Continue with Is Money Your Master or Your Servant?

Money woes are also common in times of abundance.   During recent years of financial prosperity, many people have been plagued by money worries.   For instance, The Witness,  South African newspaper, reported that "a creeping social disease of over-consumption, commercialism and rampant materialism" was spreading in Africa.  The newspaper listed some of the symptoms of this "disease," including "stress, debt, waste, overwork, feelings of deprivation, envy and depression." Money was blamed for the ongoing deterioration of the quality of human life in Africa. 

Prior to the recent financial crunch, India underwent a period of outstanding economic growth.  India Today International reported that 2007 was a year when the country "fast forwarded to a new level of conspicuous consumption."  Yet, at the time, officials there were afraid that India's prosperity would result in increased unrest an even violence.

During that same period too, a new generation of young adults in the United States were displaying a propensity for splurging on luxury items.  However, their spending power was not bringing them happiness.  Researchers stated that affluence was one of the principal cause of alcoholism, depression, and suicide there.   One study revealed  that despite the abundance and wealth,  "fewer than one in three Americans" claimed to be "very happy.

Next time:Is Money Your Master or Your Servant?/  The Other Side of  The Coin

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