I have heard in the media and among my liberal friends that Brittney was playing basketball in Russia because she could not earn enough income in the USA.  She was being very poorly paid when compared to NBA pay and needed to go overseas to make ends meet.

So I looked into this a bit, and found that Brittney earns $227,000 per year and has a net worth of about 5 million dollars.  She owns two homes and three automobiles.  Her salary and her net worth put her in the top 10% or higher.  It is estimated that 1.5 million was earned in Russia.

Her WNBA salary alone is in the range of Doctor and Lawyer money. But Brittney wanted more, so she went to Russia.  Most of us could live very nicely on an annual income of 227k but our culture has conditioned us never to be satisfied with what we have.

What does getting more stuff get us?  It gets us wanting more stuff.  We know this from our common experience.  Our minds fool us into thinking that the thing(s) we want will truly bring us happiness.  But again, we know this is not true from our common experience, but we constantly seek material things to bring us happiness.

I don't blame Brittney for being unsatisfied with what she has, I blame all of us. In spite of claims that our leaders make for being devoutly religious, we are one of the most materially obsessed people to have ever existed on this earth.  American materialism is just plain gross and serves no purpose other than the pursuit of more stuff. In fact, our addiction to materialism is harmful to us and our planet.

If stuff made us happy, we'd be the happiest people ever to exist, but in fact it's really just the opposite.  As the song goes, money can't buy you love!

Oh, and one more thing, Russia is one of the last places I'd ever bring weed!

Guy Vitetta

Charleston SC