Economics was initially defined by early scholars simply as an art of meeting household and commonwealth/National wants. Human wants are more dynamic than food shelter and clothing. Derived human wants are the most costly wants on Earth today. Production has shifted a long way from basic wants towards what any economist would classify as luxuries.
Pain on the other side is the discomfort caused by unsatisfied wants. The more unsatisfied wants we have the more pain we feel. If we have more derived wants (Wants we have adapted from our day to day lives) then it is sensible to say that human pain is more derived than natural.
In my personal opinion, this is a total change in the definition of economics. We could simply say that economics is the study of pain management. This applies to both individual and nations. It is human nature to strive for comfort whenever we feel like a certain type of lifestyle is more attractive than our current lifestyle.
What if we invested more in handling our real problems than striving to close gaps caused by mere perception. We are eating the worst food quality in centuries while watching the best movies before they are even officially released. The world is striving more to get the best sport and entertainment to the home than we are focused on the health of its dwellers.
This book is a look at how the art of pain management is the key to global economic success. A shift in our approach to satisfying our needs by first meeting our real needs before struggling to meet self esteem needs would make the Earth a better place.
Capitalism had a purpose of achieving global economic success. Economic success is defined as the sum optimally satisfied wants for both the households, firms and the government. However, a close look at Capitalism today will reveal it as the world`s most successful pain inducing tool. I am not against capitalism, I am more interested in the spirit of Capitalism than paper application.
Please note that the view of pain in this book exclusively focusses on general human suffering due to unmet desires. It has nothing to do with medical cases. Although where applicable, the reader is allowed to relate the content of the book to their personal experience.