Civilization's Odd Illusion

"Why are diamonds so valuable," she asked with genuine interest.

They're not.  They have industrial uses, perhaps, but no intrinsic value.  You can't use them for much except in trying to impress others. Billionaire De Beers chairman Nicky Oppenheimer once succinctly explained, “diamonds are intrinsically worthless, except for the deep psychological need they fill.”  So how does such imaginary value emerge in society?

Beginning with the simplest life issues - food and water, shelter and clothing, health and learning, and safety - neither diamonds nor gold or other 'precious' things have any practical use.

• In Spain, a fellow took me to the commons where he had a root cellar.  In it, he proudly showed me his prosperity, about ten bushels of potatoes he had grown and harvested all by himself that year.
• In Djibouti, a fellow cheerfully introduced me to his camels and goats, his family's valuables.  
• In Kenya, a Masai friend explained that goats were his extended family's reserves.  If need arises, they sell a goat.  If a year goes well, they buy a goat.

At the lowest economic echelon:  If the world lived at that self-sustainment level, crops and flocks would be valuable.  Craftsmanship would be marketable.  Fabrics and clothing, bread and produce would be traded, and folks would help each other.  Negotiated trades and a handshake would be the currency, and diamonds would still be worthless.

Second echelon: enter the middle-man; the one who buys and sells, who employs laborers and manufactures products.  Currencies emerge, whose value is perhaps just a promise, to enable transactions.

Third echelon: rule makers (rulers) rise above and impose control; the right to rule and tax people and property and productivity, all justified by the benefit of governance and employment and some protection.  Luxury (useless decor) emerges for the privileged.  Appearance and reputation become goals.  Currencies and financial instruments become useful repositories for their excess wealth.

In a few centuries, currencies and equivalents become an industry that shapes the world.  Confined to the rules of imaginary value, the focus of life is acquisition and accumulation of currencies.  And what do you do when you have more than you need?  You buy a bigger home, a cooler car, expensive clothes, a diamond ring .... and we're far down that imaginary road but completely unaware.

Real world and not-real world ...

There's progress for the fortunate.  Health and income stability improve.  Manual labor declines as mechanization sweeps through home and workplace.  Geographic mobility becomes normal.  Freedom to choose your path emerges through the years, although much is chosen for you based on the imaginary model of things.

For appearance and reputation, rarely used ....

It's revealing to see the priorities those in top positions follow now.  The decisions they make change the country and the world, and as they focus on territory or religion or trade, they'll affect the lives of millions.  When economic competition becomes the focus, that's where imaginary wealth does the most harm, and competition becomes just a continuation of previous wars.  Economic decisions are made for advantage, not for human benefit, and the devastating result at the lower end of the pyramid is deprivation and struggle as wealth is deliberately extracted from communities and countries.

... if you know who to ask ...

He offers a different value system

than the one we see here.

To Him, every person is valuable,

wealth is a crippler, and the

the first shall be ... last.

Curious why the oil industry fights so fervently against climate change?  The U.S. is now the world's largest oil producer and has the largest proven reserves (more than 200 billion barrels).  That's wealth worth defending despite the devastating cost, at least according to the near-term economics.  Much like the tobacco industry's defense, it fights for gain not human benefit.

Curious why the financial industry has fought so long against regulatory oversight?  Major banks and financial corporations are bigger than countries now, and wealth is their only goal, not human benefit.

There are real truths available despite all the imaginary.  There is a view, a perspective that's real-world based.  There are foundational principles, and there is inalienable value in each individual, but it's hard to see that from the upper echelons of worldly wealth, enclosed in civilization's illusion.