Lmao I’m sorry do only “westerners” have phones? Or clothes? Do people outside the west not have trinkets that they don’t really need? Of course they fucking do. Moving to a poorer country only works if you move with significant capital… If you are from America and you have no money, moving to Venezuela just means you still have no money but now you live in Venezuela, not sure how that’s supposed to help.
Not sure what your point is re politicians. They bear culpability alongside the capitalists, yes.
When you or I bought our phones doesn’t matter because even if I bought a top of the line phone once per year that wouldn’t buy me a house. I don’t, fwiw, and I’m privileged enought to be able to afford to buy a house - but I also don’t make the mistake of thinking that being frugal is what got me here. Individuals in America and the UK (can’t speak for anywhere else, I’ll limit it to where my experience lies) do not have a choice they can make that will get them the things they need at a reasonable price. It is not their fault for wanting too much or anything else.