But isn't it the other way around. The more wealthy you get the more valuable things become and the people around you become less valuable. Superficially it sou

But isn't it the other way around. The more wealthy you get the more valuable things become and the people around you become less valuable. Superficially it sounds counterintuitive and yet it is what we observe, even if it is a not very flattering observation about human nature. I realized this first when I travelled Latin America as a young person. It was quite surprising to me never to get asked about my job but often about a family thousands of kilometers away and without any chance for the stranger speaking to me to ever meet any of them. Only if you see yourself defined by the friends and family that surround you it suddenly makes sense.