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The traps of wealth? Many people will read this and say something like, "Yeah, I'd like to have that kind of problem." They probably already do. Millions of people in the U.S. sit in front of their televisions watching expensive cable programming, eating expensive snacks and thinking they are poor. They are, but not in terms of income. Not having traveled the world much, they don't know what true poverty is.
They are poor because they cannot find peace of mind with what they have, even if it is enough. They are in constant financial trouble because no matter how much they make, they don't know how to handle money. A typical scenario: a man gets a $2,000 tax refund, and instead of enriching his life by helping him get what he needs or truly wants, he uses it for a down payment on a car that replaces a perfectly functional one, or he gets a bunch of new household rent-to-own items, ranging from large-screen TVs to new couches. Now he has more debt than ever, and so more stress in his life. In this case, more money (combined with his lack of wisdom) actually made him less happy.
There is nothing wrong with large screen TVs or new couches or even $4,000 refrigerators. These are nice things to have. In fact, if you had unlimited money, it would seem silly to deny yourself nice things - at least those things that truly bring more comfort or pleasure to your life. But we don't have unlimited money, and things are not worth any price.
This so called "American Dream" is one of social conformity. It presents the nice home full of nice things and paid for by a nice job as the goal we all should aspire to. This leads people to buy a television for the cost of a year at a community college. Which would actually enrich one's life more? Actually I don't know, because everyone is different. But the more important point is that the person making the purchase usually doesn't know either. We are taught to buy into other people's dreams without any real consideration for our own unique possibilities.
We are also taught that we need to impress others. If you don't think this is true, imagine yourself driving to your class reunion in a rusty old car and telling everyone about how you sell scrap metal recovered from garbage dumps. Or consider that people are somewhat ashamed to be living in a mobile home when they are in their thirties, even though such housing is better than most people in the world have. And what's the first thing a man does when he buys a new jet-ski? He proudly shows it to his friends.
This need to live a life that others approve of, to "live the dream," almost certainly causes spiritual or psychological damage, and paying for it can require having jobs we hate and going deep into debt. The stress this creates can quickly turn this into the "American Nightmare." Again, this isn't a denunciation of material things. A beautiful new car paid for out of one's excess wealth is a useful and enjoyable thing. But that same car, bought with debt that enslaves a person to jobs she hates and constant stress from financial struggles is not a good purchase.
Most people who make $30,000 per year think they would be much more secure if they made just $10,000 more, and those making $40,000 (or $80,000) think the same thing. The truth is that a higher income often just makes potential problems bigger. Once you buy a home and car and other things based on that higher income, you then need to maintain it. In this way you are trapped by your increasing wealth. This is not a necessary outcome, but a common one.
Imagine a man who makes $250,000 per year losing everything. Then think about one who makes $10,000 going broke. The former almost certainly suffers the bigger blow psychologically. He may also think more about this possibility, so one's worries do not necessarily decrease with rising income.
Apart from the traps of wealth that result from personal factors, there are consequences of a society becoming wealthy pursuing a dream life. Let's look at a few examples.
If you go to Brazil or Peru or India, you'll notice that there is public transportation available for everyone. Why? Because they don't all own cars, so there is a demand. In the United Sates, most towns have no busses or public transportation at all (foreign readers will find this hard to believe). Why? Because everyone owns a car.
The result of everyone buying into the dream - which includes owning your own car - is that there is no demand for cheaper alternatives. This, in turn, means it's difficult to get to your job if you don't own a car. So though you make more money than those in other countries, you have a large expense that they don't have.
Furthermore, the American dream calls for houses or at least nice apartments, but not mobile homes, so the latter are pushed far away from city centers by laws made by the us wealthy people who don't want such "eyesores" around. The result is that if you want the cheaper housing you are forced to pay the expense of commuting further to the jobs that are in the towns and cities. You may not have bought into the dream, but it imposed it's cost on you nonetheless.
Here are a few more minor examples. Want to buy a cheap computer monitor? Last year you could buy a one for $40. Now, because most people want the fancier flat-screen ones, the cheaper ones are no longer available. The cheapest now is more than $150. Oh, they are better, but you no longer have the choice to have a good-enough one for $40. You are dragged along by the dream whether you like it or not.
A 19-inch TV could be bought for $99 at Wal-Mart two years ago. By the end of this year, those "cheap" TVs will no longer be available. The flat screen ones start at about $300. This isn't going to show up as inflation, though, since these are not the same products. But whatever you call it, the wealth of the country and the dream that hypnotizes it's masses make it more and more difficult to live simply and inexpensively.
Now, this is an observation, not a complaint. And difficult does not mean impossible. The truth is that you can avoid many of these "traps," and live the life you want - one of wealth or of simplicity. But you have to take your eyes off the American Dream and look at what is truly of value to you and what you actually need to be happy.
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I return again and again to these inspirational and useful lessons. You're going to love it. - Steve |