Greed X-treme
7 Deadly Sins & Murder
by Maggie Bishop, mystery author

Reality – USA
Contestants – investment firms, US government, insurance conglomerates, CEOs, boards of trustees, stock brokers, investors, home flippers, home owners, people with poor credit, us.

2008, a year of greed let loose in all aspects of American life, a year when the bills come due for both the lender and borrower, a year that will be known as “Reality Check ‘08.”

Greed, one of the sins of excess, is the father which fuels the drive to more sins.
“I am not greedy,” said the horrid little girl, surrounded by every Barbie doll ever made.
“You have two of this one,” her father said. “Why don’t you give one to someone who doesn’t have one?”
“No. They’re mine. I want more.”

Greed, the top prize of sins, is a basic drive in humans. It can lead to new worlds – up to the moon in a collective race to be first and down to dirt when based on illusion and carried to extreme. Collecting money is the score card of success for many and that is not necessarily greed. The trick is to be aware of a satiation point, that “good enough” amount of everything that allows you to bask in the enjoyment of “what is” or “now” instead of the anticipation of yet another future reward. How many cars does one person really need?
This grand portal to the deadly sins is easy to enter. The password in America is “more” – more toys, more candy, more attention. Through care and feeding or even neglect, greed grows into the latest wii games, designer jeans or a house much bigger than useful or that is afforded. Greed agitates for a bigger dividend, commission or market share, regardless of the effect on the greater good for the economy or the neighborhood or a person’s dreams.
The end game is more money. The pursuit can be exciting and consuming and give rise to a single-minded passion. Forget about others. Forget about the parts of self that don’t feed into this desire to accumulate. The game is “more” and “enough” is a trap as opposed to a different door to explore.
What if, especially in childhood, the door of sharing is explored? Give away one toy and bask in the other person’s fun. Feel other emotions that arise with a shared a smile with someone in a wheelchair or the car next to you on the interstate. The joy of sharing hits the heart. After all, we are social animals with an innate reward system that floods the brain with endorphins.
What goes wrong when the emotional reward for “more” is stronger or easier to tap into than the one for “enough”?
Avariance is the collection of money, usually at the detriment of someone else. Grabbing a handful of samples instead of just one hurts the vendor. Doing shoddy work is the same as stealing from a customer. Charging more for gasoline jumps from grudging respect for the market system to outright greed because it not only harms the individual driver but diminishes the energy source for the entire economic machine.
“I want more,” the middle-aged lawyer said. One day, she forgot to send the payoff check to the bank of her client at a real estate refinancing. The bank wasn’t aware of the closing so the money remained with the lawyer. She did it again and simply maintained the clients’ monthly payment schedules. Soon she had millions of dollars but only payments of thousands. The money had to be hidden and carefully spent so as not to raise suspicion. She was caught only when she forgot one monthly payment.

The Loser – the economy, the local bank, you and me and our murdered dreams.

The Winner – could be us with a healthier attitude toward money and other wants. Take the moderation door. Enjoy the pursuit of money but take care not to harm others. If you reach the point where your needs are met and your retirement fund is being fed, share that with others. Double the tip to the hotel maid. Tell the struggling shop owner to keep the change. Buy the book from the unknown author.
A body of experience gives perspective to those long-lived people wise enough to listen to the whispers of their souls. For those of us still on a journey to such wisdom, the exercise and practice of satisfaction can give rise to a freer and uncluttered self.
Practice, give an extra dollar or two tip at lunch, even to the fast food counter clerk. If it’s against policy, apply it toward the bill of the person behind you. Pay double at the thrift store. Eat just one of your indulgence of choice. If you must buy five to get the bargain, give away two. Bargain feverishly for that trinket in a stall on your vacation in Mexico and then pay full price. The vendor upholds the time-honored tradition of haggling and you get the thrill of the hunt.
All living things are opportunists. But, we think; therefore, we can choose charity and sharing. Coming next, Envy X-treme.

Greedy Characters
Mr. Scrooge in Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol
Doctor No in Ian Flemming’s James Bond series
Greedy Real Criminals
Helen Golay & Olga Rutterschmidt, 1999 & 2005, murdered homeless men after insuring them for millions.
Shigeru Yagi, 1995, poisoned a man for life insurance (Japan)