Greed is Good.

Over decades, people all over the world have been arguing whether greed is beneficial. Michael Douglas said in the film Wall Street, "Greed is good", as it motivates investors to earn more and leads to competition among companies. Yet many still feel greed does more harm than good. Several religions see greed as a sin, together with sloth, lust and gluttony. Dictionaries define greed as an excessive desire to acquire or possess more than what one needs or deserves. Though greed does bear a negative meaning, the question as to whether it really brings more harm than good still remains to be seen. To me, it is just a matter of perspective. Greed is actually wanting more than your fair share, be it material or psychological needs.

The benefits that greed can bring are uncountable. To begin with, greed is the driving force behind the world's rapid development and globalisation.

Mussolini (left) and Hitler sent their armies to N...

restored quadriga atop Brandenburg Gate ►pale-ve...

The Price of Greed

At the beginning of civilisation, men knew nothing about the world around them. It was the greed for better living standards that drove them to invent useful tools like rafts and spears. With boats, men travelled to foreign lands to make new discoveries. It was only through this process of 'wanting to get more' that mankind has come so far. If not driven by greed for improvements in living standards, men would just be satisfied with what they have. If not driven by greed for knowledge, how can famous scientists like Einstein and Isaac Newton come up with amazing inventions and famous theories like the Newton's laws of motion? Actually, the very fact that we are reading books is due to the greed for knowledge. We do not stop at some age and say, "Now what I've learnt is enough. I should stop." Instead, we continue to read...