Some time ago, I found myself on a long stretch of deserted highway with no sight of state troopers. My foot pushed down on the small pedal to command power, and the cylinders complied joyfully to reach maximum velocity. I laughed out loud from the exhilarating acceleration. To go fast without consequences is a rare privilege that a few of us get to experience.
Mercedes is making SUVs with V12 engine for a cool $500,000. On average, that’s 3x the size of a typical engine. Imagine how fast it could go. The beast purrs as it revs. The marvels of modern engineering is rather cool. If I could afford a car like this, I must have worked hard to earn it. This is a toy that I get to show off.
But…
Half a million dollars for a moving liability when someone else is living hand to mouth, working multiple jobs, with no sight of stable income? Most don’t even have jobs. Homeless. Mentally ill. Addicted… $500,000 could buy 5 homes for five families in need. Or, it could feed 40 families of 5 (mom, dad, 3 children) for 7 years. That’s 200 people fed over 2500 days, based on an average living expense of $2 a day.
Whoever wants this particular Mercedes must have net worth of at least $10million, if not more.
We can choose to uphold the status quo, while muttering in disbelief: Life isn’t fair. Or berate ourselves by thinking, I’m just not driven enough. But I am not convinced that the majority of the population living below the poverty line are plain lazy and/or stupid. I’m not convinced. Are you?