The sky is falling

So after reading this post by the super smart and ultra cool KFR and a particularly disheartening chat with a like minded and equally brilliant co-worker, I have decided that it is indeed the end of the world as we know it, and unlike our friends R.E.M, Im having trouble feeling fine.
Wouldnt it be amazing if the vast majority of us who are not in the upper class just banded together and decided that we were no longer going to participate in this evil idea of money and went back to trading? I mean, why subscribe to a life of poverty and strife so willingly?
I was watching an episode of "True Life" on MTV last night about a family that moved to America from Thailand. I didnt catch the beginning of the show, so I didnt get to see how the family lived in Thailand, but suffice to say that they had to be taught how to use a shower and a toilet because they'd never seen one. Apparently the family moved here because their oldest son had dreams of attending an American college but was faced with the stark reality of slavery for the American dollar in order to survive in this country. Instead of going to school, Thim ended up working full time in a pickle factory for $300 a week supporting his family after his father suffered a stroke. Within months of living here, life in America had already effectively stripped Thim of his hopes of higher education and his disillusion that America is the land of opportunity. The high cost of living, the high cost of education and the extremely low pay for people in his same situation threw Thim right into the same predicament that plagues the majority of Americans - being the working poor until death with no real opportunities, benefits or hope for something better for their children. No legacy to leave behind. And for what? Money.
Meanwhile, society continues to convince most Americans to keep up with the Jones' - that they need to have gigantic big screen TVs, drive SUVs, wear designer brands, eat out at restaurants regularly and spend obscene amounts of money grooming their bodies to fit into an image that is not only totally out of their means, but is completely unnecessary and retarded. We are being lulled to sleep with stories about Britney Spears and Paris Hilton while our lives are literally being flushed down a gigantic toilet.

...I need a hug. And a large glass of wine.