Sequere Pecuniam. It means “Follow the money”.
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The ideas of economists and political philosophers, both when they are right and when they are wrong, are more powerful than is commonly understood. Indeed the world is ruled by little else. Practical men, who believe themselves to be quite exempt from any intellectual influence, are usually the slaves of some defunct economist. Madmen in authority, who hear voices in the air, are distilling their frenzy from some academic scribbler of a few years back.
John Maynard Keynes
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Money can’t buy happiness, but it can rent it. I’ve said that before, and i’ve heard it posited a number of times, by comedians as I recall. And while it may be true that money can’t buy happiness, it does make the simple things in life easier to be happy about, so it does bring a measure of happiness, in and of itself. Now, I’ve said that as well here.
Money can, alternatively, be an albatross around your neck when you owe a great deal of it to others, debt can be a cross of gold that you get nailed to for the sin of excess or simple bad luck. Money is almost never the friend of the poor, no matter how much those self same poor try to reach for it, no matter how much of it they want or think they need.
Money is rarely the friend of the rich, those who have it always have to find ways to defend it, keep it, improve their stock of it, to make themselves better through it, though they rarely succeed in this. Money does not make the man, but it does change him, for the worse. I know because I have none and it has, through it’s lack, changed me. It cannot, in excess, help but have an opposite but equal effect, correct?
I would not mind finding out. 🙂
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Viddy of the day: Does Money Buy Happiness? (study) From the Young Turks, june of last year. That very last bit sounds like a bunch of crap to me.
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I have had a great deal of bad luck money wise, any who have read the Rhino before know this (if you’ve been following for any length of time, you know this in excruciating detail) But it seems that, on some level, that is beginning to change, somewhat.
Somewhat.
After looking for permanent work for two years, it looks like I am in position to get an honest to J.R. “Bob” Dobbs shot at a full time Job with a capital J. The gig starts next week, and while it doesn’t pay a lot, it could really help me back on to the road to self sufficiency, someplace I have not been in nearly 2 years. That is a long time to be out of luck.
And it gets better. I have been trying, and in large part, failing, to get my bankruptcy taken care of, for the past 10 months. I have spoken to the people at a place called NYCBAP (New York City Bankruptcy Assistance Project) who I asked to help me do my bankruptcy Pro Se. (without a lawyer, on my own) Over that time, I have attempted a great many times, to set a timetable, try to find a person to talk to, something, get something set up where I can talk to someone and get the ball rolling.
It finally happened today. I’ve been moved up to the front burner. I’m going to get my bankruptcy done, finally. Dammit this feels good, just to know I can get this done, get the moving towards the rest of my life. Because I have, between unemployment and debt, had no capacity to move in any meaningful way towards building a better life or better future for me or my wife. To have these twin weights taken off of my back, which have been there for years, debt for years, even before I lost my job and being unemployed for the bulk of the time since March 09, makes these last few days very happy ones indeed.
But I am far from out of the woods yet. I still have to declare bankruptcy, walk in front of a judge, and tell him the story, and make sure I have the mountain of paperwork ready, have all the information I need ready. And there is always the possibility that I may fail in my efforts there. The job… that is only part time as of this writing, and doesn’t actually start until next week, so it is still somewhat of an unknown.
I have far to go. Distance have never daunted me, never has, never will.
I am happy though, that I am finally on a better path, and that the path leads to something that looks curiously like light at the end of the tunnel. I won’t make the mistake of saying it IS light at the end of the tunnel and not a freight train coming my way (TY, James Hetfield, for that one). It could get worse before things get better, and I won’t say it is better until it is. Good to know the path ahead is at least looking more navigable than it has in a long time.
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That’s it from here, America. 12 Notes, which I was going to do today, will be done tomorrow.
Casus Belli 