Good greed

The nature of altruism - the more confident we become with it, the more we really make a difference; the more difference we make, the more others will try to make a difference too.
Do we doubt that all this could happen? Is it impossible for us to see ourselves operating in a selfless way? If so, that’s probably because we still think of altruism in terms of selflessness, moral goodness and idealism, whereas it is nothing more than realising a good business opportunity. It is an alternative form of greed, but this time it’s greed for others, greed for a fabulous future (from which we personally mightn’t be around to benefit) and a time when racism and speciesism are forgotten concepts. But could it be this way? Could it happen? Even the goal is easy to lose sight of because we have this bad habit of plunging back into gloom and self pity. We forget that altruism has already stepped into the breach and is waiting patiently in the wings for us to use it to transform ourselves. We must never forget to learn from the past, but there comes a time when we must stop regretting the horror of the bomb and the cage and get our minds focused on new ideas - like plant-based eating regimes, a world parliament or a new type of motivation. So how will altruism help?
As individuals, we actually 'do' it all the time (if we did but know it) by smiling at someone passing by, donating money anonymously, giving credit for things that are being done by others. Certainly we do it by looking out for others, as a parent does with a child. Altruism always has the potential for setting off a chain reaction. But if we fail, it might be because we’re still carrying heavy moral baggage and that means our idea of altruism is still skewed by its reputation for wowser-ism. Altruism should only be about joy. The joy of problem solving, the joy of accepting challenges, the sheer fun and exhilaration involved in making alterations to our lifestyles. When we do things without needing to get materially rewarded for doing them, we switch an important attitude. We transform our world view. As soon as this attitude becomes common, it supersedes other types of pleasure. At that point we have altruism in the bag!