Pity the rich, report says

[Nambe]

BBC News World Edition

British people should be more sympathetic to rich people who suffer from "affluenza" - illnesses brought on by their extreme wealth.

American psychologist Jessie O Neill believes that being wealthy disturbs emotional well-being.

In a report for BBC Radio Five Live on Sunday, she argues that people should feel sorry for the rich as well as the poor.

The psychotherapist founded the Affluenza Project in Wisconsin, US, and counsels rich families for between $10,000 and $15,000 (£6,000-9,000) per day to help them come to terms with their wealth.

She describes the word "affluenza" as meaning "a dysfunctional relationship with money". ---


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[JohnKleeb]

1. I can see why Doc O'Neil wants us to pity them when you get that much mone

y a day life must be larged
Actually I do pity them/

[Fovea]

2. Fortunately

This condition has a simple cure.
Really progressive taxation.

[Rose Siding]

5. Funny

There's one born every minute, isn't there?

[bluestateguy]

3. "Affluenza" is a 90's thing

Funny how we don't hear about it anymore. I remember in the 90's the New York Times did an extensive special report on this "disorder". One easy way to reduce affluenza in America is to cause a recession. Mr. Bush has done that, making that one health care policy he can claim as a real achievement.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

13. I watched the PBS programs. It was actually pretty great.

I still have the tapes and loan them to my wealthy friends who whine about money issues.

BTW check out the links at the site referenced in the article and the book recommendations.

https://www.affluenza.com/links.html

[Uzybone]

34. dont even give him credit for that

This recession is only hurting the middle class and the poor. People who can afford $10K a day therapy sessions are only getting richer and richer under this criminal.

[JackSwift]

4. What a load of crap!

Fortunately, wealth only makes us unequal for about 70 years give or take, nature makes us all equal for most of the existence of the universe, 13 billion years of history and a possibly eternal future. So this wealth inequality is just a bubble.

[htuttle]

6. That's a beautiful scam!

I'd imagine there are quite a few alienated wealthy people who'd love have someone feel sorry for their having to bear their 'rich man's burden'.

And at $15,000 per day, she's likely to relieve a few of them of that burden.

:evilgrin:

(do I sound callous? Well, they could always give it all away if it's a headache...I'm sure they could find someone to take it off their hands!)

[LiberalFighter]

20. How do I get credentials for that job?

LOL might be worth a try

[FireHeart]

7. Sorry to be so cynical, but...

My heart just goes out to all those poor, poor wealthy folks who can easily afford to feed, clothe and house hundreds of REALLY poor folks.

Ahh...life must be SO hard for them. :S

What a crock.

[DieboldMustDie]

8. I'm all for helping them out...

So let's raise the marginal tax rate on incomes over $1 million per year to 50%, elimitate the cap on social seurity taxes, and make sure the estate tax isn't permanently repealed. I'm sure I can come up with some more ideas, but it's late ;)

[Solly Mack]

9. lololololol and you just know some twit will buy this load of waffle

talk about rich...this article is too rich. lolololol

[I AM SPARTACUS]

10. pity the rich...I think I prefer.....EAT THE RICH...

[dweller]

12. BBBBBBBUUUURRRRRRPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!

:kick:







toothpick anyone?

dp

[study_war_no_more]

18. hear hear

spoken as a true member of the anarchist bowling league.

[KingBoo]

21. Eat the rich?

I'd love to, but I can't eat pork.

[Chicagonian]

31. Hi, we’re starting a people’s uprising. Would you fancy joining us?

eat the rich.

[JohnKleeb]

32. I am not a cannibal so I wouldnt wanna eat em

and they arent what I am.
but then again fuck the rich then again I dont wanna fuck em either. Boo hoo lets pity the rich not you think I am gonna pity someone who has more houses than me and has a private jet or boat sorry doc you're crazy like your patients,

[WhoCountsTheVotes]

35. tastes like chickenhawk

clogs the arteries though

[silverweb]

11. I find this very interesting:

"His research showed that in controlled experiments, people would rather harm their own prospects of having money than allow someone else to become richer than themselves."

Now, really, could anything be more counterproductive?? As far as I'm concerned, it proves conclusively that a preoccupation with one's wealth is a serious illness.

I highly recommend realpolitik's treatment as the most humane cure for this soul-eating disease!

O8)

[I AM SPARTACUS]

15. "joke" going around the Balkans when I worked there...

In response to "His research showed that in controlled experiments, people would rather harm their own prospects of having money than allow someone else to become richer than themselves."

This "joke" was told ubiquitously by all ethnicities about all others, I just picked the two to make it easier (typing "insert ethnicity here" sorta ruins the flow)...

A Serb is walking along the beach and finds a bottle. 'Cause it looks like a genie bottle, he picks it up and rubs it. Out pops a genie.

"I am the Genie of the Bottle," the Genie begins. "Yeah, yeah, what about my wishes," says the Serb.

"You get one wish, make it good. And oh yeah, whatever you ask for, your neighbor gets double..."

The Serb thinks to himself, "My neighbor is a Bosniac, I don't want HIM to get double my good luck...". He thinks and thinks, while the Genie is becoming impatient.

Finally, the Serb gets a brilliant idea. "Hey, Genie! You say my neighbor gets double of whatever I get, right?" The Genie, exasperated, sighs, "Right."

The Serb, dancing with glee, says "Okay, my wish is that you poke out one of my eyes!!!"

[AP]

23. No surprise. This is part of Bush motivation.

Wealth is power. Clinton in the US (and Blair in the UK) have tried to create more social wealth, and spread more of it to the middle class to give the middle class more democratic power. Republicans aren't interested in creating more social wealth. In fact, they wouldn't mind a society with LESS social wealth, so long as what little wealth there is is distributed to the people they want to ensure have power.

Aslo, Democrats stand for the principle that hard work should result in wealth (this idea is a cornerstone of John Edwards's campaign). The Republicans don't want to work hard to earn wealth. They want wealth to recreate wealth. They want guaranteed wealth, without having to continue to work hard to keep it. If hard work doesn't result in wealth, then we have a less productive economy. That's another way that less social wealth is produced.

[arikara]

14. Is this simply more propaganda to

make the poor believe that they really are the "lucky duckies"?

[I AM SPARTACUS]

16. I am less than completely assured that this propaganda is effective in...

...convincing the poor believe that they are lucky...

[DieboldMustDie]

17. Maybe those among America's rich who consider themselves Christians...

would be happier if they followed Jesus' admonition to "Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor..."

[HawkerHurricane]

19. Doggeral

"Millions of dollars
And diamonds and jewels
And a yacht on the bounding main
Will never replace true love,
Sweet girls...

But oh! how it eases the pain!"

[teryang]

22. Is this one of those "memes?"

Nothing is too absurd to succeed in the land of extremes.

[AP]

24. The UK requires a lot of propogandizing to maintain the inequitability

of monarchy, and system of entitlement which promotes such incredible income disparity.

[DrBB]

25. Brilliant! What a scam--I love it!

So now she can cure them of it, right? Well, maybe just alleviate it a bit. Kind of like the old technique of bleeding. She'll open a vein in their bank accounts--one that pours right into hers. They'll feel better and so will she. Everybody wins! Hooray!

What an entrepeneur. Was it John Dillinger who said, in answer to the question Why do you rob banks, "Cuz dat's where da money is."

[soupkitchen]

26. Why "affluenza" Why not "dipshittheria"?

Hey dip shits, generosity is the cure.

[Octafish]

27. Poor people have NO idea what it's like to be rich.

The problems. The awesome responsibilities. The worries about keeping the money!

It's enough to drive you insane.

BTW: If the rich have so many problems, how come not a single one (other than in an Eddie Murphy movie) would change places with a poor person?

[Nottingham]

28. Well its hard to pity the Rich when there is so many poor people!

:bounce:

[ze_dscherman]

29. I remember ...

... when I got together with the owners of tiny, very expensive restaurant, that was the craze for wealthy people on an european island. A place for the famous, the rich, the politicians and the intouchable criminals.

I was there researching for a travel guide, but since I am a good listener and it was late in the evening and as well off season, the owners told quite some stories (without displaying anything about clients - they were very discreet).

The success story for this restaurant (beside that it offered excellent quality seafood) was based on creating "intimacy". People not only felt free to do whatever kind of business they intended to do, but it also created some kind of "family feeling", making people confess much about themselves. And, since this was a small place only, the owners became witnesses to this, and quite often served as "surrogate friends".

My storytellers claimed that many of these very rich and prominent people were indeed emotionally dysfunctional - they jokingly referred to them as "our patients". Much of that, they believed, had to do with the distortion of reality and the social fabric that too much of power, fame and money creates.

They did not pity the super-rich, but would never want to be like them. Never would I.

[JCMach1]

30. I got your affluenze right here....

:puke:

[leesa]

33. If their object of addiction was heroin instead of money, they

would all be in jail. After all, they use the same means to satisfy their addiction that other junkies often uses....lies, theft, murder...

[Nikia]

36. Social disorder?

I can feel bad for the rich that may be uncomfortable with some aspects of being rich. I think that it mainly has to do with their interaction with other people. There are those that may not really have rich tastes in terms of food, fashion, and other posessions. They may feel pressure to fit in despite their dislikes, but I think that many people of all social backgrounds feel anxiety about fitting in but being oneself. The other socail problem that the rich have is that they may have a difficult time having real friends. They may feel that poorer people who they know may not really like them, only their money. They may feel that other rich people seek to pull them down. Rich people who have positions of power, where they are the top person in their business, may feel excluded from their workers circle and may may fear that their peers are only competitors. I have sympathy for this problem. An option might to quit their jobs if they have a high paying position of power and work at a lower paying job. If they have businesses, they could sell them and donate the proceeds. These are not really happy options either though. If their problem is just having too much money though, thye really should donate it to a worthy cause or invest it in monterarily risky ventures that would improve the business climate or communities. I have a relatively rich in law who is addicted to shopping that regrets buying stuff that she'll never use. I suggested that she donate it, but she keeps it in her basement instead.