Hi, Linda I think I've made my position on the money question abundantly clear in many posts, but to sum it up: 1) I agree that the misquote of the scripture has messed up people's minds around the subject of money, 2) I agree that the relentless pursuit of money with no balance is a tragic if not evil pasttime, 3) I agree that caring about money, or maybe I would put it as the care of money is important for personal responsibility. I would have appreciated the article, but I, too, was put off when I encountered the Ayn Rand quote. It's been many years since I read Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead, but I formed a poor opinion of the author in my early twenties. Whether my college roommate, who claimed to be an Objectivist, misinterpreted the philosophy or whether it was a true reflection of Ms. Rand's beliefs, her behavior around the subject of money (the roommate's) was appalling. It solidified my dislike of the philosophy as I then understood it. There was no kindness, generosity or common decency behind that behavior. Seeing Norman's exposition of it all these years later makes me realize I must have been more insightful at that tender age than I realized. Cheri

Hi Linda - you've done it again to me! Just when I thought I would take a bit of a break from philosophical thought - there you go again! Ok - here are a few of my own thoughts - several covered by other posters. Is money important? Ask anyone without any -and the answer will become obvious. Of course money is important as it has the ability to remove the greatest debilitator -DEBT. In a curious life I have sometimes had chunks of money from projects, and without money for many other times. I will leave you to guess which I prefer? It's what you DO with your money that counts and for me, I probably made only one wise financial decision in my life which was to buy our first flat in Paris, from the proceeds of events in Bahrain. We then upgraded to a house in SW France from the additional proceeds from Hungary, and did the final upgrade from the proceeds of events in the Baltics. In between we were practically broke, but always survived. A few years ago I was shocked to discover I had a form of melanoma. It coincided with a non-money time. Who stepped in to help - the French Government - that much-maligned institution. Remember - I am NOT French, and apart from being an EU citizen - had no claims whatsoever on the State - other than through my French wife. I am now clear of the cancer and other worries, but I will never forget this help. Finally before I go dribbling off into dotage - I must add one little anecdote. In 1981, (or was it '82?) the Iranian Revolution broke out whilst we were living in Bahrain - and for those with dodgy Geography - this is just across the Gulf from where the action was taking place. We expats. were duly warned to have a bag packed and return air tickets purchased to make a run for the airport if necessary. All sorts of military style activities were taking place in the streets of Manama, and it was quite disturbing. So what did all the expats do - first? We all went to the banks and drew out all our cash! Guess who was first in the queue? Life and limb? Nope - as the Woody Allen movie says 'Take the money and Run' They say money can't buy happiness - well it can at least buy the abiity to be miserable in comfort, so I will always be prepared to take the chance! Cheers!

Hey Cheri; ========== 1) I agree that the misquote of the scripture has messed up people's minds around the subject of money, 2) I agree that the relentless pursuit of money with no balance is a tragic if not evil pasttime, 3) I agree that caring about money, or maybe I would put it as the care of money is important for personal responsibility. ========== I agree - what an excellent summary. ========== I would have appreciated the article, but I, too, was put off when I encountered the Ayn Rand quote. It's been many years since I read Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead, but I formed a poor opinion of the author in my early twenties. ========== Oddly, with the hundreds (thousands?) of books I've devoured, I've never read Ayn Rand. I have no idea why. One thing I do know is that any one person can be right in some things and also horribly wrong in others. That applies to everyone I know, myself included. So, even in confessing that I've never read Rand, I have a question. Even if Rand has some horrid opinions or attitudes, those negatives do not take away from the truth of this, do they? "Money is a tool of exchange, which can't exist unless there are goods produced and men able to produce them. (snipped) Money is made possible only by the men who produce. Is this what you consider evil?" : ) L P.S. And to debate myself (which I do daily), the "saying" about money being evil doesn't say the men producing it are evil so Rand's quote is a bit skewed even though there's a good point in it. lol If that makes no sense, nevermind... I can confuse myself with the best of them.

Oh boy - what a subject. You sure know how to open a can of worms Linda. This is a subject that you could write volumes on. Here are three names Jesus Christ Mother Theresa Bob Geldof These three people seemed not to value money at all - OK I might be fudging with Bob Geldof and yet have moved mountains with their philosphies and attitudes. i don't think any of them could be labelled as selfish and yet I'm sure that they all would have said "I don't worry about money" Please, don't be offended by me using these examples. In a perfect society where everybody was equal and everybody did their best for each other, money (a means of exchange) would not be required. Money is an expression of society's mistrust of a fair deal. Oh dear I think I'm rambling again.

Hi Linda, Money is simply a tool that can be used for many things. Just as a hammer can be used in the construction of a house, or in committing a crime, so money can be used for things that are good or things that are evil. In our society, money is a very necessary and important tool. For someone to suggest that it isn't important is to deny reality. It is virtually impossible to live in our society without it. That, to me, makes it even more than important; it makes it essential. Where money becomes a problem is not in recognizing its importance, but in making it your god. Just as making a hammer your god, so placing that kind of importance on money would be rediculous, but many people DO place that kind of value on money, to their own misery and to the misery of others who they would squash to gain more for themselves. That is where the statement, properly quoted, "The love of money is the root of all evil," comes in. This applies not to those who simply recognize the importance of money as a valuable tool, but to those who put the pursuit of monetary gain ahead of everything else, including family, friends, and the rest of society. They are using the tool incorrectly with consequences similar to the aforementioned misuse of the hammer. God bless, Dave