02-22-2024, 04:02 PM
(02-22-2024, 03:44 AM)danbrotherston Wrote: The causation is explicit, like, companies exist to make money, moving towards higher margin vehicles isn't an accident, or luck, it's the explicit intentional goal of every corporation.
The "steady decline" isn't consumer choice, it's an intentional strategy by the auto industry.
I, as I mentioned before, agree regarding the effect of advertising. But to deny that a consumer influenced by advertising is still free to make a choice is quite an extreme position to take. Would you suggest a consumer in the 80s purchasing a sedan after seeing an advertisement has any more agency or less agency than someone today buying an SUV after seeing an advertisement? Is one more a "consumer choice" than the other?
I'm also curious why you think different markets (such as Europe) have consumers making different choices when, broadly speaking, the same companies are involved?