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> Wealth ultimately boils down to the most finite resource we all have -- our time -- and we are able to accomplish a whole lot more with our time today than we

> Wealth ultimately boils down to the most finite resource we all have -- our time -- and we are able to accomplish a whole lot more with our time today than we were in the past. If you want to go that route then boil it down even further and you'll get "well-being" and/or "self-validation". > wouldn't you say that even today's poor Americans are wealthier than the richest Sumerians In my argument wealth has always been a relative term, never absolute. It is about what you are trying to achieve for yourself/ego, which in the human psyche is always relative to the other person. This connection cannot be disputed, you can only dispute the first part... So is wealth an extension of the ego, or is it a database entry? I'm claiming that it is the former, since so many people experience it as such. You are claiming it is the latter.

drusenko 15y ago
I think you are saying wealth == happiness. And from the vantage-point of someone without wealth, that may seem true. But any person with wealth will tell you that wealth does not bring happiness or ego or confidence -- all of those are only achieved from within. You can purchase more things that take a lot of time to make, and you can not worry about money issues, but you can't buy happiness. I'm not sure if there is more global happiness today than there was in Sumerian times; I would imagine there is. As you mentioned though, happiness seems to be relative, so it's pointless to complain about since it's a fundamental human limitation. "The fact that most people imagine it would be paradise to never have to work does not make the experience any more pleasant in practice." -- http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/04/secret-fears-of-the-super-rich/8419/?single_page=true http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/04/secret-f...
- powertower 15y ago
  > I think you are saying wealth == happiness. Not at all.

drusenko 15y ago

I think you are saying wealth == happiness. And from the vantage-point of someone without wealth, that may seem true. But any person with wealth will tell you that wealth does not bring happiness or ego or confidence -- all of those are only achieved from within. You can purchase more things that take a lot of time to make, and you can not worry about money issues, but you can't buy happiness. I'm not sure if there is more global happiness today than there was in Sumerian times; I would imagine there is. As you mentioned though, happiness seems to be relative, so it's pointless to complain about since it's a fundamental human limitation. "The fact that most people imagine it would be paradise to never have to work does not make the experience any more pleasant in practice." -- http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/04/secret-fears-of-the-super-rich/8419/?single_page=true http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/04/secret-f...

powertower 15y ago
> I think you are saying wealth == happiness. Not at all.