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Friday, August 28, 2009

Filthy, Stinking Rich

I was at the local market today and people were buying Mega Millions lottery tickets hand over fist. With our economy in such sad shape, it's not unremarkable to find so many people dreaming of a $333 million payout over 26 years or a one-time payday of $204 million.

I did not purchase a ticket because, frankly, it's too much money. Look, like many people, I often dream what it would be like to win a million or two, but one-third of a billion is far more than I need or want.

Money, like anything else, changes people. I don't care how well-grounded a person is. I don't care if your parents brought you up the right way (whatever that is). I don't care if you say that you will be the same person as before, albeit one with more money. We can each mouth these kinds of platitudes, but if a windfall should fall into our laps, our entire perspective on life will change and probably not for the better!

Do you ever wonder why most of our elected leaders turn a deaf ear to the concerns of the people? It's because they live in a different world. Most have no idea what it's like to live on the edge from month to to month or what it's like to be one health care crisis away from bankruptcy. They can't fathom the critical need for adequate public transportation or how important the monthly allotment of food stamps can be.

And, if you or I won $333 million, we would soon become as clueless as they are. Maybe not initially. The first few weeks or months we would remember what it was like to be financially poor or middle class. However, as time moved forward and far beyond those days of struggle, the memory would begin to fade. In time, we wouldn't remember it all or we would remember it in a very distorted way.

It's difficult to understand aspects of life outside of one's frame of reference. As a male, I can read all about child birth. I can watch videos. I can be there with a loved one going through the process. I can sympathize and empathize, but for all my efforts, I can't understand it in the core of my being because it's not something I can ever experience directly.

Being like a child in a candy store with an unlimited allowance puts anyone out of touch with the life experience of those who can only look in the window and dream of the day when he or she can afford one small piece of candy.

2 comments:

  1. i say that i wouldn't mind suddenly finding myself wealthy, but the truth is, i don't want the hassel. i don't own a cell phone because i don't want to be bothered with it, i don't have credit cards because i don't want to be bothered with them. i often don't drive in cities because it's too much stress. i am not in danger of losing my home or starving, so i'm happy with my life...

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  2. I think winning a large prize like that would be a huge calamity.

    You hear many stories of lottery winners whose lives have been ruined by the prize.

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