[smallmancontrov]

> And it is because we are all comparing ourselves to each other and wanting to appear

No. No no no! It's because capitalism rations by price and weights by wealth. Once inequality cooks up enough the whims of the wealthy outweigh the needs of the poor.

It is not the strength of those whims that squishes the poor, it is the strength of those whims multiplied by relative wealth that squishes the poor. The whims did not grow out of control. The multiplier did. Extreme inequality is the problem.