Money… is it really worth it?

Money – the currency of the world, the ultimate object of exchange; used by everyone for everything. Nowadays money is accompanied by covetousness and greed with the desire to have more and more, as it is the source of a “good and meaningful life”. However, that is not the case for a great deal of people in the world.
The struggle for success, measured by the amount of money one has, has created a huge income gap between those on top and the ones living in poverty – the ones used for the benefit and luxury of the others. This is a serious social problem that affects every individual. The problem itself comes from the existence of money and even though the world aims for improvement of the standards and way of live, the problem has only gone worse. In 1960 the Income Gap between the rich and the poor was 30:1, while in 2008 it rose to 92:1.
Also, this is a serious political issue, because it’s the people on the top who decide how the whole system operates, how the money is used, and how this benefits everyone and not only a certain number of individuals. The government and the political figures have a major call in determining the benefits for the people. An example would be President Bush’s decision to spare $161.8 billion for the “War on terrorism” (responsible for 1900 deaths internationally per year, 68 of whom Americans), while the funds for the fight against heart deceases (from which 450 000 Americans die annually) are only $3 billion.
It is the understanding of only a small portion of all people that money is not (or should not be) the most important factor in people’s lives. It surely creates many advantages for the ones who are abundant of it, but this profit is with the cost of other people’s misery and suffering. The great difference of classes and living environments is caused exactly by the fact that money is what determines whether one lives “happily ever after”, or has to struggle to “just be”. The world as it is today has the ability to give equality to everyone, but this would mean that sacrifices would have to be made by the ones who control the world, the ones who control the money.
Money should not be a goal that has to be reached, or even surpassed; money should not be what guides people’s lives.