So why does it? If you have it in abundance, it fails to give meaning in the obvious ways it does when we need it to meet our basic needs. The thought that the result of our endeavour – the amount on our bank account – is subject to inevitable inflation of meaning, is hard to bear.
So we explore other pathways: consumption of expensive goods and services, and comparison to other people’s “wealth”.
This is an impulse that doesn’t care about the consequences. Think environmental and social inequality. In other words: it corrupts.