WHAT'S NECESSARY?

Throughout history, luxuries have become necessities. It may have even happened to you.
The Pew Research Center did a study recently and asked Americans what they deemed a "necessity."
* In 2006, 70 percent deemed air conditioning a necessity. This year the figure was down to 54 percent.
* Dishwashers, clothes dryers, microwave ovens and television sets are also seen as necessities by fewer people now than in 2006.
* 52 percent of us think a television is a necessity. That is the lowest figure since that question was first asked in 1973. The older you are, the more likely you are to view it as a necessity.
* Similarly, the young are more likely to view a cell phone as a necessity, and less likely to see a need for a landline.
* There’s been no significant change in the number deeming a computer for home use to be a necessity (50 percent this year, 51 percent in 2006).
* The proportion who deem high-speed Internet service to be a necessity also showed no significant change (31 percent this year, 29 percent in 2006).
* 4 percent of Americans think an iPod is a necessity

What "luxury" is absolutely "necessary" to you?