Thursday, April 1, 2010

Money, money, money

Please answer the follwing prompts in a detailed, fluent response. Make sure to comment on other people's views within your own response. Take your level of thinking higher. Make sure you are being thorough and honest.

What are your perceptions of material wealth/money? What is "wealth"? Do we see too much excess today? If your financial status a reflection of how successful you are? Are we always wanting more? Do we "want" too much? Is being content or fulfilled enough? When is enough, enough?

28 comments:

  1. I think that our perception on wealth and money is given to us by todays entertainment industry and the people associated in that business. In the songs we hear everyday, it glorifies the money and the things that come with that wealth, all the shiny cars and huge houses on MTV cribs. Is it sending the right messages to the youth? I think that can be taken two ways, either it pushes people to work hard for those things, or it makes some people lazy because they spend their lives looking for a way to get rich fast. Many people today would define success by their salary and the car they drive, but I would have to define success in your overall happiness. I feel that success is peace of mind, comfortability, and doing what you love and being surrounded by the people you love (all of these things are pieces of happiness). If you have all of that, and a Mercedes then more power to you, but to the rest of the world, success should be how each person defines it, not by how some entertainer who lives ALONE in his huge house portrays it. I don’t think it will ever reach the point where enough is enough, because I don’t feel like very many people in the world care enough to change their thought on the subject.

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  2. Material wealth is very much a poison in society. With the media constantly exploiting the amount of money celebrities have and how much they spend it, envy is the resulting factor. There are two kinds of wealth, the money and the happiness. Being wealthy means having a gross amount of money and probably won’t be spent in a life time. The happiness wealth is not necessarily having a lot of money, but having a lot of friends and family. I believe that we do see way too much of this. The Friday before spring break Andrew and I were looking at cars on the computer. One car was selling for $8 million. Why? That’s disgusting how much money some people have to spend. Most people won’t make that much in a life time. I cannot say that I am successful and reflect it because I rely on my parents for a lot of thing. I always want more. There are constantly new products to buy that are better then the last. If I could I would have so much more stuff than I already do. Enough is enough when you have an equal balance of happiness wealth and money wealth. Ya money “can’t buy you happiness” but if I buy a new car or buy a new TV, ill be really flipping happy. I guess in the end everyone is different and will have there own opinions on wealth. I wouldn’t say I’m greedy buy I do envy some of the things I wish I had.

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  3. I do not necessarily think that money and wealth are bad. They keep many people motivated and create competition. Essentially, money is what keeps our society running. But, like everything in life is needs to be used in moderation which a majority of Americans don't seem to know how to do. Like Jeremiah said, the amount of money people will spend on one thing can almost make you sick. Many people are to obsessed with material wealth to recognize real wealth in their lives. My father once said that he considers himself a wealthy man, not because of his income rate or where he lives, but because he has everything he needs right at home. To him, wealth is the love and relationships you build with your family and friends, and I could not agree more.
    Financial status reflects success if you let it. In the movie, The Pursuit of Happiness, Will Smith depicts a character who through much trial and tribulation came out on top. Although he came from a lower class, he did not let that interfere with his success. In other aspects, you essentially decide your success. Wealth does not always reflect success, so status would not reflect that.
    We are always wanting more. America seems to always want faster, smaller, and more efficient; but along with this, intelligence is also growing. I think we do want to much. America is very greedy, and never seems to be content with what they have. There are however, Americans who are perfectly content with what they already have. Those are the people who have discovered what makes them happy, and have realized it is not material items. "When is enough, enough?" I can't count how many times I have said that to my mother who always thinks she "needs" the newest 'thing' on the market. I say that to myself when I see elementary kids with cell phones, iPods, designer clothes, etc. It is okay and normal to update, to shop, to want, but like I said before, it needs to be done in moderation. It's not healthy to obsess over things or excessively spend.

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  4. I think people believe that they need material items to be happy, though this may not be true for all people it is the completely wrong way of thinking. Yes, a new car may make one happy, but is that really satisfying your heart? I think money can truly only make people so happy then they will have to realize that money and material items isn't true happiness.
    For some wealth may be actual paper money in their hand, but those are the people who believe they can make themselves happy with material items. For others I think wealth is being successful and hard working. One can be wealthy with success and another can be wealthy by having a good job and working hard in that job. Also some others may have a life full of family and love and could consider themselves wealthy.
    We see excess everyday and that is why people are always wanting more in their life and they think it will make them happy.
    I think in some ways financial status does reflect how successful one is, but can't define personal, internal, success. A man may create his own business and pass it through the generations and the business may take off and yes I think that man is successful. For others though the finances are just something that their parents gave them and I don't think those people are very successful. The people who get everything handed to them won't ever be really successful because they haven't had to work for any other their wealth.
    People in America will always be wanting more because someone somewhere is creating something better than what another person has and its human nature to strive to be better than the person next to them.
    Some people want "too much" but some don't. The mother who is trying to take care of her three kids and may want to be able to pay all her bills so that her kids can stay warm at night and have a regular life, that isn't wanting "to much." But on the flip side I think a rich man who wants a brand new Mercedes just because his Lexus isn't as new anymore does want "too much!" I think wanting "to much" is truly based off need and just plain want for no reason.
    For some being content and fulfilled may be everything that they want in their life so yes they are happy, but some maybe don't have that life goal. Some people strive to find true happiness and be fulfilled in their heart to their fullest, but then again another person may want to make a million dollars and that will fulfill their life.
    I think enough is enough when some who is attempting to be happy is hurting or using the people around then to get that. A person should set goals for their lifetime and strive to reach those and they should set their morals along the way and never break them. When one is breaking his/her morals to attain their personal happiness, it has been taken too far.

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  5. Wealth, to me, is a measurment of how happy you are. I mean if it takes a ferrari to make you happy, then go along and get all the money you can, get your car and enjoy your wealth. But if you are the kind of person who is satisfied by simpler means, like by spending more time with family or just chilaxing and bro'in out, then enjoy the wealth you have in front of you. It all comes down to what is more valuable to you, friends and family, or money. I know a lot of people that would just say Spencer, youre a retard, your friends arent worth money. and thats fine. To those people, money is what it takes for them to be happy. So to them I say be happy and go to college and get your fancy degree and go work in some office and spend all your time there making as much money as possible, if it will make you happy. But if thats truly not what you want, then why not get a part time job, enough to get by, and chill with your loved ones. I am, however, speaking hypothetically, because I honestly dont even know what I want out of life. Growing up sucks and the thought of being mature enough to like support a family and go to the same job day after day sickens me. All I am looking for is a balance between both, so I can live comfortabally, but spend as much time with my friends as I can. But I do have a strong belief that once you strip a man of everything he has, all thats left are his friends and family, in this lonely world. And besides, if youre chosing the path in life that I am, you dont join the Army for the money. If you do, youre a retard. Its for the lifestlye, the lifelong friends that you make and the ability to do things so unique that no one else can even get a chance at doing. That to me is true wealth, not sitting behind a desk making money all day, but experiencing everything you can and living it up in life! After all, you only live once!

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  6. I agree with Spencer that wealth is measured by how happy you are. As long as you are able to do what you love you can be seen as wealthy. I do not believe that your financial status is a reflection of how successful you are. In order to be successful you must first be happy. Some people will always need a certain amount of money to be happy. I do believe that we are always wanting more because we are influenced by the media saying this is the next big thing. That your life will be easier if you just buy this or get that. We are always wanting more because we see others with the brand new things and we look into their lives from the outside and we become envious. We think that our lives will be “great” as soon as we buy this new thing. Enough will never be enough. Someone will always have more than you so people will always strive for more.

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  7. I believe that material "wealth"/money, is highly overrated. I think that a vast majority of people in the world measure wealth with the amount of money you have, the clothes you wear, and the kind of car you drive. I personally believe that wealth is not measured with money or material possessions. Wealth to me is measured in the things you do, spending time with family, following dreams, accomplishing something great in your mind. Also, I think that a wealthy person works hard to do things that make them happy. When I see someone who considers them self "wealthy" I ask myself the questions, have they worked for anything in their life? Have they had everything handed to them on a silver spoon? I think that everyone is always wanting more with their life, and yes sometimes it takes money to get there. But there are people who want something that they actually NEED. On the other hand someone who wants a new car because all his rich friends have one, is without question wanting too much. I think that being content for some people is just being happy, doing what you love to do. For me I am content and feel a sense of fulfillment when I am team roping. For others I would say that being content is having a ton of money, nice cars, and a big house. Oh and we can’t forget the designer clothes. I don’t think that enough will ever be enough, the world is going to always be filled with people that are always judging people for the car they drive, the amount of money they have, there job, and even the clothes they wear. For me enough will be enough when people start looking at people and seeing that even though they don’t have a large amount of money, nice cars, and fancy clothes, that they are still wealthy because they follow dreams and do what makes them HAPPY.

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  8. I think that the wealth in our world is very unevenly distributed. All the movie and sports stars make millions of dollars a year while everyone else is loosing their jobs and trying to make ends meet. I agree with Spencer that wealth is measured by happiness. A question to go along with that is would you rather have everything you want in life and no money or lots of money but a very dull life?

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  9. I agree with Andrew, I feel like not just mine, but the perception of money and wealth comes from entertainment and the “rich” celebrities. In today’s day and age it seems as if wealth is measured by what car you drive, or the close you wear, or the house your family lives in. Even with all of that, is being happy also considered wealthy? Wealth to me is probably the stereotypical, family with lots of money. The family that does not have to think twice about what they are spending there money on, or have to stop and think can I afford this? How do you really know if there is too much success? If someone is actually doing well in life, does that mean they have too much success? I don’t think I can answer that because I don’t think there is a real answer for it. If you believe success is measured in money then of course you can say money measures how wealthy you are. I am not used to having a lot of money in my family so when I do see friends that have more money than I, I do think of them as “wealthy”. So as confusing as it sound, I think for me personally financial status reflects how much success they have. Successes is measure by wealth. I don’t think American ever has enough in life. We are always wanting more; always wanting something that we don’t have. I think every person has a time where they want too much. It is just part of the American culture. We grew up wanting things; it is in our nature to want. I think if I am enjoying life, and I am content with what I have, I would be fine in life. Of course I would want more, but I would not need more. We all know that want and need is all different. So if I am happy with my life I would not have to have anything.

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  10. Wealth is good, but I think that even though it maybe good if its not abused and taken advantage of. I do see in the world that amount of money you have in the bank is more important then the amount of family time and love you have. From my families financial status I feel we are rich, not from money or fame cause thats certinally not the case, but we are rich in the word of God, and love and true unexplainable peace, and to me thats what makes my life a success. Everybody wants more than what they have, we are always searching for that something to feel the void, but it reallt comes down to What are you wanting more? is it worth it? do you really need it? Me, I want what anyone else wants, to find truth, have just enought money to make the journey alittle more care free, but most of all I want to show kindness to everyone even the difficult people. Enought is when you are happy enought to realize that its really not about the money or fame/social status, it the understanding that you have the power to change your wants into what people truely want. But its all up to you, will it be possitive or negitive impact, choose?

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  11. Material wealth is always going to drive a natural competition within people, but I do not think that happiness is dependent upon money. It is needed to survive, but beyond that it is just enough to live a fulfilling life with friends and family. I think that what is loved is overall what drives people. Some people love their status, expensive material goods, and lots of money. If that is what somebody thinks they need to be happy, then that is what they will work for. But for most of the population, happiness is able to be found elsewhere such as being with friends and family. I have only lived seventeen years, but looking back on my life, I know that the times when I have been with my family and friends have been the happiest times in my life, and have not involved money. Success is different than becoming wealthy. As long as a person is doing what they love, then they will be successful. Money is different for every person, because some people are just born into money, and some work their whole lives and end up with hardly any. It would just not make sense to make happiness depend on something that is so unpredictable, and in the end is not worth anymore than to just survive. Wealth is being fulfilled. Whether this is doing what you love, or being with people that make you happy. As far as money, I do think we see too much of an excess. Grace said that media heavily influences people and drives our natural greed to want more. I definitely agree with this because celebrities always have the best clothes or houses, and I know that most people would want that. It is human to want more and have better, but I think that people also need to realize that what is given to us is something to be thankful for. Status does not reflect how successful you are. Like I already said, success is being able to do what you love and be happy with what you have done. Success is hard work and dedication, which does not necessarily depend on money. Some people are born with money, and I would not think they are as happy as a person who has worked hard to earn their daily income. Enough is never enough. I wish it was, but every human has a natural drive for competition and greed. We will always see something else and want it, but I do not think that this drive and greed depends on our happiness.

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  12. All of these blogs have tied into what is true happiness and I believe we have done a wonderful job of covering the basic ideas. As we discussed, money means little for the idea of happiness. However, I believe it means a lot to the ideas of success, at least to the unperceptive idiots making up the world today. How many people can really tell who you are? How many people can read others and point out those who are truly happy? Who the hell cares? Through the eyes of the world, success is based upon the amount of crap you have. To the perceptive few (the ones who can actually see past the tips of their noses) success means doing what you love. We have covered that topic already and my fingers are refusing to go back and talk about it again. The idea of more and more and more is appealing to most of the population. Enough is only enough when you say it is, and many people will never come to that point. The idea of living simply is now something broadly laughed at because of one simple fact. People don't want to live simply when it's possible to have more stuff.

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  13. What are your perceptions of material wealth/money? What is "wealth"? Do we see too much excess today? If your financial status a reflection of how successful you are? Are we always wanting more? Do we "want" too much? Is being content or fulfilled enough? When is enough, enough?

    Wealth has to do with what you own, income is the amount of money you earn. I think we see polar oposites today in the amount of wealth people have. In the slums we see people owning only the essentials and in wealthy parts we see people baskin in their cars and boats and fancy houses. To most people their wealth is a reflection of how successful they are, but to others success would be all of the places they've traveled to or how many books they've read. Enough is never enough, talk to the poorest man in the world and he probably wants things like a big tv or a nice car.

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  14. To me, wealth is the measure of success a person has. The more successful you are, usually the more money you have. This is not the case for everyone, but it is true for most people. I think that in the country we live in, people are always wanting more. More money, clothes, and material goods. There are a lot of people that are spoiled and want too much, but there are also a lot of people who just want enough to get by. Greed is the reason our economy is the what it is. To the people that advance themselves at the expense of others, enough will never be enough.

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  15. When I think of wealth I think of the amount of money in a family and the amount of things one owns. Big house, nice car, fancy things all pop into my mind when I think of wealth. In today's society there is a very large gap between wealthy and poor and I don't really think there is any way around that. However; your level of wealth has nothing to do with your level of success, contrary to what media makes you think. Someone can be the most successful teacher in the world and can teach more students more information than any other teacher, but they may not make as much as money as the CEO of a company. Thats just the way the world today is. Wealth does not measure success in all situations. I think that a lot of time we are always wanting more, but for the most part most people know when they are satisfied. I think in order to be satisfied you need to know what your priorities.

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  16. My perception of material wealth is based on what I see on television or in the movies. It is the reflection of the kind of lifestyle that Bruce Wayne or Tony Stark has. Being wealthy means having an expensive car and a big house. In the world we live in today, people can have enough money to buy everything they could possibly want and it's still not enough for them. The reason there is so much excess is because people try to fill the void in their lives with stuff and the more they get the more they want. Financial status is the best way our society has to measure success, and this is nothing new. Financial status has always been the way to measure success. Anyone can be content with the bare necessities, but not everyone is content with a billion dollars.

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  17. As it so happens, I listen to “Money” by the great Pink Floyd as I write this. And what it’s basically saying is that money is the root of all evil today (as well as an awesome sax and guitar solo and a funky timing, but I digress). I must say that I agree with them. Money is the root of all evil today. Look at what it had made people do: lie, cheat, steal, and kill among other things. But isn’t our society set up that way? We live in a mostly capitalistic society, which prides its self in making social classes and rewarding the rich. Today, if you don’t have the money then you don’t have nothin’. This, honestly, is sad. Like Sean said, everyone can live with the bare necessities, but no one can live with just a billion dollars. It’s so sad because it’s so true. Just look at Madoff. He was doing fine, and then he made off with everyone’s money (pun intended). I truly believe we can never have enough, and not only that, but there isn’t an ‘enough’ in our society anyway. There isn’t an ‘enough’ because once someone had the most of something, another person comes along and just tops that person and its an endless circle of death based on money.

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  18. I believe that for a short while material wealth gives us a false fulfillment, but when that thing become outdated and updated we will always have to buy the newer, better, brighter thing to try and fill in the new want. I agree with Andrew in that I don’t think that we will ever reach the point were enough is enough because people do care about the newer thinner gadget, expensive clothes, and cars. Some people just get so caught up in themselves they forget the real worth of people and measure it by what they have. I personally believe that a person cannot be measured by the nice things he has but by either what he does with his money – like donating to charity and doing good works- or how fully they live their life for their friends, family, and others. I truly believe that true wealth comes from the heart and because of shows like MTV cribs (as Andrew pointed out) glamorize selfishness and excess today’s youth forgets that a truly rich life is living for yourself as well as living for people in your life, despite financial success, because even if your rich and have a flying porche if no one like or loves you what is the point of all the money?

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  19. I think that material wealth is something that people base their success off of. I also think that people can never have enough stuff. I get the impression from people that the more stuff you have and the more you show it off, the wealthier you are. I think that if people have to money, they are going to keep buying things they do not need because they are trying to make themselves feel as successful as they can. I don't think that success should be measured on material things but on how happy someone is. I think that as long as someone is happy with their life and what they have achieved then they are successful.

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  20. I believe that today when people hear the word wealth they automatically think of money, but wealth and money don’t always go hand in hand. Like Spencer said, wealth is how happy you are, not the size of your house or the kind of car you drive. So many people have became too focused on the material things in order to show others how successful they might be but what people sometimes don’t realize is if someone lives in an average size house with an average car doesn’t mean they are not successful, if they are content with their lifestyle and wish for nothing more they have found the best success in life. Finding happiness and contentment is the greatest wealth to me. If money is seen as true wealth I don’t think anyone would ever be content with their life. Bigger and greater things would have to be reached and nothing would ever be enough for those who compare happiness to money. If money was equivalent to happiness I don’t think anyone would reach complete happiness.

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  21. In our world today, money is seen as the same as wealth. One's wealth is judged by the number of material items he/she possesses. I believe, however, that wealth is how happy someone is in living their life. That person may not have a high paying job or expensive material goods, but if that person enjoys their live completely, then they are wealthy. We do live in a world of excess, always influenced by others and advertisments. Everyday we are seeing things we desire to own so we work to make the money to get it. We want these things but we will always want more. Until someone realizes their greatest joys in life, they won't be happy and will continue to work for material goods that they think will make them happy. I believe that enough is enough when one can reflect on their life and think that they are completly content with their life.

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  22. In common use, wealth is largely based on material value and through that, money. By definition, it can also refer to an abundant supply of anything. In a philosophical sense, wealth can refer to a wealth of knowledge or happiness. I believe it is something similar to all of those. Wealth to me is a mental state of satisfaction achieved from finding happiness in what you do have, both material and intellectual. A person is wealthy simply if they believe they are. If a person has millions of dollars yet is not satisfied, they are not wealthy, but if someone is poor yet content with the situation, they are wealthy in their own right.
    Money in our society has been blamed for many of its evil; however, I believe money itself is not at fault, it is the people who abuse it. This comes in both the form of a desire or addiction to money that results in a futile struggle for more and also as a desire for more material goods to the point of financial ruin yet still without gaining a state of wealth. Success is most easily measured by money, but of course it does not have to be. You are successful if what you do is what you want to be doing. To me, the most important thing in life is doing what you want to do, regardless of what it is. Following that dream is success.
    Yes, we always want more; that is human nature. It is natural for people to be self centered, to want what is best for them, to want what is better than someone else. I cannot say this is a good thing, but greed and want are integral to being human, at least it would appear. Enough is enough when you decide so, unfortunately many people never make that decision. To many, being content is fulfillment.

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  23. Material wealth is almost possessive and our society can never get enough of money or possessions. We are always looking for more and wanting more. But just because human beings want material possessions, doesn't mean that it drives our happiness. Happiness is not dependent on money, but on doing what is loved and being with loved ones. Overall our love and dreams are what drive us. They are the things that influence us to be what we want to be and do what we want to do. They are in the end what is looked forward to and are what we spend our time doing. People want to do what they love and be around people that they love. Money alone does not influence what makes us happy.

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  24. I agree with Will about how wealth is judged by the things we have and not on the lives that we live. Wealth should be based on how fulfilling our lives our. If we live true and happy lives we won't need those material things.

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  25. April 19th: We go to to school in order to go to college, and we go to college in order to get a respectable job in order to gain a respectable income. A study done by CNN proves that nearly 6.2 million students between the ages of 16 and 24 in the the year 2007 were high school drop outs. That makes up close to 16 percent of the U.S. Now that we have that out of the way, Approximately 6.2 million Americans will be considered unsuccessful by the average American adult...But is this an accurate statement?-It could be, but many of these drop outs go on to work for the Peace Corps or a non profit organization.

    Having money and cars and a big house to me is, in fact, successful. But what people struggle to understand, is that having money and cars and a big house is not the only definition of successful.

    To Senor Hiler; I agree with everything you have stated in your post above, and I would like to ad to your statement about happiness.

    Does owning "a bunch of crap" create happiness for you? or does it simply cause more problems?

    Would it make you happier to own expensive things, or does would it make you happier to do something you love for a living?

    Is it worth it to sacrifice wealth for doing something meaningful to you?

    (free for anyone to answer)
    http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/05/05/dropout.rate.study/

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  26. do you think that money is the root of all evil? do you think that money causes more problems and divorce in relationships?

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  27. What is wealth to an American compared to the rest of the world?
    check out this video for perspective. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZFFxDcSfeA

    Is wealth necessary to survive in the American culture?

    Why does having more money than someone else make us better? Are we better?

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  28. I think in America today we see wealth as purely a material thing. And yes most people look at financial status as how weathly someone is. They don't look at other factors such as love, family, health, and just the overall happiness of a person. Which is where another problem comes into play. For some people, they believe that they can not truly be happy without all the money, cars, and clothes. And I think for Americans, enough is never going to be enough. We live in the Capitalist society where we are free to make ourselves into anything we choose. So people are willing to give up some of the things I listed earlier, such as family and love, in order to get the highly coveted material things in life.

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