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STEALTH WEALTH: THE NEW BROWN-BAGGERS

We used to hear terms like "conspicuous consumption," "keeping up with the Joneses," and even "fake it 'til you make it." But in these recessionary times, such expressions are passe. Being "filthy rich"may still be okay, as long as one doesn't flaunt it. Hence the innovative idea of "stealth wealth."

Stealth wealth is the attempt to spend money without guilt in a down economy. As America increasingly divides along economic lines, the rich have become targets of disdain and envy. Not that they haven't always been, but now there are rumblings of an egalitarian movement in America to bring the wealthy down several notches to a level closer to where the rest of us find ourselves.

Of course, the rich are in a higher tax bracket and, as a whole, contribute a disproportionately larger share to the public pot — e.g. 1% of Californians pay almost half the state taxes. Nevertheless, as long as others are struggling, some feel that whatever contributions the affluent make to level the economic playing field is not enough. Hence, a further tax on the rich has been proposed as a means of paying for the health care plans of those who don't have them.

For a increasing number of Americans, being rich is considered little more than the luck of the draw. While the majority of our country's wealthy did not inherit their money and many even rose from humble circumstances, they are perceived as being the "lucky" ones, as opposed to the "unlucky" ones to whom that opportunity was denied.

A columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer wrote recently that those who oppose the administration's health care reform bill do so because they "won the lottery" with their own plans. It is always easier to generate anger when differences between the haves and the have-nots are measured simply in terms of good fortune, greater advantages, fortuitous connections, and even the presumption of downright unfairness. Success thus becomes a matter of chances, not of choices, and the result of getting breaks, rather than expending effort.

Yet for all the resentment leveled at the rich, most people would like to be one of them — and as easily as possible. If the attainment of wealth can be disparaged as nothing more than a byproduct of greed, over-compensation, or ripping others off, it then becomes a lot easier for people to justify gambling or buying lottery tickets as the only way they can manage, in conscience, to become prosperous.

A major reason for acquiring wealth is to spend it. But these days, if rich people throw their money around recklessly, they risk the accusation of being frivolous while others are suffering. Charitable giving, of course, is an acceptable way to spend. But being rich has become a mixed bag — which, itself, is now a metaphor for how the game of stealth wealth is played. Lately, rich folks buying at Tiffany's and other pricey emporia ask that their purchases be packed in plain paper bags without identification. That way they can have their cake and make it look like a loaf of humble brown bread.

Fashionistas are getting into the swing of stealth wealth by offering less for more. An example is a line of tiny handbags, chic without ostentation. A little clutch purse that holds no more than keys, lipstick and cash can cost into the thousands. The designer points out, however, that these bags will not go in and out of style. They can be used "forever." Or at least until it's in vogue again for the rich to come out of hiding.