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30 Items We All Should Quit Buying, As Pointed Out By People In This Online Group

Now with only a few clicks of a button, we can get everything we need or want. This has led to a serious discussion of what consumerism brings us and how we should change our shopping habits. And this is not the only reason why people sometimes need to think twice before confirming that purchase. Together with this goes untrustworthy brands, low-quality items, and influential hype of purchasing unnecessary things.

Reddit user @u/Badass_Band1t asked people online “What should people seriously stop buying?” and received almost 40k upvotes together with 27.5 comments where other users shared their opinions about things that, for various reasons, should not be purchased in the future.

Most of the answers showed that people are very much concerned about plastic use. A lot of comments suggested that we can all live without buying single-use plastic products when there are so many alternatives that are friendly to the environment. Plastic water bottles and cutlery were among the things that pollute surroundings the most and can be easily replaced with reusable items.

I guess that spreading awareness about MLM (multi-level marketing) scams stuck in people’s minds as these companies and their products were also mentioned by users of Reddit. It was stressed in some of the comments that any kind of unnecessary things that provide you with temporary happiness are not worth buying as they only take up space but usually have no value.

What do you think people should also stop buying? Leave your thoughts in the comments down below!

More Info: Reddit

This post may include affiliate links.

30 Items We All Should Quit Buying, As Pointed Out By People In This Online Group Animals that are so inbred to meet a certain 'breed standard' that they are a walking vet bill from birth. Brachycephalic dog breeds such as French Bulldogs being an example.

Sarcastic-Me , stanze Report

Final score:

394points

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#30

30 Items We All Should Quit Buying, As Pointed Out By People In This Online Group I can't understand the people that buy holiday decor every single year. Are people buying fake trees and tossing them every year and needing a new one? Same with ornaments and what not. Obviously people move out of their parents or they need to replace ornaments if they're broken or something but the amount in stores does not add up to me. Why so much new stuff every year?

PumpkinPieIsGreat , subherwal Report

Final score:

126points

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Lara Verne 3 years ago

No need to buy new ornaments every year. I still use ornaments from 1960s that belonged to my grandparents.

17points

Freya the Wanderer 3 years ago

Ditto! Some of my ornaments are way older than I am.

3points

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Nikki Sevven 3 years ago

There are even places where you can "rent" a fir tree in a pot. Decorate it for the holiday, then return it to the farm, where they'll plant it.

11points

Mewton’s Third Paw 3 years ago

Like where? That sounds nice.

0points

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Gogubaci 3 years ago

in Romania Christmas tree decorations are a family heirloom passed through generations, grandma has decorations dating back to the end of WW2 very fragile thin glass globes, beautifully painted, and ofc I broke about a quarter of her collection when I was little lol

6points

Stacy Parker 3 years ago

I buy one new ornament every year, usually tied to travels. All of my ornaments have meaning to me.

5points

Ivy la Sangrienta 3 years ago

Yes. I don't have sets or matching ones. I buy one every year that is special and I have some from my childhood still. Only ones that sometimes need replacing are the lights.

0points

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Shannon Kathleen 3 years ago

I have ornaments that belonged to my grandparents. They are my favorites.

4points

Just a girl in a crazy world 3 years ago

My mom NEVER buys new ornaments, she gets new ones as gifts but she never goes out of her way to buy them. Some of her ornaments are from the 70s and 80s and most of them are older than me.

3points

Tami 3 years ago (edited)

Halloween decorations too.

2points

Mewton’s Third Paw 3 years ago

I haven’t heard of people buying a new fake every year. If you own your own home perhaps you could just decorate an outside tree?

1point

Taco Da Guinea Pig 3 years ago

I hate how people buy plastic trees. Why put more plastic into the world? But I mean chopping down trees is kind of mean too... but at least we try to keep them alive.

1point

June 3 years ago (edited)

My mom has had her plastic tree for 20 years :)

1point

Kathryn Baylis 3 years ago (edited)

I prefer real Christmas trees—-specifically farmed ones, not the top cut ones. I live near the beach, and always donated my trees after the holidays were over, to be used as artificial reefs (the only thing artificial that they’re associated with). My husband is the artificial tree fan. We have one now, and I told my husband we could use it, but only if he bought one that will last for decades, so we’re not buying new ones every other year. It’s OK, but I still prefer real trees.

1point

Bella, Your Kitty-Loving Queen 3 years ago

I’m my family we use the decorations as long as we can.

1point

Matt Sharples 3 years ago

We don't even bother with a tree or cards for that matter 😂

1point

Jutta Plötz 9 months ago

A friend of mine donates her reusable plastic one every year after Christmas to charity.

0points

Debby Keir 2 years ago

I buy one new ornament a year, usually to commemorate a holiday or an event. My 2020 had toilet rolls on them.....

0points

Barbara L Bristow 3 years ago

I've never bought a tree. At my gramma's I made all the decorations; snow flakes, chains, and cranberries strung together.

0points

Lucy Shupe 3 years ago

I bought each year my kids were home, before they married a new ornament. I searched to get the right one for each one of them. When they married and were getting ready for their first Christmas as a couple, I gave them the ornaments I’d bought. To make it clear the ornaments were on the tree. Stop assuming that because I may buy a new Santa, I collect them, makes me a bad guy. Lighten up.

0points

Suzanne Haigh 3 years ago

I buy old/antique whenever I can get them

0points

Eglė Bukauskaitė 3 years ago

I have a plastic tree - i use it for a good decade now (if not more). I have plastic ornaments too - use very same ones from my childhood and i'm in the 30's! (i buy 1 or 2 new ornament each year as a memento of the moment)

0points

Nadine Debard 3 years ago

I used to buy new ornaments every year after Xmas because of huge sales. I loved having different colors every year. Then I realized how much plastic crap, glitter-full and useless those things were. Now the simple sight of Xmas ornaments in a store give me shudders.

0points

Jane Alexander 3 years ago

And why ever buy that ugly plastic blow up stuff?

0points

Iapetos 3 years ago

Isn't the purpose of a fake tree that you can redecorate it every year?

0points

Glirpy 3 years ago

How about stop cutting down actual trees for Xmas?

0points

Tonya Wallace 3 years ago

My dad bought the trees that you plant outside after the holiday is over. Our driveway is lined with former Christmas trees.

0points

Marianne 3 years ago

I had no idea that people do that.

0points

Don't Look 3 years ago

I used to ask questions like this all the time. Why is there so much of everything, particularly that which is supposed to last? The answer is that my brain cannot fathom how many people there actually are out there and just how wasteful they all are.

0points

Donna Cain 3 years ago

I buy at the after Christmas clearance for 90% off.

0points

Bob Belcher 3 years ago

I give my old one to Goodwill. I've only bought 2 in the past 11 years.

0points

Bow, I’m a Slytherclaw 3 years ago

We've used the same tree for about 40 years. It used to be my trans, then when she moved it couldn't fit in her living room, so we got it. It's a beautiful tree, too.

0points

Stephanie Hewitt 3 years ago

I'm buying a new one this coming Christmas because my dying cat pissed all over mine. Sometimes you just need to replace stuff 🤷‍♀️

0points

Robin Childers 3 years ago

It's a trend now to have multiple Christmas trees thoughout the house. Why, I don't know.

0points

Mewton’s Third Paw 3 years ago

You’re right, I forgot about this. It’s a recent thing where like each family member does a tree.

0points

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Cynthia Carter 3 years ago

I've wondered that for decades. Most of our store bought ornaments are over 40 years old and it's like seeing old friends when we get them out every year!

0points

Ivana 3 years ago

I got to the in-laws every Christmas, don't own a single Christmas decoration.

0points

Leigh C. 3 years ago

I love the Disney ones at Hallmark. But I'm fine just going in and looking.

0points

FABULOUS1 3 years ago

I get a new Nutcracker every year, because I like collecting them. Will still continue to get a new one every year. I have enough ornaments though and havent bought any new ones in years.

0points

Thomas Sweda 3 years ago

How many people do you actually know that do this? I know no one?

0points

Hannah Edwards 3 years ago

I still have ornaments from my great grandmother, they’re horrible and so fragile that breathing hard near them will shatter them, but I’ll be in my cold exploding coffin before I waste the Earth’s precious resources on more tat.

0points

jamie1707 3 years ago

After christmans in many areas you will see entire xmas trees tossed out with lights, ornaments still attached. They're so cheep theses days it almost makes it worth it to some slobs who'd just toss them.

0points

Seabeast 3 years ago

Ornaments are fragile, so maybe they're breaking a lot of them.

0points

Caroline 3 years ago

You can never have too many ornaments for Christmas. Imagine your grand-kids when they come and see the best decorated house for XMas. And even for yourself, isn't pretty to be surrounded by joy and glitter? Unless you're like my husband who's a Scrooge and has dampened our kids enthusiasm for the celebration, boo.

0points

HoneyBun Arts 3 years ago

My family has one fake Christmas tree that we use every year. And for ornaments we hardly ever buy them. We’ve bought some from places as memorabilia, but thats about it.

0points

Theoretical Empiricist 3 years ago

I did, at one time, have an artificial tree that really looked like it was dying.

0points

Marlene Riethmüller 3 years ago

In my 51 years, my family has had 2 plastic Xmas trees... and the same ornaments!! Sure, a few single lights have needed changing (not the whole string of lights), but otherwise, same ol' faithful !!

0points

Confused koala 3 years ago

There is 4 kids in our house and we get a new ornament each year for each one of us. We have our baby shoes then whatever we liked that year and school made ones. We now have no basic ones left

0points

James016 3 years ago

We buy a few new ornaments every year to keep things fresh for my son. We don’t spend more than £15 on them. The tree we have had for years.

0points

Dodo 3 years ago

People do this? My parents have replaced their holiday decor once in my lifetime, when we outgrew the kiddie decorations.

0points

Deborah B 3 years ago

Lack of storage space. If you have limited space, and an artificial tree costs £20, it may be better not to store the tree, and reserve the storage space for something more expensive and more frequently used, or with sentimental value. Most charities won't take artificial trees in January, because they don't want to store them for 10 months either.

-1point

Mewton’s Third Paw 3 years ago

No way is a fake tree only $20. You can’t even get dinner for $20!

-1point

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Viviane 3 years ago

I now ask for donations to my favourite charities. I do get gifts for other people. I no longer wrap them. I put them in a bag and pull them out one at a time, along with a one-liner ("For the man who has everything, have fun trying to stuff it into this wallet", "Santa was going to give you a lump of coal, but we settled out of court and you're getting a lump of plasticine", etc.)

-1point

Mike Ieva 3 years ago

Trick here... Get Ikea family card, buy Xmas decoration, use Xmas decoration, keep the packages, after Xmas, return things and get money back... Repeat... Not good for the environment or ikea, but good for the pocket

-3points

Dagnirath 3 years ago

This is called "fraudulent returns" and is a major problem for retailers.

1point

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Note: this post originally had 40 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.

Konstancija is a Content Creator at Bored Panda. She has a bachelor’s degree in Translation and Interpreting and a master’s degree in Future Media and Journalism. She is very interested in sustainable fashion and is a perfect companion to go to second-hand shops and antiques for nearly anything: clothes, books or furniture. Her interests also include photography, literature and hiking.

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What do you think ?

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Kevin J. Henning 3 years ago

I'm 59 and remember having milk bottles which were taken back to the stores. The stores sent them back to dairy to be sanitized and reused. Same with soda bottles. There were people who actually used to come to your house and fix your appliances and televisions. You didn't chuck them out after 2 or 3 years for landfill. There was even a place to take coffee pots, toasters etc to be repaired. Sounds quaint and yet considering the concern being raised over saving the planet maybe it shows how far we haven't come.

18points

Veronica Mars 3 years ago

I have been told that the companies do this on purpose, you can't buy a part and fix it, they've purposefully made it so you have to buy a new machine. New laws should make this redundant now, but the big companies will probably find a way around it!

3points

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Shelby P 3 years ago

stop shaming consumers for all the plastic waste that they have no control over if they need 'x' product. Blame the industries instead.

15points

Kathryn Baylis 3 years ago

Shared fault. Consumers can put pressure on manufacturers to curtail plastic packaging waste. They can bombard them with complaints, they can boycott them, they can merely switch to a competitor that uses more ecologically sound packaging. We’re not totally powerless in this.

12points

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Jo Davies 3 years ago

Tupperware. Keeping a lot of the packaging produce comes in will do the same job. Cheaper and less plastic products

5points

Mewton’s Third Paw 3 years ago

Who even needs it anyway? If you order takeout a couple times, it always comes in thick reusable plastic and you can just keep it. I have stacks of it and never need to buy containers.

3points

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Uncommon Boston Premium 3 years ago

Use glass Pyrex storage system.

0points

Natalie Oleander 3 years ago

Nothing wrong with Tupperware. Better than plastic bags you toss.

-2points

Solidhog 3 years ago

All reality TV! Let's stop the brain rot by nobodies.

2points

Mewton’s Third Paw 3 years ago

And take all the fantasy fiction along with it too right? It’s fake and not everyone likes it. Same idea yeah?

0points

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Solidhog 3 years ago

All social media. Except Bored Panda! Everybody should read Bored Panda to put a smile on their faces daily.

2points

Mewton’s Third Paw 3 years ago

BP isn’t social media.

-1point

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ivan bolitekurac 3 years ago

For me it is hollywood,the more i looked into some people there the more i hate it.I have come to the point where i don't even illegally watch their movies.They are the most hypocritical bunch of people i have ever seen.

2points

Kevin J. Henning 3 years ago

Good point!

1point

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Yara Balabanova 3 years ago

So many points in this post about animals and animal cruelty, yet not one word about farm animals, meat, dairy or eggs... As if those animals aren't bred to live a horrible painful life. And people care about a parrot not being able to live its entire life with their owner because they get so old, what about animals that are slaughtered for meat when they are still practically babies?

1point

Anita Pickle 3 years ago

Sadly people care more if it is cute. They cuter the animal the more they care. (Although personally I find cows, sheep, etc adorable) And people are so detached from where their comes from, they do not get it. They have no clue at all.

1point

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Fuxxy89 1 year ago

When textbooks are free quality drops drastically. If you want a well written textbooks filled with accurate, up to date, fact checked information, then you need a team of writers and editors, at least some of whom need to be college professors. And you have to pay those people for their work. I'm not saying the student should take hit, but somebody has to pay the people who write text books.

0points

Pearl 3 years ago

Mica! You need to stop buying mica! Which means you would virtually need to stop buying all the shiny makeup you own. Do you even KNOW what makes that lip gloss, eye shadow, lip stick or blusher so shiny? Mica. As soon as they are able to walk, children in Jharkhand, India, are often forced to work in mica mines just to supply the world with sparkling makeup products. Many children have also met their deaths beings smoldered by big rocks in those mines. Vegans, what does it matter if your make up products are "animal cruelty free", but not child labor free? The good thing is there are makeup lines with use ethically sourced mica or synthetic mica. Some examples are: Pure Anada · LUSH · Clove + Hallow · (also confirmed vegan) Au Naturale · Aether Beauty · (vegan) Red Apple Lipstick. {A gluten free, vegan, natural beauty brand (not just lipstick).}

0points

Kitti B. 3 years ago

Force the rich not to use private jets.

0points

Iʕ •ᴥ•ʔ 3 years ago

This is so sad . Or maybe this is why I’m not allowed to shop . Still , the one that said pangolins , is it as a pet or is it being used in some fraud medicine ?

0points

kim morris 3 years ago

"traditional medicine", but their scales are made of the same material your hair and fingernails are. So, it's all bs. Animals are being pushed towards extinction because of 'tradition'.

0points

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Thomas E S Thomas 3 years ago

There's nothing wrong with certified k9 farming. The unlicensed ones need to go though.

0points

leah 2 years ago

The hoops we had to jump through to get our dog was ridiculous. It wasn't just the money, but a home visit, notarized statement saying that we'll have our puppy spayed/neutered by the age of six months (we got 2 weeks) and send them the proof or they'll take it back. That's the reason we could afford our dachshund because the people who originally had it wanted it to be a mommy and they took it back.

0points

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Iapetos 3 years ago

MEAT and DAIRY and EGGS.

-1point

Nevits Yibble 3 years ago

Sort of a weird, mixed bag of posts. Some make serious points (environmental waste, mistreatment of animals) while others are just opinionated meddling by nosy people about how others choose to spend their time or money. If I want to buy a new phone or a new ornament or new sh*t each year - it’s nobody’s business but mine. Complaining about it from the sidelines always seems to come from the ones who can’t.

-3points

Marcellus the Third 3 years ago

YOu're complaining a topic is a mixed bag? You're new here I guess.

3points

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Kevin J. Henning 3 years ago

18points

Veronica Mars 3 years ago

3points

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Shelby P 3 years ago

stop shaming consumers for all the plastic waste that they have no control over if they need 'x' product. Blame the industries instead.

15points

Kathryn Baylis 3 years ago

12points

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Jo Davies 3 years ago

Tupperware. Keeping a lot of the packaging produce comes in will do the same job. Cheaper and less plastic products

5points

Mewton’s Third Paw 3 years ago

Who even needs it anyway? If you order takeout a couple times, it always comes in thick reusable plastic and you can just keep it. I have stacks of it and never need to buy containers.

3points

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Uncommon Boston Premium 3 years ago

Use glass Pyrex storage system.

0points

Natalie Oleander 3 years ago

Nothing wrong with Tupperware. Better than plastic bags you toss.

-2points

Solidhog 3 years ago

All reality TV! Let's stop the brain rot by nobodies.

2points

Mewton’s Third Paw 3 years ago

And take all the fantasy fiction along with it too right? It’s fake and not everyone likes it. Same idea yeah?

0points

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Solidhog 3 years ago

All social media. Except Bored Panda! Everybody should read Bored Panda to put a smile on their faces daily.

2points

Mewton’s Third Paw 3 years ago

BP isn’t social media.

-1point

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ivan bolitekurac 3 years ago

2points

Kevin J. Henning 3 years ago

Good point!

1point

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Yara Balabanova 3 years ago

1point

Anita Pickle 3 years ago

1point

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Fuxxy89 1 year ago

0points

Pearl 3 years ago

0points

Kitti B. 3 years ago

Force the rich not to use private jets.

0points

Iʕ •ᴥ•ʔ 3 years ago

This is so sad . Or maybe this is why I’m not allowed to shop . Still , the one that said pangolins , is it as a pet or is it being used in some fraud medicine ?

0points

kim morris 3 years ago

"traditional medicine", but their scales are made of the same material your hair and fingernails are. So, it's all bs. Animals are being pushed towards extinction because of 'tradition'.

0points

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