Well, thats the 100 Trillion Dollar question, isn't it? It wouldn't be much different than a psychologist trying to "cure" groupthink on a mass scale. You could never achieve balance, only seek to smooth out the waves.bassist_25 wrote:Interesting. How would one go keeping that greed and fear in balance, though?lonewolf wrote: Its not that people's greed is necessarily beneficial or harmful to anyone--it is simply the incentive that fuels capitalism. Don't forget the other necessary component: FEAR.
The only time when capitalism's greed hurts society on a macro level is when the overall society itself becomes greedy and fearless. That's what causes bubbles and that's why capitalism is very cyclical.
On the flip side, when society's fear exceeds its greed, we usually get a recession.
For the most part, greed remains a relative constant. Except for the occasional revelation, most people still want what they want whether times are good or bad. What varies the most under changing conditions is fear or the lack of fear. Most people tend to have less fear and risk more during good times than during bad times. Its all about their perception of the risk required to get what they want.
How do you smooth out society's perception of risk and level of fear?
Shock treatment! A few hundred volts outta take care of it!
Seriously, the best thing I can think of is to add a "personal economics" or "responsibilities in a free society" subject to the curriculum at local schools starting in kindergarten and running all the way to graduation. The object would be to teach the tasks of personal finance and also to recognise the risks and rewards of investing and entrepreneurism.
