How selfish should we be?

       Let's admit it... We all tend to be selfish sometimes. But if I were being brutally honest, I'd say it's our right as individuals desperate to realize one's aspirations. Besides our faith, our dreams are the only thing we can own. It is immune to persuasion and intimidation. We cannot lose them for as long as we want to keep them.

       So the question now is - how selfish should we really be in getting what we want?

       I know people who'd gone great lengths to realize their dreams, sometimes even in expense of their peers. They'd utilized tricks like defamation and blackmail, to name a few. Others had gone as far as manipulation and deceit. While observers try to rationalize these people's motivations and subsequent actions, I usually just go back to a humane principle I've always tried to live with despite immense difficulty to uphold: Selfishness for oneself should harm no one but the self.

       I pity those who'd gone too far beyond the limits imposed by morality. Even though what we aspire for would seem to make us whole, no one deserves to get hurt. To win by breaking this rule is not victory at all.

       Right now, if you were to ask yourself, are you one of these people who play by their own rules? 

       I know I am. And maybe that's why I still haven't forgiven myself.