We value more than what we own

Jeanne has some excellent, as ever, ruminations on money and happiness, and also on what "ownership society" means and what it leaves out.

At some level, I think most people understand that once you have food, clothing, shelter, and a few personally important luxuries (for me -- books and music), the things that add the most to your life -- schools, health care, a clean environment, pleasant surroundings, museums, etc. -- are things that either you can't provide for yourself, or things that function best when everyone shares in them.

So the problem with focusing on making more and more people part of an "ownership society," isn't just that it's a scam, but that even if you really tried to make it happen, society wouldn't necessarily be better off.

[She gives a striking example from current events in Mexico.] Where the nation wishes to invest its (and its people's) dollars isn't always where it will make the most difference to their lives or anyone else's -- see this example too.