The Endemic Pandemic

A desolating sickness is spreading across the world, threatening to destroy large numbers of the human population in virtually every country. It is spreading most quickly among the more affluent and prosperous nations in which people possess highly developed communication systems and greater freedom of choice.

Caused by a nasty, pathogenic virus called valere falsus aestimatus, the disease Cupiditas is causing more human suffering perhaps than any other affliction known to man. Neither the young or old are immune from its effects. It does not discriminate between class or station. Rich and poor are falling victim to its curse.

The virus causes the brain to overheat thus impeding the victim's ability to think rationally. The greater the swelling, the faster one's reasoning abilities fail. Eventually the person reaches the point where logical thought is no longer possible.

In this condition, an individual experiences an overweening desire for something; it may be wealth, it may be power, it may be position, pleasure or popularity. It may be alcohol, tobacco or drugs. It may be pornography, gambling or even food. It may be any number of things. But, what ever it is, the infected individual becomes willing to pay many times what it is worth to experience or obtain it.

Often the cost is exorbitant. Lost health, lost mental capacity, loss of freedom and even life are not uncommon expenditures for many to make. Lost reputations and loss of self-respect; not to mention that the loss of opportunity, friends, and even loved ones are common experiences of those who become infected.

When afflicted with Cupiditas, arguments that favor things the victim wants are accepted without questioning, while arguments contrary to the victim's wants are rejected. In this condition, victims develop an insatiable desire for things that are potentially hurtful to themselves and to others.

Cupiditas is not a new illness. Benjamin Franklin made many references to it in "Poor Richards Almanac." Following are a couple of examples:

"Many a man thinks he is buying Pleasure, when he is really selling himself a Slave to it." 1750

"If Man could have Half his wishes, he would Double his troubles." 1752

In fact, Franklin tells a story about when he was afflicted with cupiditis as a boy.

When he was seven, he was given some money to buy himself a toy. On his way to the store he came across another boy who was blowing on a whistle. The sound of the whistle so charmed Franklin that he offered the boy all of his coppers for the whistle. The boy readily agreed and Franklin, delighted with his whistle, returned home happily blowing on the whistle to the annoyance of his brothers and sisters. When they found out what he had paid for the whistle, they told him that he had paid four times what it was worth, put him in mind what he could have bought with the rest of the money and laughed at him for his folly.

Now, the whistle which had brought Franklin so much pleasure brought him vexation in the knowledge that he had paid far more for it than it was worth. However, he benefited from the experience as he often found occasion to remind himself to not pay too much for his whistles.

Over the years he frequently observed many who he believed had paid too much for their whistles and concluded, "....I conceive that a great part of the miseries of mankind are brought upon them by the false estimate they have made of the value of things." "Benjamin Franklin's The Art of Virtue", p. 16,17

Here we have it then, the valere falsus aestimatus virus is a false estimate of the value of things, and by this means, as Franklin observed, a great part of the miseries of mankind are brought to pass.

Three centuries later we find ourselves still facing this problem. But, as time has gone by, advances in technology and access to greater resources have made the problem more serious; to the point that many think it threatens the foundations on which civilization and human progress rest. It is truly like a virus that attacks and eventually kills its victim. And, our youth are the ones who are most vulnerable to this disease.

So what can we do to arrest the progress of Cupiditas? Since this is an illness that is completely avoidable at the individual level, it is one that responds favorably to education, especially as a preventative measure.

The problem is that we aren't providing enough of this kind of education, either in our homes or in our schools, to adequately prepare our young to resist the disease when it attacks. On the other hand, young people are being bombarded by messages specifically designed to increase their appetites to possess and do things with high hidden costs.

It is critical that we undertake a far more energetic and vigorous approach to character education. At a time when a young person's character is still in the process of formation, a process that involves making important choices about what is truly important and not important in life, it is essential we do everything we can to immunize them against the valere falsus aestimatus virus.

Character Based Learning strategies are particularly well suited to helping young people understand the importance of the choices they are making, and providing them with the resources they need to avoid contracting Cupiditas and paying far too much for their whistles.

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