[elgabogringo]

I don't think the distinguishing characteristic of bankers is their desire for economic efficiency. It's their desire for self-enrichment.

Maybe the author doesn't mean actual bankers, but is instead referring to central bankers, in which case I'd argue that the meager GDP growth achieved from an unprecedented expansion of central banking assets has been anything but efficient.

Regardless, the fact that the author can look back the past 10 years of economic policy and find among all the mad and destructive monetary actions a "quest for efficiency" just shows that the author is as out of touch as the bankers.

What's happening is that the public at large is figuring this out (and this part the author gets right) using the imperfect vehicles of Trump and Brexit to try and stop it.

[dnautics]

I don't think central bankers have a particularly egregious desire for self-enrichment. I do think however, their policies have been disastrous for pretty much everyone. If anything, it's their "altruistic" behaviour and prescriptions for society that have had these unintended consequences.

[misja111]

I don't think the average banker has a greater desire for self-enrichment than say, the average lawyer or the average sales manager. And anyway, there's nothing wrong with a certain amount of greediness in a capitalist system, this is what drives innovation and efficiency. The problem with banking has been that the system is broken. Unlike other companies, mismanaged banks cannot go bankrupt because they drag the entire system with them.

[pyrale]

> And anyway, there's nothing wrong with a certain amount of greediness in a capitalist system, this is what drives innovation and efficiency.

I wonder how many years will pass before people realize this mantra is an article of faith.

[dredmorbius]

The one example of innovation mentioned in Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations came from a boy who wanted to go out and play with his friends.

(His job was to activate the release valve on an early steam engine. He rigged up a string to do that so he could play. James Watt incorporated this into his design.)

(Watt and Smith were contemporaries in Edinburgh. Not only that, but Smith arranged for Watt, who'd been driven from business by the blacksmith's union (the Hammermen), to have an appointment and facilities at the University of Edinburgh. I'm fairly convinced they shared drinks at the local pub and swapped war stories.)

[mseebach]

We're currently at 240 years, so I wouldn't hold my breath.

> It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own interest. We address ourselves, not to their humanity but to their self-love, and never talk to them of our own necessities but of their advantages.

http://geolib.com/smith.adam/won1-02.html

[icebraining]

Greediness is not the same as simply regarding one's interest, though the line is subjective.

[mseebach]

The greed that people talk about when they say that greed is good (by way of Wall Street, the 1987 movie) is, though.

Also, a great many uses of the word in (lazy) criticism of markets and capitalism is that too.

[pyrale]

> The greed that people talk about when they say that greed is good (by way of Wall Street, the 1987 movie) is, though.

Thing is, you can't reduce the pursuit of self interest to accumulating wealth. Therefore, even if we accept the definition of greed as merely pursuing wealth, we misunderstand Smith's quote and fail to acknowledge many sources of creativity. By disproportionately rewarding greed and not other work incentives, we build a society for the few that are driven by it, at the expense of most, and ultimately, we cannot thrive.

[ricksplat]

Ayn Rand's "Virtue of Selfishness" completely ignores, or fails to compare with it's vices.

[TeMPOraL]

It's convenient for people to believe in it because it's a self-serving belief.

[SeanDav]

I was part of the banking system for many years - it is unbelievably greedy. There is no respect for individuals, other than how much money they can make. Concepts like loyalty and service have no meaning.

[misja111]

I was not denying that the banking system is greedy, I am saying that it is not more greedy than certain other branches. I have been part of the banking system for quite a few years as well, and although there is some truth in what you are saying, I have experienced the same things elsewhere as well. For instance in certain IT consultancy firms.

[ionised]

> Unlike other companies, mismanaged banks cannot go bankrupt because they drag the entire system with them.

Of course they can, we just have to be willing to let them in order to see the fundamental flaws in the system as it is.