New York Magazine

Victims of Bernie Madoff woke up one morning to discover that much of what they thought was safely theirs had been a lie. Some still haven’t come to grips with the loss and may never. For the rest of us, questions of worth are less dire but persistent. How much is a haircut or a cup of coffee worth to you now? Walk down the street. Do you know how much that skyscraper over there is worth? Half of its peak value? Maybe. And while we’re on the subject, is Eli Manning really worth more than any other quarterback in NFL history, and is his contract really worth what the Giants say it is? What about the economy itself? Is it safe to believe that the stock market has measured its worth correctly and that everything is on the mend? Wall Street’s conscience—or an insurgent band of bloggers who style themselves Wall Street’s conscience—says not to believe it. The recovery is a mirage. But is their view worth any more than that of the old guard they are trying to bring down? It is to them, of course, but what’s it to you? Worth, now more than ever, is in the mind of the beholder.