I really liked this article from the NYT on “overfinancialization”. 

I’ve never really been interested in philanthropy per se… Not that I have anything against giving to charity. But I think people often justify their actions with donations, etc. This guy for example:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/05/31/join-wall-street-save-the-world/

I do care about contributing to the world we live in. I hope the work that I do in my lifetime goes towards bettering society. I suppose that’s what allows me to be happy in my work. I think in the financial realm especially its critical to step back and analyze the underlying purpose of the work being done.

The financial innovations over the past couple of decades have opened doors for so many people. Whether it be starting a business, owning a home, insuring yourself against health risks, the financial markets have made individuals’ aspirations a reality. 

But there are certainly practices within the financial sector that have little if any real economic benefit. High frequency trading exists so that individual’s can make money on immaterial market fluctuations. NOT to be a signal to other investors about the most efficient allocation of resources as some would claim.

Anyway, I particularly liked this article because it didn’t explicitly say the things I just wrote so I hope I didn’t ruin it for everyone else. But give it a read.