Wealthy Americans

\\ How Wealthy Are We?

From the standpoint of material wealth, we Americans have difficulty

realizing how rich we are. Robert Heilbroner, who has written dozens of

books on the subject of the economy, suggest that we go through a little

mental exercise that will help us count our blessings. Imagine doing the

following, and you will see how daily life is for more than a billion people

in the world.

1. Take out all the furniture in your home except for one table and a couple

of chairs. Use blanket and pads for beds.

2. Take away all of your clothing except for your oldest dress or suit,

shirt or blouse. Leave only one pair of shoes.

3. Empty the pantry and the refrigerator except for a small bag of flour,

some sugar and salt, a few potatoes, some onions, and a dish of dried beans.

4. Dismantle the bathroom, shut off the running water, and remove all the

electrical wiring in your house.

5. Take away the house itself and move the family into the tool shed.

6. Place your "house" in a shantytown.

7. Cancel all subscriptions to newspapers, magazines, and book clubs. This

is no great loss because now none of you can read anyway.

8. Leave only one radio for the whole shantytown.

9. Move the nearest hospital or clinic ten miles away and put a midwife in

charge instead of a doctor.

10. Throw away your bankbooks, stock certificates, pension plans, and

insurance policies. Leave the family a cash hoard of ten dollars.

11. Give the head of the family a few acres to cultivate on which he can

raise a few hundred dollars of cash crops, of which one third will go to the

landlord and one tenth to the money lenders.

12. Lop off twenty-five or more years in life expectancy.

By comparison how rich we are! And with our wealth comes responsibility. We

should use it wisely, not be wasteful, and help others.

The list comes from economist Robert Heilbroner