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Mining Human Greed

by Rev. Dr. R. B. Silverson  
10/21/2014 / Christian Living

Pressing Need And Pure Greed

I once tweeted: "People exploit human greed and profit in the process; you can tap into human need and prosper. God has placed a solution within you. Find it."

A previous article of mine argued: "As a church, we cannot denounce money and still expect the members to bring money on Sunday. Yet the complexity and perplexity facing us spring from how we approach and further broach the subject in our vital search for a stable and sensible balance between the practical oscillations of genuine blessings and pure unmitigated greedand at times, we fail woefully like benighted souls in our handling of this elusive subject."

According to the Oxford Dictionary, greed is "Intense and selfish desire for something, especially wealth, power, or food." A need from that same dictionary is "A thing that is wanted or required." From these definitions emerge a practical problem that asserts itself on our collective cognitive prowess: At which fixed point does a need end and greed take over?

Trained eyes and perspicacious minds may yet suggest a certain glaring pivot differentiates the two; however, on several occasions, greed in particular masquerades as a needforget the contradistinction above of the word selfish. With this imposing difficulty of categorisation has been the opening of the door of opportunity for a group of people this article refers to as greed miners.

A Mine In Motion

We may postulate with peremptory certitude and incontrovertible awareness that greed miners are not just humans: they are also corporations! After all, in law, we understand that while a company may be a separate legal entity; its brain is that of the directors. And if greed is a human emotion in plenitude, then organisations tend to suffer the ignominious vestment of directors' vastitude of such worthless but pernicious hoard.

As a keen observation and penetrative thought, in today's world, one of the wealthiest and most lucrative jobs is to become a greed miner. If you are skilful and tactful in how you play your cards, you stand to strike it rich! Yes, there are many seekers or prospectors who equally driven by their own greedthey will argue it is a needare available to be exploited. Indeed, day in and day out, their avaricious capacity continues to be exploited. Perhaps what drives such seekers is the same as what drives the miners. And when a seeker is found by a miner, usually, there will be losers; and rarely is it the miner.

Let's take two cases as an example: pyramid schemes and internet "opportunities." What really motivates most people to get into pyramid schemes or others in a similar vein? Perhaps initially it may be a genuine need for money. But as with most sublunary things, it does not take long and a certain fine line gets crossed. The drive for more money becomes intense, and sooner rather than later, we discover that some who join in at the tail end (the downline), end up losing money while othersthe directors in particularmake it big. The allurements and enticements served by the passionate inveiglers are usually unimaginable and infeasible. Indeed, justification may be made for it being a need. But in most cases, the agenda appeals to a certain greed that is resident in humans which in turn once piqued becomes an intense and incessant driver of a person's actions.

While there are many more ridiculous schemes that are sure greed mining tools (or traps), currently, the internet takes the title as being numero uno. The power and reach of the internet and its ability and facility as a suitable platform for both seekers and miners is unthinkable. Just go online and type a ludicrous amount of money you would like to make, and pronto, there will be multitudinous offers available. But one has to pause and question: Are these offers truly what they purport?

It is unnecessary to cite a fickle statistic of how many people have lost money. In fact, as long as there is a certain sprinkling of greed in us, we can expect the numbers and figures to rise: more people will lose money today, tomorrow, and till earth's last sun shall set.

Same Strategy, Different Victims

How greed exploiting schemes work can be pictured by thinking about rat traps. Of a truth, such traps are of no use unless unleashed in rat-infested houses. Over there, where they are normally positioned is everyone's guess. And as to whether they are laid bare or laid with bait is a no-brainer. Equally, greed traps are positioned where they can catch their intended targets, and with the aid of certain "things" i.e. inducements, blandishments, seducements, ensnarements; bingo, and their objectives are met and even exceeded.

While we feel sorry for people who have lost huge sums of money because perhaps they will say they were swindled, and in truth, there are genuine cases where we should show sympathy, in fact, empathy for those who have fallen victims; the undeniable truth equally remains that there are some who slipped in being susceptible and yielding to their greed proclivities. Indeed, their own personal store of greed was mined by others!

Moreover, when potential victims hit the jackpot, no one gets to sob for themand some don't even spread the wealth. Similar to a choice to stake the lottery, when a person wins, it is their boon; conversely when they lose, they provoke a tincture of human sympathy. And in compliance with one famous New Testament writer's direction, we will continue to rejoice with those that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. Thus, society's sympathy for seekers who lose money will perdure as surely as day breaks.

However, as long as these continue to be driven by greed, either they will renew their thirst and quest to continue seeking and prospecting or even worse: they will turn into miners. They need to get even, and if they can in turn mine other people's greed, then nothing may stop them following such a noisome course. In effect, the game will continue with some winning and others losing. It is for this that the same writer above argued that evil men will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and leading astray others, and being deceived and led astray themselves. Unfortunately for the seekers, there are more seekers who lose than do the miners; for rarely does a reusable mouse trap gets retired after one use.

Perhaps another piece will afford us an opportunity to shine the light on how most corporations play their cards, and how they exploit our own greed by making us believe it is a need. In that piece, we may yet discern how certain versions of products and services will keep getting reviewed, revised, and re-issued till we have the zenzizenzizenzic version, because like the rat trap, they have descried our penchants for the veneer of their bait.

Greed will never cease or be eradicated as long as the world remains. Yet, as a practical benefit, it may be apposite for both seekers and miners to examine themselves in the light of One who lived rejecting a fleeting offer of all the world boasts that He may carve and etch His name for all time as a paragon of a selfless and noble life. Such an examination may perhaps inform a vital rethink of future activity. And for seekers in particular, they may yet discover and learn the factual chasm that lies between professed sympathy and actual restitution.

Blessings,
R. B. Silverson

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