Obscene wealth vs struggling to make ends meet

“What we are witnessing right now, right before our eyes is the rise of two very separate and distinct Americas, one for the billionaire class and one for everybody else. In one America the richest people are becoming obscenely richer and have never ever had it so good. That America is overflowing with unimaginable wealth, greed and opulence that makes the Gilded Age seem very modest. And then there is a second America. An America where the majority of our people live, and they are trying to survive paycheque to paycheque and they are struggling to secure the very basic necessities of life. Nothing fancy. We’re talking about food, health care, housing, education and other basic needs. The simple truth is that never before in our history have so few had so much wealth and power, while at the same time so many Americans live in economic desperation…” 

That is a quote from a recent video made by Senator Bernie Sanders, one of the few American politicians who truly believe in fighting for the working class. Yes, he is talking about America, but substitute that country for Malta and we are not far off from emulating capitalism in its worst possible form. 

Senator Sanders goes on to describe the lavish, extravagant lifestyles of Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg and Larry Ellison—the four richest men in America who think nothing of buying islands, entire neighbourhoods, multiple jets or flying off into space on their own rockets. But that’s not all. They also finance political campaigns to get someone like Donald Trump elected (Musk), and buy social media like TikTok and mainstream media like CNN (Ellison). Bezos owns Amazon and Zuckerberg owns Facebook with all its data.  Apart from their obscene wealth, the sheer power and clout wielded by them is almost impossible to comprehend in how far reaching they are in terms of breadth and influence. 

Together with other billionaires, they make up what is known as the ‘1%’ which Sanders describes as: “A world completely removed from the world of ordinary Americans. They haven’t a clue what ordinary Americans experience.” 

I’ve quoted Sanders at length because it is difficult not to draw parallels with what has happened here, particularly since 2013.  We may not have men who fly off in their own rocket ships, but we certainly have those who have more money than can be spent in one lifetime, and yet continue to be insatiably greedy for more. 

The Portellis and Ċaqnus of Malta (just to name two of them) seem to have their finger in every pie and a foot in every construction site. Our local ‘1%’  also have the ear of those in power and contribute financially to election campaigns, hedging their bets accordingly. They hire media consultants to do their PR to make sure their carefully curated damage control is conveyed as widely and insidiously as possible so that they can keep raking in more millions. 

This is not envy or jealousy talking (I always feel I have to make this disclaimer in case there are those who are convinced I’m in the grips of the green-eyed monster). Money is, after all, a commodity to which we have attributed arbitrary value.  I sometimes look at Euro notes and wonder how it is that man has assigned such momentous importance to these bits of paper—so much so that some are ready to lie, steal, cheat and yes even bludgeon and kill other human beings (not to mention their own relatives) to get their grubby hands on some filthy lucre. 

And yet these bits of paper rule our lives. We leave our homes, often drive to the other side of the island, park our cars for eight hours and sit at a desk in order to make enough of this paper to pay for the homes we barely have enough free time to enjoy. Then there are those who are on their feet all day, from waiters to nursing staff, cleaners to shop assistants who slog away to make enough for their livelihood. Mothers leave their infant children at childcare in order to work, to be taken care of by other mothers who also need to work. 

Compared to the US, we may have the added advantages of many services which are free, ranging from childcare to health care and school transport, but we are nonetheless on a gruelling treadmill. Even a rudimentary glance at people’s lifestyles will confirm that we have been caught up in a whirlwind of consumerism which is difficult to extradite ourselves from.  Some are barely keeping their heads above water, figuring out ways to economise and be frugal to make their paycheque stretch as much as possible; in the ‘other Malta’, money is no object. 

Just as an example, on Friday, the new iPhone 17 Pro Max was launched. Around 50 people queued up outside of the Apple iCentre, some of whom had camped outside the shop since 3am. One young man, who arrived at 8am, was determined to be the first to acquire the new model, so he gave the man who was first in line €100 to skip the queue. The price of his new gadget was €2,599—more than some two-income families make in a month. He claimed he changes his phone every year as each new version comes out (which is his prerogative of course) but I couldn’t help but wonder what he does with his previous phone each year. As the saying goes, if he can afford it, good luck to him, and in reality he is not unique. He is just one of many of his generation who have the mindset “I want it, I’ll buy it”, irrespective of the cost, which has mushroomed at breakneck speed. 

What it does underline is how disposable everything has become and how quickly we tire of something almost as soon as we get it. There is a sort of high wire, restless energy, as we metaphorically pace around, always in search of the latest ‘thing’, the coolest place to be, always going somewhere and then wondering if others are having more fun somewhere else, unable to physically enjoy the present moment because we are too busy filming it through the small screen of our smart phone to share it and prove that we are “living our best life.” 

In stark contrast to all this, I was sent a video by Moviment Graffitti in which a Maltese girl talks about the environmental destruction of our country, urging the public to attend an upcoming protest. Her words were moving but what struck me the most was her natural beauty—she was the perfect choice and to me her image served as a symbol, evoking the essence of Malta in her genuine simplicity. Down to earth, no make-up with her tanned skin seeming at one with nature as she walked with purposeful, confident strides and addressed the camera with no affectation whatsoever. In a society which has spawned thousands of vapid Kardashian clones, it was refreshing to see.   

This stunning young woman represented everything we are on the verge of losing, not only in terms of the environment through the wilful obliteration of our heritage, but something deeper. The ability to content ourselves with ‘just enough’ rather than constantly striving for more, whether that is the latest phone or a more lavish home. And while the construction moguls keep bulldozing the sparse land which is left to become even wealthier, in the ‘other Malta’ there are people who wonder how they are going to pay their bills or whether they will have enough money to buy groceries before the end of the month.