The next time someone complains about "greed", ask them what they mean by that word - it's a great start to an eye-opening conversation. in a world of purely voluntary exchange, "greed" is meaningless: people only get rich if they bring value to others. you might _want_ more than you can get, but you can't GET it I'd nobody gives it to you. so traditional "greed" is nullified before it gets anywhere.

people who talk about "greed" are most likely actually mad at coercive structures that entrench monopolies which could never exist in a free market.

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Perfect explanation.

https://youtu.be/1dLYwEIjJGY

It can be voluntary all you want, greed is an emotion. You can be greedy or not, it has nothing to do with voluntary or coercive transactions.

In fact you don't even need transactions at all to feel it.

Greed is undesirable, at least if one values inner peace.

what characterizes the feeling?

What you already have is not enough, you need more of it, and then it will be enough.

A compulsion to act on that. A strong energy of desire, which unsettles the mind and pushes you away from the moment and into semi-involuntary, semi-unconscious, ego-identified scheming to acquire what you feel is lacking.

okay yea I agree with that. this rhymes with Stoic and Buddhist concepts (at the least, probably almost all contemplative traditions) that resonate with me.

in this formulation, someone who understands greed in that way would want to **teach** a greedy person, not fight them. and complaining about them makes no sense unless you yourself are also greedy.

centering "greed" in emotion land makes it a target of compassion rather than conflict.

Indeed!

Crony capitalism doesn’t help people believe in actual capitalism.

In my conversations, they often believe that the coercive structures are necessary, and that it is the “greedy” individuals that (ab)use them that should be fought…