On creating wealth 

Creating wealth sounds like a very noble thing. In the following, we will take a look at several examples.

Suppose a company turns a free public park into one that charges entrance fees. In this way, the company generates wealth, pays taxes and increases employment by putting someone at the door to collect entrance fees. But does this make the society a better place?

You might say charging entrance fees doesn’t create anything new. Now suppose we mow down trees to build new houses. But is this always a good thing, especially in a crowded city with few trees left?

You might say not all wealth creations cause environmental destruction. Internet was suppose to create a paperless economy. But internet shopping generates a lot of packaging, which greatly increases overall paper consumption. Internet companies create a lot of wealth. They also destroy a lot of wealth, by destroying a lot of traditional businesses.

At a fundamental level, creating wealth requires effort. Creating and raising babies also requires effort. Right now, the fertility rate in our society is already below replacement rate, which makes our society unsustainable. Pushing for more wealth can only further depress the fertility rate, making our society even less sustainable. It is the time to reduce, not to increase the amount of wealth. However, it is a very difficult and delicate process.