I spent a lot of my high-school and university days trying to figure out where "wealth" is created. None of the standard answers seemed adequate to me - labour, innovation, exploiting natural resources. It occured to me much later that no matter what you create - a smart phone, or a musical or a house you build - none of these have any intrinsic value until someone spends some money to buy them.

The wealth is not created by making something, but by someone buying them (assigning a value). This value is assigned by spending money, and who creates the money? Central bankers. So wealth is actually created by central bankers printing money.

This is how I learnt wealth is an illusion, just like money. Once you realise this, its not a far jump to make to realise the entire economy is a ponzi scheme. Yet I find it so hard to explain it to people, because they keep focusing on the things people create.

Happy to see many people who have awoken here!