Fleeting Resources

I returned yesterday from a workshop in northern California for farmers who were either planning to pass their business to their kids or other young farmers. There was also financial planning education for young farmers so they could learn how to manage their income and expenses.

I cannot say that I know enough about financial planning. I am in my early twenties and have not gotten married, bought a house or a car, and am just beginning to make a living for myself (despite the VERY modest living allowance I earn for my work). Of course, like many young people my age, we have family pipelines that help us out once in a while.

Pipelines are not a bad thing, but my demographic needs to acknowledge that there are a greater number than us of young Americans who do not have that kind of support. Acknowledging one another is the subject of a later post.

This post is about finance. Money. And Religion. The popular phrase "the religion of money" implies more than is stated. Devotion to money could be religious, but it could also be obsessive. My interpretation of "the religion of money" is the accessibility to certain spheres of information.

Centuries ago, literacy was limited for many reasons. What allowed reading and writing to rise during the renaissance was the translation of the Bible out of Latin and into the local language. Luther's German translation of the Bible made the theological sphere more accessible. Prior to Luther's Reformation, religion's governance over Europe relied upon the illiteracy of its followers. But now, religion is a component of everyday life rather than the principle.

Though people try to live according to religious principles, they cannot ignore their financial responsibilities, or at least admit that they come first. The reason why many people fail financially is because the knowledge of money is not very accessible.

Like religion, money's governance relies upon limited accessibility. Though universities offer classes in accounting, the students who take those classes have already taken out loans for tuition and opened checking accounts littered with fees for everything short of shitting.

I cannot expect everyone to know how to file their tax returns. Just as I cannot expect churchgoers to recite Luther's or Calvin's treatises on providence.

What I think all Americans should expect is a high school education that addresses how to manage money, define terms like accrual and equity, and perhaps explain the foundations behind the Federal Tax Code. The reason why so many Americans are blank when it comes to finance is because college aged brains begin to resist the reception of information.

But that would be hoping for too much I guess. If it's difficult for adults, then teenagers just wouldn't get it.