interesting fact: the top 1% of wage earners in the world(those with net worths above
$575,000)control 40% of the worlds wealth.
and the bottom 50%(those with net worths below $2,000)control 1% of the worlds
wealth.
isnt’ that insane?
1% of the population of the earth control 40% of the worlds wealth, and 50% of the population of the earth control 1% of the worlds wealth.
that disparity is so odd.
i’m not even judging, i just think it’s amazing that people on this planet can have such radically different day to day experiences.
or perhaps they’re not so different?
everyone, regardless of socio-economic status, eats and sleeps and goes to the bathroom and works and spends time with their friends and takes care of their kids.
or at least they try to.
obviously some people are prevented from being able to accomplish any of those aforementioned
things due to their political and socio-economic circumstances.
and then the question becomes: what is the correlation between wealth and happiness?
and, based on my own travels and experiences and the travels and experiences of friends, i can say that there isn’t an inherent correlation between socio-economic status and happiness and well being.
in fact, rates of depression and suicide tend to be statistically higher in more economically developed places as opposed to less economically developed places, most likely because people in the 3rd and developing worlds have more close-knit social and family networks.
it is odd that manhattan, which is one of the wealthiest places on the planet, probably has one of the highest percentage of psychoanalysts and people taking anti-depressants.
although i grew up very poor, i grew up poor in a wealthy town and i don’t remember anyone being happy because they were wealthy.
my friends parents in darien who were wealthy tended to be harried and neurotic, and usually had medicined chests filled with drugs to combat stress and anxiety and depression.
ok, time for bed.
-moby
