Do you really need that...

One of the most difficult decisions 21st century Americans have to make is distinguishing between a need and a want. For example, 20 years ago, cell phones were high-class status symbols, and the size of a couple bricks. My first car actually had a car phone in it...but I won't mention the car was 13 years old when I got it. Nowadays, try going to the airport to pick someone up without one. A very obvious want quickly turned into a legitimate need. How about another example...Health Insurance. Say what you want about health care costs and proposed "solutions," no one today can correctly argue against the need for protection against life-alteringly high health bills. What was health insurance like 100 years ago...I won't speculate because I have no idea. 
However, there are plenty of things out there that marketers want you to think are needed, whether for convenience, fashion, "wow factor," or any other of a myriad of reasons that simply are not needs, they are wants. I have no profound advice on distinguishing between the two, not because I have no idea, but because I don't know anyone's circumstances (heck, I barely know my own). Do you need a computer? probably. Do you need a $3500 gaming computer? Probably not. Do you need nightly food? Of course. Do you need a nightly steak dinner? Probably not. Those are dichotomous examples I know, but I also understand there are people out there who can't even reach the bottom of what most of us consider bare necessities.
This is where philanthropy steps in. The old adage "give a man a fish, feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, feed him for life" plays an important role. Helping people out is one of the most gratifying experiences out there, especially when it is openly appreciated. Carrying people throughout their lives, however, is one of the most detrimental.
The goal of this post is not to say that people don't need help, or that deserving individuals shouldn't receive help, but that we can all use a little inventory check on our "need" list to see if some of those items belong on our "want" list. Here is today's quotation, attributed to Thomas Jefferson: "The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not."