I'm reading the Christmas edition of The Economist and they headline with a feature on Happiness and how it seems unrelated to wealth. Sure the rich are happier than the poor but the richer you get is not followed by happiness. Here are a couple of quotes, see what you think..."Doing well is not enough: we also want to do better that our peers. This status anxiety runs deep..."and from the leader to this article...
"Capitalism is adept at turning luxuries into necessities - bringing to the masses what the elites have always enjoyed. But the flip side of this genius is that people come to take for granted things they once coveted from afar. Frills they never thought they could have become essentials that they cannot do without. People are stuck on a treadmill: as they achieve a better standard of living, they become inured to its pleasures." I think just about sums it up
And finally this one from Adam Smith (that's him in the picture), "How many people ruin themselves by laying out money on trinkets of frivolous utility?"
Not sure we can count that high.... anyway what makes you happy?
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