SO, by their definition, I suppose ramen noodles are a necessity, but hamburgers are a luxury item.
Indeed, the article is nonsense. I'm no expert on economics, but I do remember the basics. Economists don't use the term "needs": They only use the term "wants". All of your money is spent on luxuries. You don't need a smart phone, electricity, house, car, microwave, plumbing, etc. Humans survived just fine without any of those things in the past.