So people who buy a Prius are never virtue signalling?
Perhaps the appellation is an empty way to dismiss someone without engaging them?
Of course not.
I was simply responding to the idea that a significant investment is all it takes to counter the claim that some activity is virtue signaling.
Buying a Prius vs. buying a non-Prius is hardly a significant investment for people who make that choice.
I guess the more proper word here would be sacrifice, something you never get back.
Your phrasing implies that dismissing someone without engaging someone is a bad thing. On the contrary it’s recognizing that most people’s opinions are based on nothing but their sense of community identity and aren’t worth engaging at all.
For the great majority of people $30,000 is a non-trivial investment, one they must live with for years. Other than buying a house or having children, it is the most expensive thing most people will buy.
(ignore the exact dollar figures below .. I'm not car literate, but hopefully you'll get the idea).
Say someone bought a Mazda Miata, did the paperwork, and the dealer then sent them home in a Prius. What are the odds they would shrug and say, "Oh, ok, one $30K car is the same as any other $30K car." Zero. If the had wanted a Prius he would have bought the Prius, but he valued the Miata higher. In your scenario, the Prius buyer really wanted a different car, but was willing to buy the Prius because they wanted the world to think they were green. Fine ... but then they gave up something of value to make the statement: they will not to get to drive the car they really desired.
Is it really so impossible to imagine that someone would truly prefer to buy a Prius on its merits and not because it is making a statement?