We live in a world where everyone assumes money is the reward for hard work and money funds the good life. This assumption is built into our movies, media, and most literature.
Is it true? To someone living in poverty it is. To someone with a fat bank account, more money isn't a factor in achieving "the good life". To a well funded corporate manager having another million isn't going to make them much happier. In fact, the extra money can be a burden and creates a problem for society. Here in the US we have a growing poverty class and shrinking middle class, and that isn't good for democratic process or solving social problems. As poverty increases so does the stress on services such as: jails, health services, abandoned children, etc. The obvious solutions are: 1. Use some of the excessive salaries to fund social services. 2. Educate the elite in happiness and other ways to achieve job satisfaction. 3. Provide children with opportunities so they don't get locked into a poverty class. 4. Provide jobs with minimal pay for people who are desperate. Once minimal needs are met and all children have some level of equal opportunity then the extra money can go into motivating the greedy. Of course this only works if we have a surplus and can agree on basic needs. Essential Human Needs? Clean air & clean water Balanced diet in terms of the calories, nutrients & fiber conducive to good health & one free from potentially harmful processing, additives & contaminants Absence of harmful radiation Freedom from parasites and pathogens Sensory stimulation, at optimum level between insufficiency & overload. Physical exercise balanced by adequate rest and recuperation Shelter Company, comradeship, and caring relationships with others Intellectual & artistic expression & development Sense of identity, belonging, purpose, & worth. Another benefit of this all these ideas will be the environment. In the past only the rich could run away from polluted air, water, and disease. If we help everyone then the environment becomes everyones problem. Just as it should have been all along. jeff - http://www.bctonline.com/users/jko/ehome.html ---- Uncopyrighted, distribute freely. To unsubscribe email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: unsubscribe your-email-address-here To subscribe email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: subscribe your-email-address-here