Gluttony : " That little devil inside every one of us "

" Gluttony is the over-indulgence and over-consumption of anything to the point of waste" . That is how Wikipedia describes one of the most common deadly sins of our contemporary society. Gluttony or greed seems to be a common term in our modern consumer society. The population during these times of consumerism always seems to want to possess more. But is this persistent desire for possession an ordinary urge for wealth or rather a pathological hunger for possession?

It is striking how sometimes people do not take into account other people and how they are not ashamed of anything. A crystal-clear example of this nonchalance is hotel buffets. Everybody knows how these work, people queue for a while and can take as much food as their plates can handle. Most of the time their plates are still half full when you see those same people returning to the buffet to fetch themselves a new, fresh plate to try new things or a dessert. The food that is still on the dinner plate when the customer leaves the restaurant will be thrown away. This kind of wastage is a perfect example of greed or gluttony. People want everything while, in fact, they should make choices.

I should however mention that the consumers are not the only ones to blame. Supermarkets and small shops adapt well to the consumer's gluttony. These institutions often make very tempting offers towards potential buyers, using all kinds of marketing techniques, like for instance giving them discounts. Very often consumers are not even in need of this product but are just led by their desire to consume.

The most disquieting thing about gluttony is the fact that millions of people are starving and dying from lack of food and possession, while in the more wealthy areas such as the United States of America and Western Europe, people do not take those things seriously and therefore waste what could save lives elsewhere.

On the whole, you could conclude that gluttony is one of the most prevalent deadly sins and one of the most disquieting ones as well. Gluttony or greed is that little devil inside every one of us that convinces us to consume or take more than is actually necessary. We should all be aware of the dangers gluttony can pose to every single one of us.