Drugs and symbolic luxuries from skyscrapers to big cars are other ways of cornering and wasting wealth because they do not supply human needs. In fact these expenditures have a lot in common with the plow that is used to plow under the excess harvests. We plow under excess peaches for example, so that the price of the remaining peaches will stay high. By taking the abundance out of the economy, exchange prevails as the only way of 'distribution' and giftgiving is made difficult or self sacrificial. By appearing to be the only viable way, exchange and the market which is built upon it attract many gifts.
People give the gift of value to the market system by competing to become part of it.
They prepare themselves through school and life in order to get a good job. Mothers nurture their children and wives take care of their husbands to succeed in their jobs. The exchange value of a person as expressed in salary seems to be the measure of his or her value as a human being. Those who do not have paying jobs seem not to contribute to society, though they may be spending all their time doing gift labor. People give up their self sustainable economies and take up market dependent activities.