Starvation and Lunacy (Part 1 of 5): the Psychology of Lust for Power and the Power of Lust In these times of political upheaval, we do well to think carefully about the nature of lust, not only for sex and affection but for power as well. As the lust for power is so closely related to violence, we find evidence of its effects everywhere in this world. At least, that is true if the concept of lust as I describe it is understood in the context of the psychology of lust for power as distinguished from that of the simple lust for sex. For if the simple lust for sex is something that comes naturally, so to speak, without choice, it is quite natural that it is also, more often than not, a harmless matter of taste, and in the case of adult persons a source of healthful pleasure. But the lust for power, where it is lust, can be understood only as a lust for power over other human beings, and therefore it is something that is generally a harmful matter of taste, more often than not. The lust for power can be used, of course, as an agent of kindness in the service of the greater good; however, this should not be confused with the lust for power itself. And those who want to exercise power to harm others must have a lust for power, whether or not they are aware of it. Because of this, it is important that we all be discerning about what we mean by the word "power" and by the words "force" and "violence." The lust for power is closely related to the lust for violence, and both are the products of selfishness. As such, they can never be good, right, or just. If you are willing to see the wisdom of taking the time to reflect upon your feelings of love, care, tenderness, trust, respect, tolerance, forgiveness, affection, compassion, friendship, harmony, and so forth as all of these are expressions of love, consider how closely all of these are related to the lust for power, whether that be sexual power or the power of money or prestige. In order to be strong, in order to be a mighty force in society, one must either be able to command great quantities of money or other resources, or one must be able to make a great display of force or violence. Lust for power, then, can come about only in one of these two ways: either by lusting after great quantities of money or other resources or by lusting after great displays of force and violence. And those who lust for power in these ways always want more and more. In other words, their lust for power is insatiable, not satisfied for long. In this light, what the lust for power is in relation to us should be understood only as an example of the insatiable appetite that can cause a person to lust after that which is in itself good or righteous. But this lust for power is often the lust for power over other human beings and other species, and so a lust for force and violence, which has little to do with the love of beauty. How often have we seen this lust for power come about in times of scarcity? In times of scarcity, those who do not have great resources try to take them from those who do. That is the lust for power of the rich. We are reminded of the great famine that decimated Ireland and brought misery to its people around the same time that the wealthy class began to develop in Ireland as its landed class. Now we should not be surprised if this lust for power came about when there was a scarcity of resources; we can see then that, like any other form of selfishness, it was the product of a lack of care for the well-being of others and it did not spring from a desire to bring about well-being in general. The lust for power can be used as an agent of kindness in the service of the greater good, but it cannot be understood in that way. And the lust for power is an insatiable appetite that often becomes a deadly lust, but we should not be surprised at this as well, for we should remember that all the appetites, which include our lusts as well as our needs, do not need to be satisfied. The lust for power can be used to create more of its opposite—money and resources—but never just to acquire money and resources for their own sake. We can see that this lust for power was not developed to assist in the development of an economy in which the well-being of all would be met. It was a lust to command great amounts of money and resources so that the well-being of others would not be as great. At a time when there was not enough money and resources in the economy to meet all the needs of the population, the lust for power came about to create competition and competition can be found in the very nature of the lust for power itself. Competition can only be between persons or groups of persons who, because of their limited numbers, need all the power and resources available. It does not matter what the "competition" is for; so long as it exists there will always be competition, and competition can only create scarcity, fear, violence, strife, and disunity. To know this, however, is not to condemn competition in general or even to condemn specific types of competition; it is to understand how competition relates to the lust for power, how it comes about, what its end will be, and how it can be used to serve the greater good. This is a good example of how understanding your feelings is fundamental in seeing the truth of the situation in which you find yourself at a particular time and in a particular place. In the present day, it is clear that, when the lust for power arises from competition, it will continue only as long as there is money and resources for it to be used. And even this use of power and resources will often only be for the greater benefit of the one in power, whether in a corporate board room or in an office at the White House. For, you see, that which has the lust for power always has an end point for its use of money and resources, or power and force, for this is a principle as old as the history of mankind. As long as there are the greedy or the lustful or the greedy with a lust for power who seek to be strong enough to possess whatever power they can acquire, this lust will go on forever, but with each new acquisition, it will only grow stronger and more ungovernable. Its end is to use as much of the earth as possible in order to satisfy its own lusts. It is no different than a person who can only be happy when they are the richest person in the world, which is why the greediest businessperson in the world always does not lose. The lust for power uses money and resources and, while doing so, increases its own lust for more. But the lust for power has no desire to serve the greater good. It does not exist for the good of the whole, and in that it represents the selfishness of the lust for money and resources, but not the desire to fulfill needs in general. This lust for power will always use money and resources for its own selfish purpose of satisfying itself and no more, but it cannot satisfy its lusts itself. It must use the money and resources of others, which makes it impossible for any one person or group of persons to satisfy the lust of all, unless that one person or group has unlimited wealth and resources. The lust for power must be satisfied with something; without satisfaction, its lust becomes insatiable. And, as long as there is competition for money and resources, there will be no satisfaction for lust for power. The lust for power is like any other lust. When it is satiated, the lust dies out, but the lust for power is insatiable. Its lusts are continuous and as insatiable as the natural appetite. And so, no matter how much money and resources are in the world, you will not find the lust for power satisfied. This is the way of the world. As long as there is competition for money and resources, there will always be the lust for power, but it will be satisfied only when there is no competition. The lust for power seeks for and holds on to money and resources, which are a mere reflection of the power that can be wielded, but it is a lust that cannot be satisfied by anything in the world. And that is how things are in this world, and it is also what we must understand about the world that we now live in. It is an insatiable lust. When it is not satisfied, as it usually is not, for the well-being of others, it will use the money and resources that are available in an effort to satisfy its own desires. Money and resources will be used to create more money and resources and thereby increase its own lust, making it uncontrollable. And those who are already lusting for power will continue to lust for power to satisfy their own desires and will use their lusts to create more and more jealousy and competition. Competition is not the cause of the lust for power, but the use of money and resources to satisfy its lusts. The lust for power will always be unsatisfied and will seek out and use anything that will satisfy its lusts. And, of course, as its lust becomes more insatiable and its self-satisfaction less satisfying, the competition for money and resources will only increase and so will the struggle to satisfy the insatiable lust for power. This is how it works, and this is the way of the world. The world must always be this way. There will always be competition