Greed is not good
Dear Editor: This is in response to the letter to the editor titled "Greed is Good?" The author of this letter would have us believe that greed and ambition are virtually the same thing, and that people are not clever enough to judge between the two. Here are the dictionary's definitions of greed and ambition.
Ambition: an earnest desire for some type of achievement or distinction, as power, honor, fame, or wealth, and the willingness to strive for its attainment.
Greed: An excessive desire to acquire or possess more than what one needs or deserves, especially with respect to material wealth.
Greed in its definition requires judgment, i.e., more than what one needs or deserves.
The writer asks if a Wall Street executive is paid $5 million, is that bad? If he lies to share holders, cheats, ruins the company, has its employees lose their jobs and shakes the very foundations of the American economy, then in my judgment, yes, it is bad to say the least. The writer asks if an illiterate rock star earns $10 million, is that good? It is for the rock star. If he produces music that people are willing to pay to hear, then how is it bad? A person in this case knows what he is buying and the rock star is being honest in what he is producing. That's simple supply and demand.
The greed that has caused the collapse of Wall Street has nothing to do with supply and demand. And the fact that we, the tax payer, are angry at having to bail them out has nothing to do with resentment or envy. I don't resent anyone, executives, baseball players, or even plumbers for achieving even great amounts, but I do resent money being taken out of my paycheck to compensate for Wall Street's greed and then having them spend it at a luxury resort.
Dear Editor: This is in response to the letter to the editor titled "Greed is Good?" The author of this letter would have us believe that greed and ambition are virtually the same thing, and that people are not clever enough to judge between the two. Here are the dictionary's definitions of greed and ambition.
Ambition: an earnest desire for some type of achievement or distinction, as power, honor, fame, or wealth, and the willingness to strive for its attainment.
Greed: An excessive desire to acquire or possess more than what one needs or deserves, especially with respect to material wealth.
Greed in its definition requires judgment, i.e., more than what one needs or deserves.
The writer asks if a Wall Street executive is paid $5 million, is that bad? If he lies to share holders, cheats, ruins the company, has its employees lose their jobs and shakes the very foundations of the American economy, then in my judgment, yes, it is bad to say the least. The writer asks if an illiterate rock star earns $10 million, is that good? It is for the rock star. If he produces music that people are willing to pay to hear, then how is it bad? A person in this case knows what he is buying and the rock star is being honest in what he is producing. That's simple supply and demand.
The greed that has caused the collapse of Wall Street has nothing to do with supply and demand. And the fact that we, the tax payer, are angry at having to bail them out has nothing to do with resentment or envy. I don't resent anyone, executives, baseball players, or even plumbers for achieving even great amounts, but I do resent money being taken out of my paycheck to compensate for Wall Street's greed and then having them spend it at a luxury resort.
Tammy Moure
Oxford
