Materialism is not necessarily the problem, excessive materialism is
Question from the Internet:
“Why is materialism so despised when it is typically materialistic people who succeed more and drive our nations?”
I would like to ask, what exactly are materialistic people successful in? They are successful according to the values of our present society that measures everything - including people - according to material wealth, power, celebrity status, domination over others.
Where are they driving out nations? Towards perpetual crisis, inequality, strife, societal breakdown and wars.
It is not their fault of course, we are all born with the same “engine”, with an insatiable desire, yearning for selfish fulfillment, profit. Some are more, others are less successful, and the more successful ones rule over the less successful ones.
The problem is not with materialism, the problem is with the excessive use of it, the problem is that we can’t stop as we always want more and this way we inevitably start exploiting others, depleting Nature, behaving like cancer.
This is why we need to learn how to harness, channel our inner drive for more, to consume, to use everything for our own benefit towards positive, constructive, collective benefit, adapting ourselves to Nature’s intricately balanced, harmonious system.
Then there will be no problem with personal possessions, profit, success - as long as we learn how to remain within the optimal parameters of healthy, modern, natural necessities and available resources, reach receiving their just renumeration according to their most optimal, mutually responsible, mutually complementing contribution to the whole collective.