How did we get so greedy in this country? The forefathers of this nation set up a system for everyone to be able to gain equal wealth as long as you were able to work for it honestly. It seems some people would rather wheel and deal and take something without working for it. Some people would rather scam others to advance their own material wealth. Society as placed too much value on things money can buy, but at what cost? If you take from others to advance your own agenda, eventually you have to give something back to those you took from. Is money the root of all evil? The most read book in the world, the Bible, states that money is the root of all evil. In 1 Timothy 6:10, it states, “For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith, and pierced themselves with many a pang.” (New American Standard Bible)

I grew up in the 1960’s and 1970’s during a time of change in American society. I learned strong moral principles and the value of a strong work ethic from my parents and grandparents. I grew up believing that I would graduate from high school and attend a four year college earning a bachelor’s degree. My next phase of life would be going to work in my field of study making a contribution to the company I work for and society. I would get married and maybe have a child. My husband and I would live in a nice house. This dream has changed. It was idealistic in some ways but that was the American dream of the 1950’s that I learned and thought it would carry on throughout my lifetime. Along the way, society changed thus my dreams and plans had to change as well.

My parents worked for IBM, one of the largest and best companies to work for when I was a child. The employees worked hard for the company. They produced excellent work and the company profited tremendously. The company reinvested in its employees and treated them with the utmost respect. I remembered my parents receiving bonuses, nice dinners, company financed trips, and family picnics and Christmas parties. As a child, I received a brand new top of the line game from the company at the annual family Christmas party. It was a happy time. I wanted to work for a company like IBM when I grew up. By the time I grew up, there were no IBM type companies to work for. Someone decided the company got too big and smaller companies needed a piece of the pie. The laws changed so other companies could take some of IBM’s business and profits. This would have been fine, but those that took over the smaller companies were greedy and wanted to keep all profits for themselves and their stockholders. They wanted others to work for them but they did not respect their employees. They wanted to give as little compensation as possible. Employees began getting disgruntled and low morale set in. Employees decided to seek ways to earn money in other ways.

In order for companies to retain good employees, stock options were offered. Now companies must answered to stockholders. This cuts profits of the companies and leaves nothing to be reinvested in employees. People began finding ways to earn money and “get rich quick’ by playing the stock market and soliciting outside business. Stockholders began demanding more and more profits each year which meant less and less for the employees of those companies. When more money goes to stockholders and less to employees of a company, then major problems begin to occur. A company cannot keep up with this growth rate. It demands more of its employees while offering them less. Perhaps this is a reason for the growing mental illness problems in society.

Where does it all end? Can we get back to the basic principles and values of our forefathers and grandparents? My fear is that if we don’t, then greed and lack of positive morale will be the downfall of the American society. It is a relatively short history of this country and society. We are at a crossroads right now and the next turn we take is critical to our society’s future. A society where each individual can feel safe to do the things that make them happy and provide a balanced lifestyle for their families is not a given right any longer. Some people have taken more than their shares leaving others without any means to accomplish their dreams and goals. These people may give so much to a charity to ease their conscious and decrease the amount they may owe in taxes. As long as they have more than what they need and want, then they don’t mind giving to someone else. This is a string attached to money and material things.

Discussions continue in America about bad mortgages, high gas prices, low wages, and high food prices. This is all a result of some people with low morals and ethical standards being greedy. These type of people want to get rich quick with little hard work and values. I think we are missing the boat, so to speak, and we need to get back to simplifying our lives and being accountable for our actions. We, as a society, are good at putting the blame on someone else. We seem to have forgotten the Golden Rule, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” If you take advantage of someone to further your own goals and agenda, then remember someone else may take advantage of you some day. Remember, what goes around comes around eventually.