08 September 2011 | 9/11 Fraud

As I get older, I think I see how my opinions about certain things become more defined, even more rigid. And after watching an unbelievable episode of "American Greed" focusing on 9/11 fraud, my view of human nature is just confirmed: rotten to the core.

I cannot wrap my mind around the number of people who rushed to cash in on 9/11, and I'm not talking about politicians. Building contractors who saw a window of opportunity to bilk the government, whose eye was on other things; people filing false claims of dead loved ones. Maybe all these years since 2001, I might have suspected that people were taking advantage of other peoples' sympathies and fears, but the level and scope of the fraud is staggering.

It all reminds me of the famous "Have you no decency at last, sir?" question during the McCarthy hearings. But I think the question is wasted when we discuss human nature: the answer is a resounding "no." People are really just rotten, you know? Tragedies across the world never just unleash the power of nature, but the destructive force of human nature to rip others off. In a 2006 report on 9/11 fraud, there was page after page listing the amount that was, basically, stolen through deceit. It all just makes you want to throw up your arms and just give up.

Yeah, sure, I hear the stories of heroes and bravery and selflessness. I read about the money that flows in to help. All of this is supposed to overshadow the bad and show us the "better angels of our nature." But I don't really believe that anymore. I just think we're just a rotten bunch.