Greed and Capitalism. The "up" side of greedy capitalists.

My definition of greed is "wanting more than I need". Now, I don't need all my guitars but I'd probably buy another Gibson if I found a good deal on one. I don't need all the boats that I have collected. I could do fine with one (or, maybe two or three,... want to buy one?).

This is because I am greedy. I also am a capitalist. Because I want more than I need, I usually work 50 or 60 hours a week. Because I want more than I need I keep 4-6 people on my payroll, and I pay them more than they need so they will keep on working for me. My company spends lots of money on materials and equipment, which helps keep other businesses in business, all this a result of my greed. Some of the money I make I'll spend on my greedy family; shoes, clothing, more shoes (I have girls), electronic gadgets, cars and vacations. All this greed spreads money around and helps other greedy business people to acquire more than they need.

Capitalism does not "share the wealth" like some other socio-economic systems claim to do. Another way to phrase that is that it does not reward sloth and laziness. It does allow motivated individuals to improve their lot in life and in so doing create ripple effects that can benefit others. Wealth gets spread around when entrepreneurs take risks to improve or create new products, processes, services, etc., i.e spending capital to create more capital. Some succeed, some fail (and perhaps try gain with new ventures) and the net effect is that the economic "pie" grows larger. All this because some of us want more than we have, more than we need, Whether it's to get ahead or catch up with our neighbors, the motivation comes from wanting more.

When I was studying economics in college, I was taught that Capitalism runs on fear (of losing what you have) and greed (wanting more than you need). These are pretty dependable human emotions. How are you going to improve on that?