The (not so) hot millions!

Money may not buy happiness as the cliché goes, but the fact remains that most believe money buys a hell lot of things that, in the troubled world of today, keep sadness at bay. This may not make a lot of sense, but how many things in our ken do? Look at it any way you like, in today’s crazed world the importance of money can hardly be over-emphasised.

Take the latest case. The ill-starred Saddam Hussein, nabbed not so long ago by the Americans in what was graphically described as a “hole”, had a bundle of cash for company. The purpose of the three-quarters of a million US dollars was not told. Perhaps, the mere proximity of money provides a feeling of warmth or security to an individual. Not that it really helps when it comes to the crunch. But human nature being what it is, money has always had and will hold a certain allure.

If one has any qualms about the good points of money, they should be removed when one considers the way people who ought to know better are hankering after the stuff. How can so many be wrong? Yet our intellectuals and thinkers cling to their line of thought stating that money is the root of all evil. Could it be sour grapes, one wonders? There is the moot point though whether lots of money can actually add to one’s popularity. Parasites and hangers-on often surround moneyed people, but can these species really be termed as “friends”? Having pots of money does raise one’s apparent social status. Or perhaps, one can look at it in another way. Spike Milligan had an apt comment: “Money can’t buy friends, but you can get a better class of enemy.”

History of the love affair between man and money would make interesting reading. One finds that power and money somehow go together. Which comes first is the moot point. It is awfully hard to tell though, like a chicken and egg equation. Some are born with a silver spoon in their mouth, as they say. This kind goes about utilising their wealth to acquire influence and capture power. And if in the process the wealth gets a boost, this is part of the game! There are others who take advantage of their power and influence to amass wealth. Either way, it hardly brings honour to the individual concerned.

Not long ago German television aired a documentary “Hitler’s Money”, that insinuated that the Führer actually spent most of his spare time amassing a vast fortune. There you are! Whichever way you look, the stench of money always filters through.

Be that as it may, the study of the mad quest for fortunes by the history’s high and mighty should make an interesting subject for research. Although individual studies on the subject may be at hand, no attempt has apparently been made to study this phenomenon in its entirety. Why do despots feel the need to stash away all the dirty millions when they already possess all the power and glory to revel in? Do they suffer from an insecurity complex of sorts?

While on this lamentable subject, how about giving a thought to the tendency of the already rich and powerful to rake in even more by the sackful? It is a fact that most never live long enough to enjoy the loot (or, in some cases, to regret it!). And yet, humankind continues to tread on the same beaten path, refusing to learn from history. All one can say is that money has always exercised a bizarre fascination for man. The more he has the more he wants. And history is witness there is no limit to his hankering for more.

Delving deeper into this somewhat sordid affair, one must not ignore the obvious linkage between power and the urge to rake in millions. Power begets money; and money gives rise to the urge to grab power. It is a vicious circle of sorts! There must be a moral in this tale somewhere.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 30^th, 2019.

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