A Fatal Tendency of Mankind
Self-preservation and self-development are common aspirations
among all people. And if everyone enjoyed the unrestricted use of his
faculties and the free disposition of the fruits of his labor, social
progress would be ceaseless, uninterrupted, and unfailing.
But there is also another tendency that is common among people.
When they can, they wish to live and prosper at the expense of
others. This is no rash accusation. Nor does it come from a gloomy
and uncharitable spirit. The annals of history bear witness to the
truth of it: the incessant wars, mass migrations, religious
persecutions, universal slavery, dishonesty in commerce, and
monopolies. This fatal desire has its origin in the very nature of man
-- in that primitive, universal, and insuppressible instinct that
impels him to satisfy his desires with the least possible pain.