money and life

Chapter 7 Splurge can lead to disaster (1)
You think that you are always oppressed by others, forced by others to do things you don’t like, and you lose your personal freedom. This is actually the price you pay for chasing fame and fortune.You have abandoned reason to pursue evil and boundless interests, making yourself its prisoner.You are no longer qualified to say "freedom".

— Carlisle
If a person can control his desires, his life must be healthy and happy.

—JJ Gorney

If there is an effect, there must be a cause, and the disasters of human beings are all caused by themselves.There are good and evil in human nature, which makes human beings inevitably make some wrong behaviors, and this behavior just ignites the pile of firewood that prevents the disaster from coming.

— Daniel
misfortune caused by squandering

It is precisely because British companies, businessmen, and workers work very hard, have a pioneering spirit, and dare to try new things, that the wealth of the UK ranks among the top in the world. Compared with the previous backwardness, it is unimaginable.The time to market of products is getting shorter and shorter, because the technology of factory assembly line has become more advanced.Untold amounts of gold are stored in banks.However, we should not forget that where there is wealth, there is poverty. People at the bottom are still living in dire straits. While the rich are living a luxurious life, the poor are still struggling with life and death.

Every time the congress is held, the bitter life of the people at the bottom can be heard.They are engaged in mining, agriculture and handicrafts. Although the Congress tried its best to promulgate laws to protect their legal rights, their situation has not been improved.Poor working people have been supported by some people, but they are far from living a good life, so they have not expressed their gratitude to the sponsors, which makes the sponsors less and less motivated.Small subsidies cannot change the disparity between the rich and the poor. On the contrary, the gap between the poor and the rich is getting thicker, and the misunderstanding and resentment are getting deeper and deeper.

Slave owners use the slave system to control the poor. Everyone is in the same environment, so the poor do not have too many extravagant expectations for life. They just want to have a bite of food and work.This prevents the outside world from paying too much attention to people under the slave system, because they can barely eat enough, but others can't even eat.For people to be freed from poverty and hunger, there must be a world of freedom and humanity, where everyone is his own master, where there is no oppression and no misery.When the society becomes rich, the poor should also become rich, otherwise the gap between the rich and the poor will lead to social turmoil and disturb the hearts of the people.

Human beings are always too greedy, they want more after they have it, and then show it off a lot, which is the fuse of disasters.But people like to pursue wealth crazily. Whether in a rich country or a poor country, making money is always the first priority in production and life.Political economy can make the development of society conform to the laws of nature.Everyone wants to "fight for the first place", and everyone hopes to get more money. As for the source of the money, no one will investigate.People think wealth is everything. "Only those who do not know how to make progress will give up wealth."Anyone wants more.

What poor people get in a civilized and developed society is neglect and contempt. They are a group of out-of-date people who have been wandering on the fringes of society, and the warm sun never shines on them. Before 1900, the Trubants lived under the control of Caesar, and they received no care.But these poor people live with us as closely as St. James and St. Guinness.The east side of London is where the poor live, but its west side is full of rich people.

consequences of luxury

Society has an unchangeable law of development. Behind the prosperous life is a declining social economy, rising prices, soaring unemployment, and widening gap between rich and poor.You know, even the supreme pharaohs cannot dream of fat beef every day.Mr. Baker said: "Workers generally don't have much savings. Those who have been unemployed for half a month have no ability to buy food and daily necessities." From this we can see that luxury is a killer that endangers life and life, precisely because these starving people I didn't develop the habit of saving before, which led to such an embarrassing situation now.Fortunately, no workers rioted. They often exchanged their valuables for money in pawnshops, but those were far from enough to live on. Many people had to go to the government and relief agencies to apply for relief funds.

Even if some people do not become impoverished by their extravagant habits, this is only a minority, most people are reduced to poor people, they are the pillars of the society, and once they have problems, the whole society will change.In the final analysis, they are still harmed by greed. People who are born poor may not always be poor. What is important is that people have a strong heart and a tenacious fighting spirit, so that they can make life better.

There are many workers engaged in mining and ironmaking in South Staveshell, and they all have very high salaries.Mr. Lowrys said: "The living habits of these workers can no longer be called luxury. It can be said that they are very reckless and rude. Whether they are old or young, and whether they are married or not, everyone has the same attitude towards money. , use whatever they want. They don't work very hard, and they find reasons for themselves to have fun from time to time. It's like money can't stay with them, it must be spent. They especially like to throw parties and parties, parties There are also various reasons, such as celebrating the first recovery from a serious illness, and even more so when they get married. However, they will also do some behaviors that are puzzling to others, such as praying during difficult times. But this does not change their extravagant Nature. Year after year, people still find themselves in a precarious state between poverty and affluence. Because of extravagant living, they are depressed at work, there is no one to manage their homes, their children have dropped out of school, and they are in When they have no money, they have to mortgage valuable things in exchange for money to continue to squander. Gradually, their family has declined, and their houses are getting older and older due to neglect of maintenance. The roof and walls are full of damage. The place and the environment in front of the door are also extremely dirty, dirty air, and water shortages. What a poor group of people! Because of their laziness and extravagance, their supposedly rich and clean life has been messed up by them. I Think, no one or the law can restrain them and make them reform themselves."

In order to make the poor people live a more relaxed and prosperous life, the government has enacted many reform measures.Some taxes that should have been paid by the bottom-level people have been borne by the middle class and the upper class. As for family affairs, individuals can vote according to their own needs. The government has also reduced taxes on many daily necessities and food.But we should not assume that these measures will completely change the lives of the poor. The key to the change lies in them. If they are inattentive to reform, even the best measures will not help them.Society differs from person to person. Good people will bring development to society, while bad people will make society more and more backward, violent and poor.

When Franklin commented on the working class, he said: "If the burden of the laborers is only those taxes, we can barely pay them, but there are many other things besides taxes, which are really unaffordable, and even crush some struggling families. These things include our wasted time, our arrogance, and our stupidity. They are more and heavier than taxes. Even if the taxes we should pay are reduced or eliminated, this is just the tip of the iceberg. There is still a lot of burden on the shoulders.”

There is a group of workers organized to visit John?Lord Russell, wishing he could lower the taxes paid by the workers, answered them: "Why don't you look for the reason yourself? You keep blaming the government, but never consider your own actions." Is that correct? Let me ask you, do you know that you spend £5 million a year on alcohol? If the government taxed that much, you wouldn't be in trouble, but you'd be happy to pay for it Now, think about who gave you the heavy pressure? It’s yourselves. Drink less alcohol and live less luxurious life, life will be much better than it is now, why use it to beg me.”

The cruelty and cruelty of Aristotle's government is well known, but it is not comparable to the greed and endless desire of human nature.So blaming others for your own mistakes is a very wrong behavior.It seems that men are more likely than women to be misled by evil and to fall into the bottomless abyss.People who have stumbled have wasted time, money, and lost everything in confusion.Only after experiencing the pain personally can one understand the truth, which also serves as a warning to future generations.If you spend your money early, what will you live on later?And you have no plans for your future life, and the attitude of muddling along will make you suffer a lot.It is foolish to spend all tomorrow's money today to enjoy the momentary enjoyment and cut off one's own way out!In this way, your life will have no future at all.

If the society continues to develop like this, it will definitely fall into ruin, but there are ways to rescue it.Those working people with high salaries can serve as the vanguard to drive the people behind.The government's publicity and school education can provide them with a lot of knowledge in this area, and they can learn to save money and live the most relaxed life with the least amount of money.Gradually, he developed the habit of thrift, and his life became better and better, and his every word and deed would become decent and serious.However, this transformation process will take a long time, as Mr. Denison said, "it will take the unremitting efforts of two generations". In fact, the time should be longer than two generations, and it may require the joint efforts of several generations. effort.The development of society is slow, and human nature cannot be changed overnight; in the course of history, it is fast, and a century is as short as a day in history.It takes a lot of pain before anything is done.After four centuries of oppression, Christianity was finally accepted, and countless wars had to be waged before the country could be unified.In Britain, the social system was not well defined until after two centuries of civil war.Slaves were also persecuted by the landlord class for a long time before they were freed.In the previous society, slaves and peasants could be bought and sold at will, as simple as selling land. Now, without exception, they are all free and have their own lives. After comparing the two, you can see the obvious difference, and that difference is good for us.Since the society can undergo such a huge change, it must be easy to quit the extravagant life.

life should not be luxurious
Mr. Hume's views once made members of the House of Commons feel very ridiculous. He believes that the consumption of the British people is constantly rising, which is not a good phenomenon.Indeed, for people at the middle level, the sum of their daily expenses and entertainment is close to, or even equal to, their salary.Everyone is like this, everyone thinks this is a fashion, and no one is far behind.Those parents who want their son to become a success spend a lot of money to shape the boy into a gentleman, hoping that he will be outstanding, but the result is counterproductive. The gentleman cultivated in this way is just an empty vase with a gorgeous appearance. What he pursues is not inner self-cultivation, but grooming have fun.Wherever there are fun, delicious, and beautiful things, the focus is on these useless things.This kind of gentleman reminds us of the monkey that appeared in the abandoned ship at sea. It has been watching human actions for many years, and it has learned some similarities. Unfortunately, it is still a monkey and cannot become a human.

In today's society, everyone wants to look glamorous, but they don't know that it will cost a lot, and the bitterness is not something ordinary people can experience.It is generally believed that although I do not have much money, I should not be underestimated, so my clothes and life should give others the illusion that I am a wealthy person.Even if they know that my wealth is not much, I still want them to envy my appearance.With the improvement of life, material life can no longer satisfy people's vanity. They expect to find something to show off in the spiritual world. Finally, everyone agrees that the more educated you are, the more others will respect you.So people took action one after another, scrambling to let themselves learn all kinds of knowledge.A long, invisible, and smokeless war broke out in the world.In this war, the good virtues of human beings have been defeated and abandoned by people.Why do so many people flock to it knowing that the ending is painful?Obviously, people hope to be envied by others, so as to show their abilities and satisfy their desires.However, human power cannot absolutely control the direction of the development of things. God is fair. It gives a blow to those who try to save face to gain fame and fortune, let them go bankrupt, endure suffering, and impose on them the pain of those they hurt. .This is really a tragedy of life.

Charles?Lord Napier wrote a book during his lifetime called "Catch-Up".It was written after he retired from his post as British Commander in India.In the book, he made a very straightforward and strong condemnation of the extravagant life of military officers stationed in India.He said: "It is these extravagant lives that turn our officers into libertines. They don't spend money on food and drink, and they also rob people's horses for their own use. Look, is there any integrity in the army? This is A bunch of rascals with nothing but appearances!" In England, if a person with military record can't pay off his debts because of poverty, the court can sentence him to become an officer and increase his income, but this kind of person should not be in the army at all. The essence is bad.Charles?Lord Napier said: "A military officer should not only fight wars, but also have good morals. Being in debt will make others think that you are rebellious and dishonest. Considering that you can never pay your debts, you cannot continue to lend you money. "A person who can be called a gentleman must have the character of honesty and trustworthiness.Charles?Lord Napier thought that the young and reckless boys who could make achievements could not be, so the officers he selected were all those who had undergone certain training.Even if all these officers are excellent, he still asks them to learn more knowledge to enrich themselves and make themselves stronger.But it cannot be said that young people are bad. In the Indian and British armies, young soldiers also have a lot of good morals. They are brave and good at fighting, quick-witted, and have excellent military qualities. At times, they don't have enough thoughts to resist, and they are easily addicted to it, and they are full of blood, and they don't have enough patience to restrain their anger caused by a few words of ridicule from their companions.

Frugality can control poverty and disease
The poor, like the rich, have to eat, live, work and sleep. Poverty prevents them from thinking about too many things, such as disasters and diseases, and they don’t pray for better days in the future. The hardships of life have obliterated their hope.As long as they have food to eat and work to do today, they are already thankful, and they dare not expect that one day they will be able to get rid of poverty and live a better life.The same is true for people in primitive tribes, content with the status quo, without thinking that they can be a little richer, and they will not become poorer.In North America, social progress has made the local Indians less pristine, and there have been many disputes among the tribes, but they have not realized the benefits of social progress at all.

The Eskimos living around the Arctic Circle live like poor people in developed cities, never thinking about the future.If there is food at the moment, such as a lot of blubber, they will eat a big meal, and then start to sleep soundly.People in a civilized society will definitely feel that this approach is too wasteful and unplanned.But the Eskimos don't think there is anything wrong. They have lived like this since ancient times. They don't make too many plans for the future. No matter whether life is rich or difficult, they always maintain a happy mood.In their view, it is a wasteful behavior to save things and not eat them.

People who live in cold climates appear to be more industrious and wealthier than those who live in warm climates.The long winter and low temperature will make people prepare winter clothes, food and fuel when it is warm, and make people have to improve the efficiency of doing things. Therefore, many countries in the European cold climate circle believe that severe cold has created their wealth. .We can see that Sicilians, Andorrans, and Mexicans are significantly less industrious than Germans, Dutch, Americans, Canadians, and Belgians.

(End of this chapter)