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Why do people not value free stuff? Share your thoughts!

Discussion in 'Political Opinions & Beliefs' started by I justsayin, Aug 6, 2018.

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  1. I justsayin

    I justsayin Well-Known Member

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    One of the best replies I've ever read. Thank you.
     
    I justsayin, Aug 8, 2018
    #126
    Nightmare515 likes this.
  2. Quantum Nerd

    Quantum Nerd Well-Known Member

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    Apology accepted, you'll find that we are probably somewhat on the same page regarding this topic. I appreciate it especially because it is not easy to say sorry on an anonymous forum where throwing insults at each other is the norm rather than the exception. Kudos...

    Yes, psychologically, the "free" money you find is worth less than the one you worked for, so is the stuff you buy with the "free" money.

    Also on a macroscopic level it is worth less. An example: The total amount of dollars in circulation is a little north of $1 trillion. Let's say someone had buried $100 billion in the backyard and then died and nobody ever knew about it. After many years, the new owner of the house finds the money in the backyard, which is "free" money. All of a sudden, the amount of available money has increased by roughly 10%. With the amount of goods remaining the same, the "free" money has devalued money by about 10%. The same principle holds for the $10 bill you find on the road, although on a much smaller scale.
     
    Quantum Nerd, Aug 9, 2018
    #127
  3. Nightmare515

    Nightmare515 Ragin' Cajun Staff Member Past Donor

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    For me personally yes. I don't particularly like to struggle, nobody does, but I do like a challenge. Challenge makes the end result much better not just for me but for a lot of folks. You simply appreciate the end result a bit more if you've had to work for it. Sense of accomplishment I guess is the phrase I'm looking for. Not with everything of course, I mean I don't exactly want a relationship full of pain and misery that will work itself out in the end hopefully.

    If I want to travel 20 miles I'll just hop in my truck and drive there and get out without thinking much of it. But a runner who has trained for years who decided to go on a 20 mile run to a destination will feel a much greater sense of pride and accomplishment once they reach their destination than I will having just got into my truck and drove there in a few minutes.
     
    Nightmare515, Aug 9, 2018
    #128
    Quantum Nerd likes this.
  4. Johnny-C

    Johnny-C Well-Known Member

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    It is true that many don't sense the value of things which are free or come to them with relative ease. We are all human and have a tendency to take many things for granted... (like our health or even things like food).

    Even things we work for can lose value/meaning over time.

    I think it is too broad, to say that people do not or cannot appreciate what is "free". And that is because it is a matter of the mindset of the person who receives or attains a given 'free' thing. Some will value and appreciate whatever significant thing comes their way, while others may not.

    Talk to a large range of people, and what I'm trying to say about this will become more clear.
     
    Last edited: Aug 9, 2018
    Johnny-C, Aug 9, 2018
    #129
    Quantum Nerd likes this.
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