Greed has long reaching fingers, negatively affecting all it touches, directly or indirectly. Though it always comes attractively cloaked in reward to those who employ it, it never occurs without repercussions in destruction and even despair.
What is greed? It’s people starving while others wallow in their horn-a-plenty and turn a blind eye. It is corrupt governments allowing their people to live in abject poverty while it lines its pockets and splurges on lavish and unnecessary furnishings for their palatial mansions.
It is high-powered people refusing to accept relief supplies from compassionate people around the near or far communities, or by opting to confiscate them to resell for their own gain.
It is puppy mill breeders who are willing to put dogs through a high degree of misery and a life of walking on nothing but the bottom of wire cages in which they have little freedom to move and none to romp and play, because they are only viewed as breeding machines.
It is cruel dog owners whose only desire is to breed fighting dogs so that they can make an illegal profit on other greedy people who choose to gamble on the winner, with no consideration to what the dogs have to endure.
It lives in the hearts of thieves who are willing to steal, regardless of feelings of those at the other end of the loss, and who are even willing to maim or kill on even just the chance they might be able to glean something of value.
It instigates wars when countries want what others have or when they want to overpower a people. It incites cruelty, and it feeds upon itself.
It is the close cousin to selfishness, which often wears the same cloak and operates in tandem. Maybe it’s safe to say that greed cannot operate without it.
Selfishness says, “I want whatever will make me happy, no matter what the cost to someone else, and I want it right now.”
It accompanies the greedy, and allows people to do things that jeopardize others with no regard, remorse or thought of the pain and suffering it will inflict. It encourages people to take those ‘instant gratification’ substances, then get behind a wheel and take other lives into their hands. It also allows those who sell the substances to do so without regard for the buyer’s age, circumstance, personal jeopardy, that which others will be put into.
It sometimes allows a parent to spend money on items he might want; even high ticket items like cars and big screen TVs, while their spouse struggles to make ends meet to give the children what they need.
People feeling forced to look like big spenders to be impressive to others, are motivated by selfishness that insecurity brings, though it comes with a dear price they can’t afford and reflects poor values regarding what is really important.
Wherever these two are, darkness follows. No long term good can come from them.
Without greed and selfishness; two of Satan’s favorite tools, what a wonderful world it would be!
