Bon Vivant Myths

There are several misconceptions and myths about the bon vivant lifestyle. So I'll try to address some of the most important ones:

- Bon Vivants are bad for society.

False. The true bon vivant enjoys life very much, so he wants others to enjoy it as well. So, while a greedy and boring business man like Carlos Slim wouldn't classify as a bon vivant, someone like Richard Branson (a strong contender for bon vivant of the month of May) sure would. Richard Branson enjoys life, does things like travel around the world on balloons, but also shares his wealth. He gives considerable money to Charity, and has recently announced a donation of 3B to combat Global Warming. Link:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/21/science/22warmcnd.html?ex=1316491200&en=282ea6fc58594550&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss


- A country full of Bon Vivants would go bankrupt.

False. Europe has a very bon vivant lifestyle in general (especially countries like Italy, France, Spain) and they have some of the strongest economies in the world. Sure, you might not be able to buy toilet paper at 3:00 am in a 7/11, but people work 35h per week, take long vacations, and can enjoy their meals (they don't have to eat at fast food restaurant, or skip meals in general). By the way, you can vote on which country you consider to be the one that has more bon vivants in the poll provided at the end of the page.

Also, if more and more people aspire to live well, the breach between rich and poor should narrow. Probably the two main reasons the poor are poor and that there is so much economic inequality in the world are 1) poor education 2) not demanding the fair share of the wealth created. This can be seen for instance in the fact that bon vivant countries like Italy, France, Spain, Germany, etc, have in general low Gini index rating. Link:
http://services.alphaworks.ibm.com/manyeyes/view/SMGTJEsOtha6B8kBHxPKE2-

- Very few can be bon vivants.

False. Being a bon vivant is above all an attitude towards life.