Another good paragraph from Geography of Bliss: Iceland

Necessity may be the mother of invention, but interdependence is the mother of affection. We humans need one another, so we cooperate - for purely selfish reasons at first. At some point, though, the needing fades and all that remains is the cooperation. We help other people because we can, or because it makes us feel good, not because we're counting on some payback. There a word for this: love. p. 178

Excerpts: The Geography of Bliss: Bhutan & Qatar

Page 108

In the west and in the United States especially, we try to eliminate the need for compromise. Cars have "personal climate controls" so that driver and passenger need not negotiate a mutually agreeable temperature. That same pair, let's say they're husband and wife, need not agree on the ideal firmness of their mattress, either. Each can set their own "personal comfort level." We embrace these technologies. Why shouldn't everyone enjoy their own personal comfort level, be it in a car or in a bed? I wonder, though, what we lose through such conveniences. If we no longer must compromise on the easy stuff, like mattresses, then what about the the truly important issues? Compromise is a skill, and like all skills it atrophies from lack of use.


Page 156

Wanting things we don't like. If true, it pretty much demolishes the entire field of economics. Economists base their studies on the premise that rational human beings pursue things that will increase their "utility," economist-speak for happiness. Joe works overtime, hardly seeing his family, so he can save money to buy a new BMW. Therefore, the new BMW must increase Joe's utility, his happiness. What economists fail to take into account is that Joe is a moron. No, that's not entirely fair. Joe is not a moron; but Joe's brain clearly is. It's been wired in a way that compels Joe to chase after things that don't make him happy.