It's a small world, after all.

At what point does material necessity become luxury, and drift into excess? Where do you draw the line between want, and need? Can desire surpass satisfaction, as a result of compulsion?

If a long life is the ultimate goal, we all have the same basic material needs: Healthy food, clean water, warm shelter, sanitary environment, and medical care. In order to meet those needs in the modern industrial world; we also need education (learn how to get what you need), transportation (access the things you need), and the internet (find the things you need).

Since physical health is affected by emotional health, we also need a general state of comfort. This includes a certain amount of personal space and privacy balanced with social interaction - but that amount is a matter of individual preference, which typically varies by geographic location and culture. The same applies to our surroundings: Visual, audio, and tactile stimulation are entirely a matter of personal taste and integral to our emotional state; but also follow cultural trends. If our surroundings look unpleasing it's difficult to feel at ease. Likewise, music can be calming, and stroking a soft furry animal can lower blood pressure.

We all like to have nice things. We're tool users by nature, and tools are nice things. Collecting stuff that might come in handy later is a survival instinct, and if useful goods are hard to find then it makes sense to hoard as much as possible and take the cream of the crop. In the consumer world, this comes down to collecting money and shopping. We buy all our basic material needs, and some nice things to make us feel comfortable. Those of use who are collecting enough money, that is.

Even here in the United States of recently self proclaimed "Awesome Possibilities" 15.1% of the population is officially living in poverty (source), so not everyone is collecting a sustainable share of nice things - or even necessities. While the urge to hoard may benefit the individual, continually acting on that urge is also detrimental to humanity. As social creatures, surely our individual state of emotional well being is affected by the quality of life our companions enjoy.

What I find really disturbing, is the cultural trend around me that dictates a great many luxuries to be necessities. Expectations for personal space are leaning toward isolation, while the population and the need to coexist are ever growing. Although the idea of recycling is quite trendy, we are presented with an array of factory new products made from post consumer materials instead of refurbished goods. Seasonal styles are handed down like scripture, and matching sets of everything laid out in a shoppers buffet. But before you load up your plate, stop and think about what satisfaction you get for the cost. Stop and think about your own true desires, your personal taste.