Thank you. The flag, like the poem is representative. It is a piece of fabric embodying "The American Ideal." That ideal is, like a tattered flag, unraveling.

I tried yesterday and today to comment on your own post, but I keep getting a "transaction error." Here is what I tried to say today:
Your perspective has the ring of profound truth. The pursuit of money for the sake of wealth acquisition never made anyone fulfilled. Money can be a great tool to achieve fulfillment, but not as a goal in its own right.
Great truths:

• Money isn't everything
• Money can't buy happiness
• Money can't buy you love
• You can't take it with you
• Money is the root of all evil
• If you want to know where the rot is, follow the money