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Next Gen Politics

I read this post yesterday and couldn't remember if I responded or not. I'm on vacation, so I guess that may be a reason...lol.
What I wanted to say was that I have been reading about a similar idea recently on another post. www.buddinggardener.com. There the author has been part of a "100 things" challenge, which serves a similar, purpose. By reducing the "things" you own, you can thereby increase the overall worth of the things you keep. It's an interesting idea, as is your article. I really enjoy coming here and reading your posts, and I just wanted to say thanks for all your hard work. As a side note, I have written a post about my favorite blogs, and I put a link to your blog in my post. I hope you don't mind. Keep up the good work. I finally figured out what a "reader" was, and you were one of the first sites I entered. Have a great week.

Jerame Clough
-Next Gen Politics

The Financial Philosopher

Thanks Jerame:

Philosophy certainly has taught me that words, such as wealth and freedom, have so many different meanings to so many different people that the words become almost without meaning -- they become abstract.

The terms wealth and freedom are quite often mistakenly tied to eachother.

I believe wealth does not provide freedom BY money, but wealth is actually better defined as freedom FROM money.

The paradox that arises is that the more monetary wealth we obtain, the less freedom we possess.

Thanks for the comment and for being a "reader!"

Enjoy your vacation...

Cheers...

Kent

Frank Farbenbloom

Coincidentaly last evening on TV, I heard Warren Buffet address this question when answering a group of students at Nebraska U.

Happiness, Buffet said, "... when you get to my age" comes from being surrounded by people, family, friends and colleagues, who care about and LIKE you.

He went on to say that he knows many including Forbes 400 members who get honors and acclaim, have building named after them and dinners given in their honor but "no one really likes them!"

Maimonides about 800 years ago spoke of how man engages in economic activity in order to take care of his family's material needs. However, he goes on to say, too often man forgets the original need, getting caught up in making money for the sake of making money.

My late father-in-law in his 94 years, never had much money but left a legacy of love,knowledge and respect among the hundreds who had the privilege of knowing him. It is a priceless legacy reaching down to his great-granchildren.

Thanks for another thoughtful posting.

The Financial Philosopher

Frank:

My personal lesson on this subject began the day my 4-year old son asked me why I was away from the family so much. I told him that I was "earning money for the family so we can pay for all of our things..."

He said, "I'd rather have my Daddy than money." That day I began a plan to start my own business...

It is now three years later and I am succesfully self-employed and I spend more time with my family than ever before...

Thanks for taking time to make a thoughtful comment...

Kent (The Financial Philosopher)

Aaron Pinkston

Kent, this was very timely since I was doing a lot of thinking about the diminishing utility of information back when you posted this. In particular, how it impacts or sustains markets with asymmetric information. Maybe there's another post in that idea.

Here's some Nobel Prize winning links on asymmetry:
http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economics/laureates/2001/ecoadv.pdf
http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economics/laureates/1996/press.html

The Financial Philosopher

Thanks, Aaron...

I will take a look at the links.

Kent

Isak

These are not Nobel Prize winning links, but here are some thoughts that develop this idea a little further, use it to demonstrate why gambling is typically irrational, and suggest/develop applications of this idea in taxing and trading:
1. http://www.du-preez.com/2011/quantitative-finance/utility-function-of-wealth
2. http://www.du-preez.com/2011/quantitative-finance/logarithmic-utility-of-wealth
3. http://www.du-preez.com/2011/quantitative-finance/optimal-market-exposure

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  • Kent Thune is a wealth manager, a writer and a philosopher... Read More

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