People Protest Wall Street Greed

    Greed.  Now, there’s a word that’s been getting a great deal of attention these past few weeks.  People in the U.S., Great Britain and other countries are demonstrating (or protesting) corporate greed on Wall Street and large financial institutions around the world.  I saw a Facebook post, “Listen, I am not against capitalism, I am against corporate greed.  There is a difference.”  I am not sure the folks protesting in cities across the United States and the rest of the world see the difference.  In fact, I am not sure the people involved in these protests know why they are protesting.

    I recently combed through the Occupy Wall Street web site trying to find out exactly what they are trying to accomplish.  I found that one goal was to “gather 20,000 people to Wall street, in New York, NY on September 17, 2011, beginning a popular occupation of that space for two months and more.”  I guess they reached that goal.  The rest of my search turned up nothing that even came close to a clear, attainable goal.  These people are against “greed” on Wall Street.  They believe this greed has caused the economic crises in the U.S., Greece and around the world.  They apparently want the greed to stop, though this is not articulated in any succinct statement.

   I am opposed to greed as well.  But what, exactly, is greed?  “A selfish and excessive desire for more of something than is needed,” according to Merriam-Webster.  That is a good discussion starter, but it does raise some other questions:  What constitutes excessive?  Who determines what is needed?  On what is this definition based?

    The Bible has a few things to say about greed, all bad.  The concept seems to be tied to the concept of contentment rather than a specific definition.  A one-size-fits-all definition of greed is probably not possible because greed is an individual, emotional, spiritual problem.  If we accept the Webster Dictionary definition of greed, a desire to have more than we need, then everyone I know is a greedy person.  I do not know a single person who doesn’t have more than is absolutely necessary for survival.  The most destitute people I have come in contact with have much more than some people I have seen surviving in other countries where there are no guarantees concerning even the most basic life necessities.  The people camped out on Wall Street have very nice tents and other camping equipment that would be extreme luxuries for many people in third world countries.  Dressed in their North Face down jackets and Nike shoes, they stop off at Starbuck’s to get their lattes before heading off to protest the greed of the corporate executives who make the existence of those products possible.  They have been joined by union members who live lives of comparative luxury while constantly negotiating for higher wages.  A recent survey of the Wall Street demonstrators found that most of them also support universal health care coverage.  Wouldn’t the children living off the dump piles outside of Manila love that! 

    Greed is not a problem of corporate executives alone.  If we would all take a step back and look at the big picture, we would see that the 99% also have a greed problem.  Recent interviews with some of the protesters in New York resulted in some interesting statements about individual protesters’ goals.  Many of them want a dramatic redistribution of wealth, a la Marx.  So, they want to take the money from the so-called 1%, who they deem “greedy,” but they don’t see themselves as greedy for wanting it.  Apparently, some people define greed on a sliding scale of wealth.  But, I haven’t heard anyone define the point at which “need” stops and “greed” begins.

    I have always been fascinated by God’s servant, Job.  He was a wealthy man by anyone’s definition, yet referred to as “righteous” by God himself.  After all was taken from him, he continued to be righteous.  At the end of the account of his sufferings, God blessed him with more possessions than he had before.  What?  The possession of material things can be a blessing from God?  What was the difference between Job’s situation and so much of what we see today?  Attitude.  What is it I am striving for, what will I do to get it, and what will I do with it once I have it?

    I admit I don’t understand the process by which a person looks at the current world financial crisis and concludes that 1% of the people in the United States are responsible for the problem.  The Greek people, fully understanding that their government is teetering on the brink of collapse, in great part due to the unrealistic commitments to socialistic programs like guaranteed pensions and universal health care, violently protest any efforts to reign in those expenditures because their comfort will be slightly diminished. They would rather have people from other countries bail them out.  Nor do I understand those who believe the so-called 1% are out to “enrich themselves by impoverishing humanity.”  Certainly, there are greedy CEOs, but do they really want to impoverish humanity?  Wouldn’t that ruin their businesses?  There are also greedy workers, greedy managers, greedy children, greedy welfare recipients and greedy protesters.

    So, I would like to suggest a new protest.  Let’s demonstrate against all greed!  There is a catch, though.  Only greedy people are really in positions to determine whether or not they are, indeed, greedy, since greed is an attitude.  The rest of us can observe what we think is greedy behavior, but we can’t really know with certainty.  So, I think maybe the only way to approach this problem is by changing individuals from the inside out.  Giving a person a new heart, one that loves above all else, is the only way this protest can be successful.  So, our protest will have to be conducted as individuals persuading individuals to give their lives away to God, who will lead them understanding their attitudes and actions.  And, we’ll have to begin that protest with ourselves.