Becoming a Minimalist

Well, perhaps not quite a minimalist, but certainly minimalizing our attachment to stuff.
I've been going through all the boxes of stuff we've had hiding in corners and closets and storage spaces for, literally, years now. I'm trying to sell anything I can via craigslist.com first, then I give most everything a shot on freecycle.org, then it gets taken to goodwill. Everything I decide to keep, needs a home - i.e., photos in albums, bathroom stuff in bathroom cabinets. If we haven't used it in this long, then we don't need it! Might as well make money on something that's just gathering dust. Besides, maybe someone else can actually use something we've got instead of it wasting away while they buy a new one.
There's no reason for people to live this way. We all have way more stuff than we need. It's absurd the amount of crap that builds up over a lifetime. If that shirt doesn't fit or hasn't been worn in 2 years, then sell it, give it away or tear it up and use it for rags instead of wasting paper towels.
The wastefulness of people, myself included, disgusts me. Why do I need a new fridge/sofa/dresser when mine works just fine? Oh, right, because it doesn't match the decor. Um, ok. I don't really get that. Let's just hope that the people who do get that don't just throw their things away.
I certainly like living in a nice home and having nice things. However, I think the idea of "nice" has been stretched to the absurd. I think Americans are more obsessed w/ keeping up w/ the Jones' than anything else. Did anyone ever stop to think that the Jones' are also trying to keep up? Or that the Jones' don't really exist, that's just what "they" want you to believe?
I don't want to live in a hut somewhere w/ no running water or soap or anything. I certainly enjoy many of the amenities of living comfortably. I just think we're all far beyond comfort. Sure, it's nice to wear new outfits from time to time, but do I really need 30 blouses? Perhaps if I had a job that required me to get filthy and I could only do wash once a month. Otherwise, it's just excessive!
We're taught to believe that more in better, newer is better, bigger is better and that's just not the case. To believe anything otherwise brands you as an outcast, a freak, a liberal, a hippie...
I'm just so disappointed in our societal point of view & I hope to seperate myself from it.