And sometimes we're reluctant because we aren't the best handlers of money ourselves. It's human nature to want the easy way out. We want to get in shape without exercising, or we want to learn a foreign language in our sleep. Likewise, we'd love to have our money problems solved without having to go through the process of learning. You have said our accounting methods aren't the biggest cause of our money problems, that it's more our tendency to compare ourselves to others.
Some sins are more respectable than others.
Envy gets to the heart of what we are really like. But if we don't admit we sometimes wrestle with envy and then deal with it, the cycle of wanting more is endless. I'll give you an example. I took a trip to India, where we stayed in a nice guest house that only had one shower. Plus, the water came out in a trickle.