of scarcity

Scarcity...

We’re running out of everything. Oil – check. Water – check. Time – check. Money – check. Patience – check.

Scarcity is the problem of infinite human needs and wants in a world with finite resources, the idea that there will never be enough to go around.

Scarcity is what causes parents to line up outside of Wal-Mart at 2am to be sure that they get the Christmas season's hottest toy for their child. They will sell out!! I have to make sure I get mine!! Ahhhhhh!!

Scarcity on some level causes a condition known as Harris' Lament, the idea that "all of the good ones have been taken". Harris' Lament can be heard frequently in the yearnings of single, 28 year-olds who wish they weren't.

Somehow, deep in our souls, we believe that all of the good ones have been taken, that there will not be enough for everyone, and that we have to "take care of #1" if we have any chance at survival.

How did we get to this place of scarcity? Where did our abundance go?