The Relationship Between Wealth and Power العلاقة بين الثروة و القوة

The Relationship Between Wealth and power                   

Some have said that Wealth is Power. But it is equally well-known that Power brings Wealth. So what is the relationship between these two objects of desire? Which brings which? Which is the chicken and which is the egg?

To fully understand the dynamics between Wealth and Power, we need to first define what is meant by the words 'Wealth' and 'Power'.

When we speak of Wealth, the images that come to mind are big houses, big cars, gold bars, plush offices, golf resorts and European ski holidays. And in our modern times, Wealth is represented by Money; cash in our pockets and numbers in our bank accounts.

In short, Wealth is the ability to buy stuff; the ability to obtain what our hearts desire from the market place (both legitimate markets and black markets).

Anything that others put up for sale, we can have if we can pay the price in money. The whole concept of an economy is an attempt to regulate and systemize decision-making with regards to what gets produced and created by humanity.

But note that there is a limitation to what Wealth can beget. It only buys things at the market place. You can't buy things that people are not willing to sell or are not able to sell.

Before we conclude on Wealth, let's look at what 'Power' is. Power can be defined as the ability to turn our intentions into reality, transforming the intangible ideas born in our minds into solid truth. To manifest our intentions, we need to be able to control and influence our environs.

This ability to control our environs is called 'Power'. As such, physical power is the ability to move and shape physical objects, social power is the power to win over friends and allies, and formal authority is the ability to tell people what to do; backed by military force or the rule of law.

When we combine the definitions of Wealth and Power, we get the correct perspective to view these two subjects.

The truth is, Wealth is ONE TYPE of Power. Wealth is the power to get others to do the necessary work to produce goods and services that we want. With wealth, we can buy the organized labor of others, trading our money for their work, within the confines of the marketplace.

Wealth itself can also be traded for other types of power. You can use wealth to influence those in positions of authority, through both legitimate lobbying and corruption.

So the question of 'Do you want wealth or power?' is in itself faulty. Wealth is one type of power. It's like asking if you prefer apples or fruits...

A better question would be 'Do you prefer Wealth or Authority?' Maybe this is what people really mean when they ask the afore mentioned famous question.

Now we are correctly asking if you prefer apples or oranges.

And of course, like choosing between two different species of fruits, the answer comes down to personal preference.