My Beloved and I are about five weeks away from becoming parents. We live in Europe (I'm a Yank, she's European) and not only are we the benificiaries of hi-tech, expertly attentive, under-crowded and nearly cost-free ob/gyn health care, but all of the doo-dads we'll be needing for our future daughter are cheerfully sturdy, handsome, and unabashedly hand-me-down. A friend of a friend with savant-like sewing skills keeps sending ever-cuter little outfits; my darling mate gets a good long massage from me every single night; we are both self-employed, keep two lovely flats, and look forward to spending the days ahead as a self-contained trio...a relaxed and loving family. All for a miniscule amount of cash. Certainly a fraction of a percent of what's being spent on these tragic little future yuppie hookers and drug addicts.

The proper definition of luxury has nothing to do with wretched excess. Anyone with a shred of wisdom can see that the word 'luxury' in its finest sense has little or nothing to do with material objects or obsequious service professionals. But my beautiful mate knows exactly what the word 'luxury' means while I'm massaging her. And my daughter will grasp the true meaning of this word as the limitless time and attention and patience her parents (and not hirelings) lavish on her.

For myself, I was reminded of the true definition of 'luxury' while reading this sad sad article about the poorest people on Earth.

I would be quite amused by this article if it didn't seem that so many people were breathlessly waiting to judge and bash parents. Why not an article about twenty-somethings who build up debt buying clothing they see on celebrities? What about that middle-aged professional driving the 2006 Mercedes? Couldn't he have gotten by just fine with a used compact? Where is the collective headshaking and outrage at those individuals? What about women fighting age tooth and nail who shell out obscene amounts for imported moisturizers even when study after study shows those products are worthless? Chic urban restaurants? Indulgent spa treatments? Million dollar weddings?

My guess is that much of this hostility comes from childless people who are quite correctly outraged at the rotten behavior displayed by children in public these days. As a public school teacher, let me fill you in on something: Thrify parents who shop at Wal-Mart produce entitled brats too. I've taught all kinds of kids. Just because you can brag at how little you spent on Jr.'s layette doesn't mean he won't hurl obscenites at his teachers or vandalize the bathroom stalls. I see bad behavior on both sides, regardless of affluence or spending.

Oh, and on the subject of BuyBuyBaby. That is NOT an exclusive, expensive store. I would agree that it's probably a notch more expensive than the mainstay Babies R Us. BBB is a typical suburban strip-mall destination and most of the moms I see there are just average folk. People need to lay off the sanctimony.

We all suffer for it.

When the childless Patty Shaw cheerleads "Together we can change the baby world. One top-notch store at a time," I wonder how much commission she gets. Truth is, if stores like these Bye Bye Babys were to proliferate, they would cease being exclusive, thus challenging these boors to reach new heights of garishness.

There've been an awful lot of these articles about consumption on Salon... and many of them have links to the products. Are the companies that sell the products paying you guys?

Who cares if rich people are spending tons of dough on their babies? People get silly about their babies, whether they make a point of teaching them consumerism or anti-consumerism. I'll probably go nuts making homemade bonnets and cooking up batches of organic carrot pap if I ever have a kid. Whatever! As long as they aren't spending their money on like a designer gun for a two-month-old, who cares if they spend their extra dough on fancy booties?

The answer is: NOTHING. It transcends every perfume I've ever owned, and there have been dozens in the 30 + years since I bought my first bottle of Arpege at 12.

Pacifiers? DESIGNER pacifiers, yet? If you breastfeed your kid, they won't know from a pacifier. (Come to think of it, maybe that's why my kids' scalps smelled so good...Burberry? I don't think so.)

And yes, Cayetana, there is nothing more unnecessary than a changing table--we used our queensize bed, which didn't require a "safety belt"--and cheap cotton washcloths from Target instead of babywipes (which gave my daughters a rash). Yeah, you had to get your hands all poopy sometimes, but that's the point.

Yes, that's the point. Your kids aren't branded merchandise (why not tattoo your family crest on their little foreheads?) You're SUPPOSED to get poop on your hands and laugh, not scream "Oooo, ICKY!" As far as I'm concerned, my kids are their own brand. I'm not interested in product placement.

While reading this fantastical article, I recalled all of the garage-sale and hand-me down clothes that my daughter wore. We could have bought everything new, but it made little sense to do so, and my friends and neighbors are on the same page with this. As I write this, my six year old is headed to the back yard to play in the snow. By herself. Voluntarily, and without expensive toys. She's capable of doing that, just as she's capable of spending a couple of unstructured hours with a friend.

Not trying to say that we have it all figured out, or that our child has the perfect life, but can anyone truly say that?

There are several ways to appreciate this article, but one point that is overlooked is the persvasiveness of baby product marketing that gullible parents of all income levels fall prey to.

Think about how pointless a changing table is, for example. Or how much more hygenic it is to put the dirty diaper in a used plastic grocery bag and throw it in the trash can outdoors than use an expensive diaper pail that just makes your whole house smell like poo. Even middle class Americans have been bamboozled into buying baby items they don't need.