It does exactly that. But if you go deeper in the meaning of money, it's even better: when you receive money, what you actually receive is an IOU for a good or

It does exactly that. But if you go deeper in the meaning of money, it's even better: when you receive money, what you actually receive is an IOU for a good or a service. E.g. when you receive $40 for fixing a computer, it means the society owes you $40 that you can claim at any time. Burning the $40 means that you fixed the computer for free, and that you don't want anything in return, and at the same time nobody can claim the $40 in your name (i.e. you didn't give the money away). The "you should buy anything to move the economy" is a well known economic fallacy.