Have you ever realized...

Emagyn2 · February 2012

... just how pointless money is??? Well.. .okay... maybe it's not "pointless". But, I, mean, when you take the time to realize we're using PAPER with pretty designs and a picture to pay for things...does that frustrate anyone else? xD Especially since there's people who are homeless, and families who are really really struggling out there, due to something so simple... Might as well just hand printer paper out to everyone, and solve the whole dang problem! Jeez! Anyway...

lovefrompaige · February 2012

That would be counter fitting and apparently is a big no no >.> I've thought about it lol All those grueling hours you spend at a job that you don't even like just to get minimum wage to pay for gas so you can go to the next day of work -_- Oh, the joys of the world.. And that's still being DEPENDENT. I'm secretly dreading being independent lol XD

Emagyn2 · February 2012

lovefrompaige wrote:

That would be counter fitting and apparently is a big no no >.> I've thought about it lol All those grueling hours you spend at a job that you don't even like just to get minimum wage to pay for gas so you can go to the next day of work -_- Oh, the joys of the world.. And that's still being DEPENDENT. I'm secretly dreading being independent lol XD

It's such a shame xD At least we have the internet to escape from reality

lovefrompaige · February 2012

True true, thank goodness for that (: lol

CallyKats Dachshunds · February 2012

I think it's completely pointless.. XD We need to go back to just trading things.(; It'd be so much easier. I am also of the mindset that we should go back to horses and buggies. My career choice would make soo much more "profit" that way

EmmeZoec · February 2012

But, when it all comes down to it, we need money. If we weren't paid then no one would work and no one would trade. The problem isn't with the money. The problem is with the people.

Alabama · February 2012

Umm, money isn't just printed paper. The more paper money that's in the world, the less it's worth. United states paper money represents the gold in the US treasury. If an ounce of gold is worth $20, the Federal mint makes sure there is $20 in circulation for every ounce of gold in the treasury. If the treasury printed $30 for each ounce, the ounce is divided further, meaning the paper money isn't worth as much, especially overseas. The treasury doesn't just randomly decide how much money to print. I think I prefer to carry lightweight paper money as opposed to bulky coins.

Alabama · February 2012

And speaking of barter system, in a way, we are still on a barter system. We trade a day's labor for $64, which we then trade for 3 days worth of groceries, gas for the car, etc. It's just much easier with how far apart people live and how "specialized" we've become to use money as the coin of barter as opposed to direct trade of skill for skill. How many people in the city could actually make contact with a butcher, a petroleum company and a farmer? How would they trade their ability to type on a computer in exchange for what they need?

DiamondPuppy0809 · February 2012

It's not pointless. Just sort of frustrating. ;D But this is the best way that works. But I also agree we should be back to horse and buggy. The earth would be so much healthier. xD

Emagyn2 · February 2012

EmmeZoe wrote:

But, when it all comes down to it, we need money. If we weren't paid then no one would work and no one would trade. The problem isn't with the money. The problem is with the people.

Well, but I'm sure if we didn't have paper money, there would be something in place of it.

Alabama wrote:

Umm, money isn't just printed paper. The more paper money that's in the world, the less it's worth. United states paper money represents the gold in the US treasury. If an ounce of gold is worth $20, the Federal mint makes sure there is $20 in circulation for every ounce of gold in the treasury. If the treasury printed $30 for each ounce, the ounce is divided further, meaning the paper money isn't worth as much, especially overseas. The treasury doesn't just randomly decide how much money to print. I think I prefer to carry lightweight paper money as opposed to bulky coins.

Right, but I'm just saying the whole idea that paper basically determines our social status, and how we live our lives, seems completely ridiculous. Obviously there's a lot more to it, but like I said... it just seems silly xD

Troglin · February 2012

To me, money only has meaning if we give it meaning. It doesn't matter to me what form it's in, it's just material at the end of the day. The only thing I care about is being happy for myself. If I get to be poor or rich or somewhere in between, as long as I'm happy then so be it. Money doesn't have to determine our social status, people just let it speak for them. I can be dirt poor and all I need to do is go out, take a walk, and breathe. That's what makes us rich; not money. I know it's cliche but in all honesty, nobody gets out alive. Rather than stressing about the brand new -insert materialistic item here- the snobs next door got, just get out and live. Yeah, we all have tough times and there's days where we feel like we're just spinning our wheels. I've felt like that a dozen times over. I work at a minimum wage job. I get so frustrated with the customers who trash my store and make my work more difficult. However, I know where I want to go in life. I don't know how I'll get there, but I'll find a way. I'm fine 'suffering' through this until my chance comes around. It'll help me get through the rough times in the future when I won't be so lucky to just have the responsibilities of a minimum wage position. While I think about other people and their hardships, there are opportunities for them to take eventually, should they desire. My parents have bounced from being below poverty to being upper middle class, but I noticed they were happier when they were 'poor'. When times got rough they became close and did whatever it took to get to a better place, even if it meant extreme work hours. My mom never graduated high school and my dad dropped out of college. They never used government funding. My dad worked his rear off in retail, baking, and everything else he could. He's a government contractor programmer now. He's developed video games in the past and worked as a computer programmer elsewhere. He made it 'big' when others would have given up. I know people personally who are going through rough times, and I feel bad knowing they struggle, but I also know that they will get through it if they set their minds to it. Mind over matter.

I know I went a little off topic, but yeah. Money isn't necessarily pointless. It pays for the gas, food, land, and everything else we use. What makes it pointless (in a sense) is putting value to it. I see it just as a way to pay for life, but it doesn't have to define our lives if we don't make it.

Trianna · February 2012

I agree with Anastasias point about money vs. status. I'd like to add on to it, that, in a way, rich people are in a way worse for the overall economy than poor people. Simply put, money is worthless, if you don't spend it. So all those people who put a value on the piece of paper itself and sit there with a million (or more) in a safe, or somewhere else it's not being used, are just hurting everyone else. If the money is not actually being spent, it's effectively out the economy, so there's less money to actually buy things with for everyone. Having reserves is one thing, but some people have an attitude where they think having more money saved than they could ever use will make them happy. It really is less a flaw with the system and more a flaw with society itself...

Alabama · February 2012

Money has never determined my social status nor who I hung out with. As Anastasia said, it's us who decide how much money means. If money is important to you, not having it will drive you insane. You will judge people who don't have money as being poor. If you want to have a status of being wealthy, you will find a way. Some of my friends have a lot of money compared to me, and some of them don't have any. Money doesn't matter to me, so it stands to reason that it doesn't matter to people who would be my friends. The people I care about aren't jealous of me because of the money I have and they don't pity me because I don't have as much as them. Even back in "barter" days, there were "poor" people who lived off the charity of others and there were "rich" people who had more than the majority. Most of this abundance or lack of stuff was due to power, whether physical, psychological or mental. A person would be rich because people curried favor with them because they were stronger than others physically, psychologically able to make more people like them or smart enough to get more in trade for their stuff than others. Others who weren't smart, strong or charismatic would be poor because people knew they didn't have any power to sway anyone, they weren't smart enough to drive a good bargain or they physically weren't able to do anything. It's the same today. People don't stay poor if they are smart, strong or charismatic and they don't stay rich if they are stupid, weak or unlikeable. Even the most unlikeable person can stay rich if they are smart. Or if they're dumb, if they let others take care of their money for them. Even a sport star won't stay rich if their health fails them and they aren't smart enough to invest their money, hire someone to invest for them or charismatic enough to land a sports caster position. A poor person doesn't have to stay poor if they are strong enough to work, smart enough to get a job, (heck there are people who are smart enough to take charity when they don't really need it) or charismatic enough to get people to give them stuff. If money mattered to me beyond providing for my family, I could be a whole lot wealthier. I could charge more for my services, I could hire a professional to manage my money, etc. I guess the bottom line for me is money only defines a person's status if that person allows it to. If a person isn't happy being poor, most people have the ability to earn more money. They can change how they interact with other people so more people like them and are comfortable with them, they can use their brains to learn to do something or how to use what money they get, they can go and physically do something to earn more. The only people I really pity for not having money are those who physically can't get out and work or who are mentally incapacitated from learning to do something to earn money. I have no pity for someone who is physically or mentally capable of doing something to earn a living.

Adrianna32 · February 2012

A family member of mine chose to break away and live on his own near a beach. He had nothing. No money, no home. Whenever I'd go see him I'd bring all these gifts that cost money, the more I brought the happier I thought he would be. In my mind, he was dirt poor and homeless, so he wasn't happy. I don't understand why I kept believing that when in reality he must be the happiest guy I know. There was never a day when a smile wasn't on his face. He's even told me just how happy he is, and I remember being jealous. Like seriously, jealous of a man that had nothing.. but atleast be was happy. And what I wouldn't give to be happy like that for just ONE day. He has absolutely no cares in the word, no problems. I cant remember the last time I could afford to be care free.. or the last time I didn't have a problem that's kept me worried. Those problems are caused by money 95% of the time. -_- I often think about a world with no money, about everyone just being happy and not having to worry about whether they have enough of that paper to survive. It's never going to happen. But maybe I'll just go move to a beach somewhere. And yes, I do think its ridiculous that paper has the power to control people.

Simm · February 2012

D: I was enjoying this conversation, then people wrote too much. Maybe I'll read it and put in my opinion when I'm feeling better. ;D

Emagyn2 · February 2012

I'm glad I posted this

Everyone has made some interesting points.

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