Are Catholic privates less flaunty about wealth vs independent privates?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No, in a word. They are every bit as showy. I went to a rural Catholic high school full of BMWs in the student parking lot, dads with mistresses, and moms getting new noses and lipo every year.

Rural Richmond maybe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Lots of loaded Chevrolet Tahoes and Suburbans and Yukon Denalis too. Those are not cheap vehicles. I would feel a little insecure driving a decade old Subaru in a lineup like that!

If you're talking about the boat versions of these cars, those are actually about 10 years old by now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I see so many moms, dads, and kids driving very expensive makes and models with the “Don’t Thread On Me” plates. What does that have to do with Catholicism?
They drive like maniacs.

They are MAGAs. That’s what ids them to each other around here. It’s like flashing a gang sign.

[Anonymous]

When I think of people flaunting their wealth, I think of that woman from the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills saying, on repeat, “Do you like my sunglasses? They’re $20,000!”

It seems like the school OP goes has people who have bought $60-100k+ cars and then use those vehicles to drive their children to school. I don’t think it is abnormal to see those cars around here. I might go “Whoa! Look at that Ferrari!” but it wouldn’t occur to me to say “Wow! A Range Rover!” because they are more normal in the DC area. So I don’t view this - at either school - as flaunting wealth.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When I think of people flaunting their wealth, I think of that woman from the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills saying, on repeat, “Do you like my sunglasses? They’re $20,000!”

It seems like the school OP goes has people who have bought $60-100k+ cars and then use those vehicles to drive their children to school. I don’t think it is abnormal to see those cars around here. I might go “Whoa! Look at that Ferrari!” but it wouldn’t occur to me to say “Wow! A Range Rover!” because they are more normal in the DC area. So I don’t view this - at either school - as flaunting wealth.

+1

It's also not uncommon at a lot of local public schools in higher income areas. It's pretty standard for a region that has a high average HOI compared to the rest of the nation. My dad drove BMWs when I was growing up (early 2000s) and it wasn't at all uncommon in the pickup lines at the public schools I attended in Potomac. I'd say our lifestyle was solidly middle class compared to my classmates; I never felt particularly wealthy or "flashy" amongst my public school peers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I see so many moms, dads, and kids driving very expensive makes and models with the “Don’t Thread On Me” plates. What does that have to do with Catholicism?
They drive like maniacs.

People from Virginia can’t drive in general

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I see so many moms, dads, and kids driving very expensive makes and models with the “Don’t Thread On Me” plates. What does that have to do with Catholicism?
They drive like maniacs.

They are MAGAs. That’s what ids them to each other around here. It’s like flashing a gang sign.

The Don't Tread on Me rattlesnake dates back to the colonial period in America. My dad had it as part of a collection of US representative flags on his desk that I loved examining as a kid while he finished up work. It was an official decoration, courtesy of Uncle Sam, to adorn diplomatic offices abroad. I loved the powerful iconography and was fascinated by the stark/scrappy combination of image and motto. So was Benjamin Franklin in his famous French and Indian war "cartoon" that adopted the rattlesnake image to galvanize the war effort - "join, or die". It was then used widely in the Revolution with thirteen rattles representing the unified colonies. A wide variety of states and movements have embraced this powerful image over the years, but only you can allow it to be co-opted in your mind by one group.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When I think of people flaunting their wealth, I think of that woman from the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills saying, on repeat, “Do you like my sunglasses? They’re $20,000!”

It seems like the school OP goes has people who have bought $60-100k+ cars and then use those vehicles to drive their children to school. I don’t think it is abnormal to see those cars around here. I might go “Whoa! Look at that Ferrari!” but it wouldn’t occur to me to say “Wow! A Range Rover!” because they are more normal in the DC area. So I don’t view this - at either school - as flaunting wealth.

Stop. A new Range Rover is $100,000 plus. You don’t buy that sort of vehicle unless you want to project your wealth and status everywhere you drive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Lots of loaded Chevrolet Tahoes and Suburbans and Yukon Denalis too. Those are not cheap vehicles. I would feel a little insecure driving a decade old Subaru in a lineup like that!

If you're talking about the boat versions of these cars, those are actually about 10 years old by now.

Nobody wealthy is driving a decade old Tahoe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Lots of loaded Chevrolet Tahoes and Suburbans and Yukon Denalis too. Those are not cheap vehicles. I would feel a little insecure driving a decade old Subaru in a lineup like that!

If you're talking about the boat versions of these cars, those are actually about 10 years old by now.

What are you talking about? These things get bigger and more expensive every model year

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When I think of people flaunting their wealth, I think of that woman from the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills saying, on repeat, “Do you like my sunglasses? They’re $20,000!”

It seems like the school OP goes has people who have bought $60-100k+ cars and then use those vehicles to drive their children to school. I don’t think it is abnormal to see those cars around here. I might go “Whoa! Look at that Ferrari!” but it wouldn’t occur to me to say “Wow! A Range Rover!” because they are more normal in the DC area. So I don’t view this - at either school - as flaunting wealth.

Stop. A new Range Rover is $100,000 plus. You don’t buy that sort of vehicle unless you want to project your wealth and status everywhere you drive.

Meh... Ranges are a dime a dozen in this area. Honestly, it's not even the high purchase cost that gets me, it's the amount of f-you money you need to afford the maintenance. I've enjoyed driving pretty much every Land Rover vehicle I've driven. I'd get one in a heartbeat if I were willing to pay the maintenance costs. It's not always about flaunting money, it's about what a person really enjoys having in their life.

[Anonymous]

There is a mix at our school. Lots of minivans. Lots of Yukons and Suburbans. Quite a few luxury cars. And quite a few Hondas, Toyotas, etc.

I don’t see many people flaunting wealth, but some people think that merely driving a luxury car means you are flaunting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Lots of loaded Chevrolet Tahoes and Suburbans and Yukon Denalis too. Those are not cheap vehicles. I would feel a little insecure driving an decade old Subaru in a lineup like that!

I sometimes do pickup in a 40ish year old truck... it shows some of its age and has, shall we say, a patina about it. My kids still love it and it's actually a hit with the other kids as well. It's a stark contrast from everyone else. My daily driver is a 2010 and even with that, I'm fairly certain that there are few cars in the pickup line as old or older.

[Anonymous]

Catholic schools have a pretty balanced mix of wealthy, working wealthy/UMC and middle class. I see just as many Hondas and VWs and Buicks as I see Mercedes and Yukon Denalis and BMWs.

The one thing I have noticed at our NOVA catholic school is the difference in the cars or presumed wealth of the parents at drop off in comparison to the cars at after care pickup. There are a lot fewer luxury cars among those of us rushing to pick up by 5pm!

I definitely notice this stuff and I am sure others do as well. And those that actually care more about these things seem to flock together.

[Anonymous]

It's a mix at our independent Catholic HS.

We never cared about what we drive and not having a garage--we never wanted something expensive.

The good thing about driving Hondas: I am not afraid to park it on the street or in tight spaces or have my teens drive them.

Fwiw, we like real estate more than cars.

I would NEVER put a teen in a high performance car, particularly a male teen.