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But what is 'my needs taken care of'? You never have to work a day in your life and will have enough money to maintain your desired style of living? That is wh

But what is 'my needs taken care of'? You never have to work a day in your life and will have enough money to maintain your desired style of living? That is why 'my needs taken care of' issue comes up to me. Yes, 100% of the jobs I worked paid me enough to have a decent life, but if I got fired and couldn't find a job, I would be on the street after a few months. That is why the 75K USD or whatever it was in the book saying it didn't improve happiness is bollocks. You might not starve in SF with 75K, but I assure you an extra 20k would make you much happier, even if not for the peace of mind that you could save it for a rainy day. If we talk about UBI or millionaires, sure, money stops being a concern, but I also don't see a lot of millionaires going over job boards trying to find a job that gives them a sense of accomplishment. They are doing their own things to achieve that happiness, and I doubt is working for someone else (some exceptions of course)

ganzuul 5y ago
Not to be facetious, but I referred to the feeling of having my needs taken care of because I know that I often am not a rational actor. If all we did was forage for nuts and shared them because we felt that everybody did their part, I would probably be very happy sharing those communal meals. When someone drives by in a huge yacht spewing diesel fumes and soot, the enjoyment I got from our humble communal meals is easily vanquished. The meal did not change in any appreciable way, but understanding that a huge amount of the resources we need to survive is wasted on an outsider's frivolous amusement leads to discontentment. In practice, the worst extreme of this dynamic seems to be the use of pale-skinned models for advertising in areas where people have dark skin. The reasoning might be as simple as pale skin showing up brighter in print, but the outcome is otherwise perfectly healthy people getting body dysphoria.

ganzuul 5y ago

Not to be facetious, but I referred to the feeling of having my needs taken care of because I know that I often am not a rational actor. If all we did was forage for nuts and shared them because we felt that everybody did their part, I would probably be very happy sharing those communal meals. When someone drives by in a huge yacht spewing diesel fumes and soot, the enjoyment I got from our humble communal meals is easily vanquished. The meal did not change in any appreciable way, but understanding that a huge amount of the resources we need to survive is wasted on an outsider's frivolous amusement leads to discontentment. In practice, the worst extreme of this dynamic seems to be the use of pale-skinned models for advertising in areas where people have dark skin. The reasoning might be as simple as pale skin showing up brighter in print, but the outcome is otherwise perfectly healthy people getting body dysphoria.