Posted this originally on another thread in Numbers - I thought I'd start a new one here for general discussion and consumption.
I'm posting it here in general theories in order ot keep it spoiler free - and so the posters like Kato and company who don't venture into the spoiler board will comment and add!!

ANYWAY, I've been thinking about money

Hmmm...been thinking about the money .... you know, money (having it or not) has come into play with several of the characters and caused them grief in one way or the other.

Charlie - gained fame and money with his band and song (gosh, I do really like that song!!) and where did it get him? Hooked on heroin, and stealing to support his habit.* Problem with the band's royalties

Hurley - won that lottery and it's been nothing but trouble----even though his troubles have caused him to get more $$...seems the more $$ he got the bigger his problems got.*

Kate - pretened to get a loan while robbing a bank - her aim wasn't the money as far as we were shown, but that box...but the other robbers probably wanted the cash.* The farmer she worked for should have gotten 23K for turning her in.

Sawyer-* the loss of money caused his father to kill his mother than himself - he ran a similar con all those years - never got any peace or happiness with it...and ended up killing a man b/c of the money issue that started the whole thing

Shannon/ -- she ran a money con on Boone to support her and her boyfriend at the time - backfired on her.* She also implied dating men with $$ - never got her any happiness thus far - is told by Sawyer her $ is no good on the island (thanks Kato!)

Boone - uses $$ to bail Shannon out of bad relationships - never works

Claire - accepted $6K from the psychic and was promised another 6K in LA.* That $$ has done her no good. Would have gotten $20K from the Stewarts had she signed over her baby to them

Jin - went to work for Sun's father b/c he had no $$ to keep Sun in the manner to which her father thought she ought to be kept.
Brought nothing but unhappiness to both of them - they're no longer together

Michael - traded his art to support Susan....she left him for a job and eventually another man.* *Her actions effected Walt and Michael.

Jack -* surgeon - as patch said - have you ever known a poor surgeon?

Locke -* can't think of anything right now -

Sayid - member Republican Guard* - decent pay but leaving would effect his family (thanks patch!)

Walt - is owed $86K by Hurley from playing backgammon (thanks Kato!)

Sam and Martha Toomey - won $50K from those beans

If it's not a clue - it certainly seems to imply that $$ can't buy happiness.* Not sure what all this means yet, but we keep seeing time and time again large sums of $$ changing hands or about to change hands.* It's got to mean something, right? It just has to!!* ??? :)

Please add to this list, and I'll update it.

Jack became a surgeon, very likely a wealthy one (I mean how many poor surgeons do you know?) and yet he was still under the questionable influence of his father.

Sayid took employment with the Republican Guard, who Sadaam Hussein paid very well in comparison with the Iraqi population at large, only to find out that he couldn't quit without risking his family's lives.

LOVE of money is the root of all evil.... ;D Good catch.

Great thread!* Hurley owes Walt $86,000, for what that's worth.* And at one point Sawyer told Shannon "your money's no good here."

Wow! I never thought of that! Good job Bess. :)