity by aestheticizing it. When people can’t afford abundance, they turn to objects that feel meaningful, compact, and emotionally loaded. That’s where Labubu enters the chat — not as a toy, but as a talisman.
For real though. I think it's telling that it's not actual teen girls who are into these toys, but grown Millennials who are pushing 40 and still can't afford to buy a house. So on one hand, these stupid little things aren't that deep; but also,
As philosopher Byung-Chul Han notes in The Burnout Society, modern individuals are no longer disciplined by external forces. Instead, they’re coerced internally by a need to perform, optimize, and consume under their own volition. In this framework, buying a Labubu isn’t a childish indulgence, but a full-on coping mechanism as a small act of self-soothing in a system that’s rigged for extraction.
no subject
Date: 2025-07-22 08:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-07-23 09:24 pm (UTC)If I understand correctly, what's going on with the Labubu keychains is that they're almost impossible to acquire. Official brand retailers are completely sold out and only accept online orders for in-store pick-up, and you have to order from the Pop Mart app or website. Since you have to compete with bots and scalpers on platforms that weren't built for high-volume traffic, even getting an opportunity to place an order is a crapshoot.
What people on Reddit have taken to doing is creating spreadsheets of potential URLS that, if visited at the exact right time, might give you a chance to place an order before a batch officially becomes available. In other words, getting one of these stupid things can take hours (if not days) of research and browser refreshing. I guess it's like farming for a rare item drop, but in real life. 🫠
no subject
Date: 2025-07-23 09:55 pm (UTC)