Horological Meandering

ThomasM
[PuristS]
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Your thoughts are not out of line, especially since your point is

not a harangue or accusatory.

It also touches on issues that I have wrestled with all my life.

"material objects" vs "experiences"

One's good fortune vis a vis other's "lesser fortunes"

But first a clarification - I've always tried to encourage, even embedded in the very policies and enforcement protocols we have on ThePuristS and now on PuristSPro, that what we celebrate here is not MONEY - not the "monetary value" or potential monetary appreciation or depreciation of OBJECTS - but rather the implicit passions in their conception, creation, AND APPRECIATION.  Remember, the enthusiast is as much a part of the whole process as the creator.  In fact, I would argue that a great collector himself becomes an auteur of sorts, in the same way a director of a great film is an auteur...

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So yes, the survivor/winner can sometimes suffer pangs of guilt about their good fortune.

This can be a good thing - it keeps one humble, and helps us appreciate what we have.

But I hope we can also not get too carried away with this -

How  many calories should one ingest daily before qualifying as a glutton and being wasteful?  Afterall, not only is it "unfair to all the starving people in the world" to waste food (wait a minute, some would argue that's a non-sequitor - what are you going to do, "transporter beam" that bunch of bananas or steak to East Africa or inner Mongolia?!? But the broader point stands) but it's also unhealthy if taken too far...

How many square feet does one "reasonably need" to live in - 200 square feet? 500? 35,000?

How many pairs of shoes? underwear?

For that matter, how much of the money one "earns" should one keep, and how much should one "tithe" or give away to the less fortunate?

Is this a dollar amount? or a percentage?

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On the one hand, I am sincerely asking the above not merely as rhetorical questions, but in order to read the SINCERE, CONSIDERED thoughts of members of this community.

On the other hand, part of my point is rhetorical - I've considered these issues for most of my life, even before I was a teenager, and the conclusion I've reached, to be at peace with myself, is that everyone needs to find that "inner peace" balance point for themselves, and abide by it.

That's why, while we always encourage all community members to give generously and charitably to the less fortunate, we also do not allow formal solicitations and don't engage in them ourselves.

I give privately, and for the ONLY reason to help; not to be invited to the gala ball; not to "extend my network" and not to get a deduction, and certainly not to use as a marketing message.

And I tend to consider direct, insistent solicitations with prejudice.

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So, CF, others, any further thoughts to share or add? (sincerely, no irony intended)

Cheers,

TM