My New Least Favorite Word

And I find myself using it more and more. MONETIZE: To convert into money.

Seems harmless enough, right? I mean, money makes the world go round, right?

Maybe it's my rebellious naturalistic side, or maybe it's the starving artist -- whatever, I have a bit of a problem with the word. I have no problem working for something and having a payoff come out of it; in fact, I prefer it that way. It's when the idea comes into the very reason for doing something in the first place. When you have an idea and it works on it's own merits and then you say, "well, how do you monetize it", like if you don't, then it doesn't have as much value.

There's something wrong with a society where this is one of the most important yardsticks. That's not what it should be about. You shouldn't have to adapt to make it fit. You shouldn't have to convert. In science, whenever you convert something, loss is always involved. You have to give something up to get something new. But what are we getting in the case of monetization? What are we losing?