Word: self-interest
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Many people on both the right and the left like to portray environmentalism as sacrifice - denying oneself some kind of pleasure (a heated pool, extra space in an SUV, the convenience of dry cleaning) in order to help save the planet. Conservatives do so partly because they believe pursuing self-interest in the form of material pleasures is necessary for the proper functioning of markets. Liberals do so because they believe rampant materialism can distort the proper functioning of democracies (and because "Yes We Can" T shirts don't need dry cleaning anyway). But what if environmentalism didn't really...
...Fortunately, there may not be such a real trade-off between self-interest and an ethical life. Recently, empirical studies have helped us better understand the important relationship between living an ethical life and living a happy life. And while it may be easy enough to believe that unethical behavior—defined by egoism and greed—could be a clear path to happiness, recent research suggests otherwise...
...There can also be a gap between our ambitions and our achievements. Problems arise when our aspirations grow faster than our accomplishments. As we gain wealth at some rate, our aspirations may grow at an even quicker rate, leaving us constantly unsatisfied. People who, out of self-interest or greed, put their own aspirations above the needs of others, may again be taking the wrong approach to happiness...
...surface, it appears we are suffering from the classic “Ec10” problem known as the tragedy of the commons: Certain people’s self-interest is destroying collective and open resources. But it’s not that simple. What action is self-interested and what’s not is hard to identify when prosperity—albeit unequal prosperity—has historically relied on the use of what was once thought to be an endless resource: the atmosphere...
...unity government committed to fighting the Taliban. But like Zardari and his late wife, the slain former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, Sharif has a poor track record in power, and is viewed by the military as part of the same venal political class motivated primarily by self-interest. The conservative Sharif, who has previously criticized Pakistan's efforts on behalf of the U.S. war on terror - and was deemed by the U.S. to be soft on the Taliban - may indeed have more support in Pakistan right now, and also from the likes of Saudi Arabia, but it's hard...