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Money is important because we use it in our society as currency.. currency that has value. We've come a long way from everyone being farmers or hunter-gatherers; people specialize in different fields now enriching society as a whole. Food is important, but we don't all need to grow it ourselves anymore. Money basically lets you do things you want to do - it's power, it's leverage.

Try living life on minimum wage and you will see how hard it is to live life without any leverage or power. It's like trying to play the game of basketball with one arm. You are severely handicapped and your opportunities on the court are limited.

Lets see what money can buy you:

More nutritious food
Free up your time so that you can spend it with family, friends, or on bettering yourself such as working out, learning new skills, etc.
A house in a safer neighborhood where you won't get robbed or shot
Cleaner environment. Better schools. Better car that wont' break down.
Opportunities - you have the money to seize opportunities, such as starting a new business, or investing in something. these allow you to earn even more money

I could go on and on.. but as you see in a capitalistic society, such as the one most of the people in the world now live in, money is very, very important.
You don't necessarily need $1million dollars, but at minimum I'd say a middle-class salary is required to live a decent, hassle-free life. Being broke or poor in America is NOT pretty because there aren't many support systems like there are in socialist countries. If you're poor you might get food stamps and some free health assistance but that's about it. You'll still live in a rough neighborhood and won't be able to afford much else.

Now if we were living in the jungle and in simpler times, where everyone hunted or grew their own food and the community took care of each other, then money wouldn't be as important, although the concept of value would still exist. For example, the farmer with the largest number of goats has more power, and you can look at the goats as a form of money. Those goats have value and he can trade them to others for things he wants. Money in the form of currency just makes it easier for value to change hands, because now we can just use pieces of paper.