Greed is good. Hunger is better.

We have all the heard the famous "greed is good" speech from the film Wall Street:

The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right, greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind.

Apart perhaps from Ayn Randians, this speech doesn't sit well with most people; mainly because the word greed is used. The word greed upsets the left for obvious reasons, but even many capitalism-friendly, free market boosting Republicans aren't comfortable with it. After all, greed is one of the seven deadly sins, and many of these folks profess some type of religion.

But consider how much different the reaction would be if the word greed was replaced with hunger.

Hunger is right, hunger works. Hunger clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Hunger for life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind.

Hunger is good conveys effectively the same message as greed is good. The constant hunger for MORE. The hunger for money, love, knowledge, etc. Free market sloganeers would be all over it:

"Hunger for success is what drives the entrepreneurial spirit!"

"The private sector has that hunger those public sector bureaucrats lack!"

"Thank goodness for the hunger of Steve Jobs!" (is there any conversation he's not involved in?)

"Hunger is good" wouldn't be a guilty pleasure at all. Even your typical dime-store commie (there are no dime-stores under communism) would cheer the "hunger for knowledge" part.

I guess what I'm saying is what's in a word? As usual...A LOT. Because if it weren't for the scandalous nature of the word greed, the speech wouldn't have raised so many eyebrows in the first place.

Your Friendly Madison Avenue Bank

Occupy Wall Street has really spooked the banks. Have you noticed the way banking commercials have changed? They've gone from being advertisements for banks to desperate pleas for love.

Old bank commercial: "Bank of America: We have the longest hours. We have the most locations."

New bank commercial: "Bank of America: We didn't kill Jesus!"


I trust a banker even less when he is covered in butterflies.

Of course,spending money on cloying commercials is probably cheaper than lending to startups in a sterile economy.

Occupy Sallie Mae

I find it funny that one of the most recited Occupy Wall Street demands is that all student loan debt should be forgiven. So basically, these anti-bailout protesters are demanding a bailout.

I don't want to bail out the banks either, but I also don't want to bail out some guy who majored in Origami History. Oh, you mean that folding paper thing didn't lead to six figures? Guess you focused on the wrong kind of paper shuffling...

The Anti-Bunker Mentality

We have all seen pictures of those Cold War bomb shelters, the nuclear fallout bunkers Americans were at least tacitly encouraged to have. Back then, bunker-folk were excused (commended?) for preparing intensely for disaster, because the disaster they were trying to protect themselves against was a threat from a foreign, authoritarian government (the Soviet Union).

Today, engaging in bunker-like preparations--stocking up on food, gold, and other supplies—gets you ridiculed as a paranoid kook…despite the fact that previously unthinkable disasters are occurring all around us. Multiple DEVELOPED WORLD governments are on the brink of collapse. Multiple “democratic” countries have people screaming in the streets. And when those "progressive," "economically advanced" governments go, they’re going to take multiple big banks down with them. But wait, there’s more: The US government is killing American citizens in plain view without due process. And with all that madness happening we’re supposed to mock someone for buying canned food?

The main difference between the bunker-folk of yesteryear and those of today: today’s bunker-builders are attempting to shield themselves against the failures and aggressions of supposedly “democratic” governments (including the USA). That is something worshippers of the modern nanny state just can’t stomach.



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