Is greed a viable word or concept in the commercial world?
I seriously doubt that greed is meaningful in the positive sum contemporary world of commerce. A person who accumulates large amounts of money is not the object of opprobrium to those who understand that the accumulation is not at the expense of others, it generally inures to the benefit of others.
We have other words that describe questionable personal and social behavior: for coveting another’s possession we have the term envy; for excessive consumption of food we use gluttony.
Buddhism believes that greed is based on incorrectly connecting material wealth with happiness. This remains true but has nothing to do with the accumulation of money; it applies more appropriately to hording and buying objects to create personal identity.
As far as I can see, greed disappeared as a viable concept when the world became positive sum. Someone who accumulates money in the commercial world is hardly different than another person who accumulates beautiful pebbles from the beach, it is a highly personal affectation, with virtually no negative impact other than envy.
