Real estate broker Bernard London published a paper in 1932 formally proposing the concept of planned obsolescence, arguing the government should legally require consumer goods…

A closer look

Real estate broker Bernard London published a paper in 1932 formally proposing the concept of planned obsolescence, arguing the government should legally require consumer goods to expire and be destroyed after a set time. His theory was that forcing citizens to constantly repurchase shoes, appliances, and cars would artificially stimulate factory production and pull the global economy out of the Great Depression. While the government rejected the legal mandate, modern tech conglomerates quietly adopted the philosophy anyway, which explains why your thousand-dollar smartphone miraculously turns into a useless brick the very second a newer model is announced!