The sad part, is that the love of money more or less is driven by the inner desire to be loved. As you said, the end result of that is fake. I believe, the decision to choose money is so frequently made because we all struggle with being genuine and trusting others. Thus it becomes easier to take the money buys happiness route, even if it is "fake." To be genuine is to live, but living is not easy, [insert all the reasons here, because none of us are the same.]

You cannot consider money without considering the literal power it wields. When power goes bad, it becomes an object, just as when love goes bad, it too can become an object. This is the reason why many feel betrayed when they discern that someone cares more for money than those around them.

Another problem is the subtle reality that we all objectify from time to time, on different levels. We face a constant barrage of conscious and unconscious propaganda that teaches us objectify ourselves and others. 1 million ways to judge one another and likewise a million to be judged ourselves.

For me, all the worlds problems boil down to one thing, love, the lack there of. We give it many names, being genuine, real, loyal, faithful, selfless, etc. - but they are all abstractions that come forth from love itself.