All you can eat

I marvel at the productive ability of the modern world. I like to think that we've moved into a new phase of human development: the Post Scarcity world.

One aspect of the abundance is that we have "all you can eat". And not just food, but anything that you desire.

What do people do when they can "keep eating"? They tend to eat more than they need, not because they need it, but because they want it. It's just human nature.

Our brains are designed to function on scarcity. Our brains have adapted to an environment with scarcity. We really aren't programmed to handle an environment with abundance.

One way this manifests itself is that we have diseases of affluence. Obesity is epidemic in the United States and is becoming more common worldwide. People just can't stop eating salt, fat and sugar. There's even a term for it: Affluenza.

There's a curious paradox that occurs: Instead of focusing on what you have, you focus on what you don't have. In fact, I believe that the more that you have, the more you focus on what you don't have. And the more you focus on what you don't have, the less content you are and the less happy you are. As a society, we've become less and less happy along with our growing prosperity. So you buy and buy and eat and eat. It's a vicious cycle.

I don't know how it ever happened, but according to Nielsen, the average person watches TV for 5 hours per day. How did this ever become normal? I think there's a direct correlation between TV watching and happiness. If you watch messages that constantly tell you that you don't have the nicest car or the biggest house, or the most beautiful woman you will be unhappy.

But all of the fanciest cars, houses, clothes, possessions, and most beautiful women won't ever replace the simple pleasures of life. In fact, we seem to be trying to substitute these things for what will truly make us happy.

You've got all you can eat but you're still hungry.