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1. What is the contemporary meaning of wealth? 2. What is the meaning of wealth in a more sustainable society? 3. Can we define wealth in a way that is broadly consistent with the first two questions? 4. What needs to be sustained in a sustainable society? 5. What is the proper way of accounting for the well-being of future generations in the way we make decisions today? 6. How do we measure economic
success in a sustainable society? I am somewhat biased in my answer to this question as I heard Steve talking for a while on the radio the other week about this subject. One of the statements I tend to agree with illuminates my view of the meaning of wealth today. He mentioned that the current measure of wealth (measure is different from meaning) in the world is extensively based on whether or not a person owns a home. This to me makes the most sense if I think of someone who does not own a home. I would consider them less materially wealthy. (However I would not allow this to cause judgement of their self-worth). Wealth in contemporary society means that you yourself alone, as a group or as a family unit, own an amount of some material thing the value of which is measured in money. A person or group is wealthy if they own a lot of material things, whether they need them or not. I think this level of the meaning of wealth is experienced by people of all age classes in the US. Having much more money and assets that can be readily converted into money than the average person. The modern meaning of wealth is apparently a concept that has not really changed all that much over time. Ideally I would support the nouveaux concept of wealth being measured by the quality of one's life and not their wallet. This idea lingers, grows and shrinks over time, yet it still holds on to, or vice-versa, a smart group of people in all corners of this world. Realistically the majority holds on to a concept of owning a great many things. Who can blame them. I try hard to beware of such pitfalls, but I am a consumer struggling to make the right decisions depending on my available disposable income, which lingers, grows, and mainly shrinks. Contemporary wealth has the following characteristics: - The possession of material goods above and beyond what is actually needed to fulfill human needs. - Having so much money after purchasing excessive amounts of material goods that it sits there and gains interest until there is so much that it would be difficult for a person to spend it in one lifetime without being wasteful and extravagant. Western contemporary meaning of wealth is the accumulation of material goods coupled with the ability to purchase more goods at an ever increasing rate. The contemporary meaning of wealth for individuals is the accumulation of money and stuff. The contemporary meaning of wealth for nations is the attainment of the highest GDP. Quite frankly, the contemporary meaning of wealth is dependent upon the area of the world where one lives. In Western society wealth deals with the accumulation of material objects, prestigious schooling, and a love for a job that has many monetary benefits. There are exceptions as with anything, but on the whole, that is how I view wealth. The contemporary meaning of wealth is to have an abundance of something. In contemporary society wealth is equated to money. However, it also encompasses many other aspects such as power, prestige, and individuality. Abundance, having more than you can use. The contemporary measure of wealth is the accumulation of money or products that cost money, such as property. The contemporary meaning of wealth includes cash, short-term and long-term physical assets, receivables, financial instruments, and prepaid expenses. The contemporary meaning of wealth may come form two different meanings, in terms of the context it is used. First, from a capitalist point of view, it is defined as the level of one' s standard of living. In America, and Europe for example, one's wealth is defined as one's economic position in society at that moment. Wealth is often broken up into classes such as the poor, middle, and rich classes. One who is a member of the rich class can be said to have more wealth than one who is a member of the poor class. Second, from a non capitalist culture, such as an island tribe or one from a more rural group of people, wealth may be defined as the level of quality of life one has attained in the course of one's lifetime. In this context wealth may be measured in one's amount of available free time, or even the size of one's family. When asked, "What is the current meaning of wealth, I think of the society in which we live. This is a society of self-gratifying, gluttonous, egocentric individuals who view wealth as convience. To many people, having what they want when and where they want it is their personal definition of wealth. Unfortunately this perspective leads to large levels of resource consumption as a means of displaying their status, which is based on wealth. An example of this may be a lawyer living in the suburbs commuting on the freeway in his/her monolithic sport-utility vehicle. Many times this self-centered behavior is not in the best interest of the rest of the community that we are all a part of. The meaning of wealth today is defined as the amount of money and/or material goods that one has accumulated. The fact that one is wealthy has nothing to do with how gains were made. I believe the contemporary meaning of wealth is based on how big your pocketbook is, what your portfolio looks like, and how many cars you have in your garage(s) and rooms in your house (regardless of whether or not you have children). How much money or land one owns, also including all the possessions and property that one obtains. Having large sums of money invested in stocks and material goods. |