Totally. This is a function of 1) greed, but also 2) our lack of social safety net -- which incentivizes us to maximize personal wealth even beyond what we might need, just because without a personal nest egg, there are very few resources you can count on to help you or your family out in emergencies, or during the crashes and other ravages of capitalism.

Or as Thatcher put it: there is no society, there are only individuals and families. That wasn't always true, but it's becoming truer ever financial quarter.