Thanks for sharing your story, @bacchist. You may not agree with his worldview (I don't anymore), but you might want to check out some stuff from Dave Ramsey (I worked there for almost 4 years). He has great tools for people wanting to get out of debt and build wealth. He also talks about the difference between being broke and being poor. Before, you were poor (a mindset). Today you're probably closer to broke (a temporary situation). The difference is hope. The difference is believing in the power of the dollar as a spiritual thing, as in, something which doesn't exist in physical reality. It's just an idea. As Rabbit Daniel Lapin says, it's a certificate of appreciation. Yes, it has powerful psychological influence over us (as my recent experiment with hiding the $ is showing me), but it also can help us focus what we really care about as far as where we put our time and attention.

I lived on a boat for two years in high school when my parents had to sell our house. That Christmas we had to write letters to each-other because no one had any money for gifts. We used the stove to heat the boat. We took cold showers. It was rough. It also taught me a lot about myself and what really matters in life. The truly important things like love, relationships, and family are still there without money. That said, having money seems to be a lot nicer than not having it. :)

I know you want to abolish money based on the great conversations we've been having the last week or so. Devoting so much negative energy and attention toward something probably adjusts your subconscious decisions surrounding that thing. You might be pushing money away from your life which results in a loss of hope.

You're right though. Being poor is expensive. The answer, to me, isn't more government programs or centralization. The answer involves solutions like Steem. That, and generosity.