Happy Poor People: Our Conception of Happiness is Messed Up | The Money Can’t Buy Happiness Debate

If you’re tired of hearing ‘the best things in life are free’ and ‘money doesn’t buy happiness’, then this video is for you. Let’s dive into why these messages are false under late stage capitalism and how this never ending search for ‘pure’ happiness upholds the system itself.

TIMESTAMPS:
Intro: Poor People Are Happier Than Rich People BS 0:00
Part 1: Can money buy happiness? 5:38
Part 2: Pure Happiness 10:39
TL/DW 16:19

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[scarletletter]

They say money can't buy happiness, but in reality, it's a valuable tool for gatekeeping access to even the most basic necessities of life.

[Vegas]

Money can't buy happiness but not having it is pretty freaking stressful

[perfectallycromulent]

"why don't these poor people tell me all their anxieties and sadnesses, for i am a white stranger who deserves to know all your secrets as a reward for my tourist dollars."

[lizardjr.]

You really hit the nail on the head. "poor people are happy so we don't need to fix anything."

[PeterIsATeacher]

1:40 LOL imagine thinking the polite smiles of servants are legit. My mom cleans houses for a living. My dad works at a meat packing plant as a mechanic. If this guy was actually legit about his observations he'd quit his wealthy lifestyle and pick up a swiffer. It's frankly insulting to insinuate that "just don't be materialistic dude" when people are wearing their hands down to the bone to make ends meet and just be able to live.

[crimson]

"Basic human rights cost money, even though they should be free" -Cheyenne

[elgordo]

Growing up in East L.A. being poor, having yellow teeth isnt very important. Since you come from a place where people cant afford whitening or getting braces. Its a non issue. But the second you get outside of the ghetto into more respectable parts of L.A. having yellow teeth or being snaggletooth becomes a source of contention and leads to unhappiness.

[rowanjoy]

I live in an underdevelp country, and yes, people smile here, because that is our culture, we are very extroverted, but if you look deep into each of them, my teacher were overwork, my mom just got a surgery and she is trying to go right back to her job because we need money. One of my ex coworkers, work monday and friday in a normal job, then go to university at night and in the weekend he had another job. I am an adult now and just having a job for 5 days, was exhausting asf, I don't want to imagine go to university and having other jobs the weekend. He was laughing all the time, if I start a conversation with him, he forget what I have told him just a minute ago, and he just laugh about it.
I learn that nobody was to admit that they are tired, nobody wants to be seem struggling.

[lancerguy]

As the old song goes:

“Ask the rich man, he’ll confess, that money can’t buy happiness.

Tell the poor man, he won’t doubt, but he’d rather be miserable with than without.”

[lkeke]

It is not that poor people are happy! Poor people are incentivized to make their lives bearable by appreciating happy moments! When you're poor and beset with lots of cares and worries when happy moments come along you show true appreciation and grasp at those times and memories in order to make it through the bad times. They're not "happy". They are appreciative and look for whatever moments of happiness they can find!

[xsshul]

Nailed it, Cheyenne. For me, if someone says money doesn't buy happiness, and that someone is materially well-off, with no intention of ever being anything else, they are either stupid or lying or telling you for a very different reason.

[CordeliaWagner]

So rich people tell us that access to healthcare, public transportation, clean water, food and the good things in life like being able to afford supplies for your passion doesn't lead to happyness???
This must be an evil joke!

[xzxzojkeymtzxzx]

money can't buy happiness but it can buy food and comfort, without which is gonna be pretty hard to be happy

[StylusShade]

I honestly feel like the vast majority of people only care about climbing the social ladder because capitalism dictates that they climb it. If you're so busy focusing on getting ahead that you ignore that you're stepping on others in order to do it or even viewing it as proof that you're getting somewhere, you'll be too tired and too isolated to unify with your communities and rise up against the ruling class. So, as you can imagine, seeing class consciousness return with a vengeance and capitalism go down flailing for its life has been inspiring and entertaining. I still acknowledge that capitalism's fall might not be consolidated within my own lifetime, but seeing things slowly get better keeps me hopeful.

There was a tweet on Twitter that said something like "If capitalism weren't a factor and all your needs were met, what would you do?" Every single answer I saw had something to do with making the world better, achieving dreams, bettering oneself as a person, or just existing without bothering anyone, but nothing to do with "getting ahead" or "making more money". And I'm aware this doesn't apply to literally everyone, because some people are greedy and/or assholes, and I'm not sure how many of the responses were sincere, but I think it's safe to say most people in the world have better things to do than fuck around over money.

I love your videos, and this was no exception. Excellent job.

[toomuchsci-fi]

It always frustrated me that "poor" is usually a very specific picture or that you have to be destitute to be considered in that category.

It gives an excuse to say "well you're not in the same situation as the people in this country, so You're not *actually* poor"

There's still people in the US that don't have electricity or access to clean running water, so we don't even have to look at other countries as it is 🙄

[joaquingaravagliaolivera]

I'd like to add that this version of what happiness is, is not only used to excuse not changing things, but as a support of attempts to discredit and isolate people that ask for change.
If everyone, not matter what their situation is, can be happy, your lack of hapiness is only your problem and not a social one. And when you take into account the selp-help industry, another way to make money too.

[sptony]

"Money can't buy happiness" *wipes tears with a 100$ bill*
Yeah, but wanna know what makes me happy? Knowing that I am financially supplied, because money is at the beginning of everything; physical and mental well being. You can't fathom how much my rent and maintenance, an empty stomach and protracted bills can contribute to my mental (and, by proxy, physical) un-wellness.

I always HATED the rhetoric of "happiness comparison", because it only serves to gaslight people into thinking they're ungrateful for being not happy for the breadcrumbs thrown into their general direction. Also what kind of response is that? "There are more and more people in Germany living below the poverty line." - "Yeah, uuuuh, maybe these people could learn a thing or two if they looked at poor neighborhoods in Mumbai. These people have barely anything and still make it work."

Besides the lack of resources, a lot of those places have exorbitant crime rates and significant corruption.

[shadowmoon]

The other side of all this (as is pointed out in the video) is that affording a lot of basic things that make people happy are becoming more and more cost prohibitive. In addition to food and shelter, something that really adds to my happiness but I find increasingly scarce is nice outdoor spaces. Having consistent access to nature and being able to safely walk outside is so important to me, but nowadays, any square foot of land that is nice outdoor space has skyrocketing property values. The less money you have, the less access to safe outdoor spaces and greenery you have.

[Emileigggggh]

I remember that documentary having a super ableist part where a motivational speaker mimics a girl with Down's Syndrome's voice and I turned to the teacher who was playing it for us and expressed how it bothered me, which she probably got pissed about because knowing her she probably viewed it as "negative." Also, since "money doesn't buy happiness, " why don't we take the excess away from the rich? It's clearly not doing anything for them after a certain point!

[jaredmcdaris]

I wonder if a rich man’s servants might be incentivized to present a happy, successful image to the man who pays them. I wonder if a series of people that have self-selected to be interviewed (for money and social capital) in a documentary about how happy and successful they are, might be incentivized to present an image of happiness and success to the man who is compensating them for presenting that image.