Yes, money sitting in my bank account doesn't make me happy.
However, my Porsche makes me quite happy. The townhouse I lived in brought me peace on the weekends. Buying plane tickets to wherever on a whim makes me happy. Buying nice clothes and wearing them makes me happy. Spending money to further my knowledge just because makes me happy.
The statement also doesn't say that money makes people sad. Your form of happiness, would you still be happy if you don't have money?
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qualia
[2] https://lifehacker.com/utilize-the-steel-man-tactic-to-argue...
Money can make LOTS of people VERY happy, up to a certain point. Supposedly after 80k$, after you've been relieved of basic stresses like rent and finding food, more money will make you less happy per increment.
If you are an unhappy person with a minimum of 80k$, then the bottleneck to your happiness is not money.
Merely more money doesn't make ALL people happy ALL the time.
On that I can afford to live in a very comfortable apartment without roommates, eat out at decent (non-fast-food) restaurants for basically every meal if I want to, have an active social life and hobbies, and still put about 10% into savings each month. I can easily say that making more money would not have an impact on my happiness.
The Bay Area is so non-representative of the U.S. that it's not even funny.
Are you genuinely happy when you have a nice car and nice clothes, or are you merely matching the expectations of happiness of our current society? These things are the very definition of status symbol, and ultimately they are out of you control.
Imho happiness based on material things is very limited once you have the basics. When your parents are one step from death, when you get a kid, when your good health will slowly leave you &c. Your Porsche and your nice cloths will be way down on your list of happiness sources.
Basing internal happiness on external things seems like a recipe for disaster. First there is no limit on how much shit money can buy, second material things have no power against the true life hardships. You might temporarily delay some of them but that's a far cry from "happiness".
Skiing requires skis. Hiking requires boots. Photography requires a camera. Driving requires a car. Sure you can do all of those activities much more cheaply, and spending will not automatically improve your skills or enjoyment, but when you are really into something there is a certain very real pleasure in using excellent gear. It’s not social status, in fact it often costs social status and stresses relationships to nerd out about your hobby that way.
Work life balance and all that.
People measure happiness through gains and losses, not total accumulation. Having more disposable income means a higher probability of gains.