Abdulfattah Ogirima Yusuf I would answer this. Because i have had lots of experience in life.
Money empowers the good people to do more good just as much as it empowers the bad to do more bad. Money and wealth neither good nor bad. Assume money functions as a knife you use for cutting vegetables, fruits…etc for food for people, also can use for stabbing anyone.
Two stories i could relate how money empowers the good to do more good and the bad to do more bad
First story was set in a far east asia. There was a good poor man who worked so hard to meet his daily need, and give the rest of his earnings to poor. On a good day, while he was alone renovating a cracked floor of the first floor of his 11-square-feet room of duplex he inherited for generations, where he lived with his good wife and two kids, a male and female. He found a sizable secret iron door situated at the center of the room floor leading all way 3-feet underground to a bulky rectangular ancient red chest covered with thick dust and spider cobwebs.
He slowly pulled the chest out, was very heavy, and cleared the cobwebs. He broke unlocked its rotten lock with a hammer. Surprisingly, he found an gold and silver coins well slotted in 500 rolls by 250 column - the first column 249 column starting by the right to left were all with gold coins while the last column by the far-left-end was of silver coins. The inscription on each coin were the same and were dated back in ancient. He heighs each coins, approximately 10 grams. As he offload the treasure from the chest, he noticed the layer which the treasure sat on occupies ⅓ of the actual depth of the chest.
He hurriedly offload the remaining gold coins so he view the second layer. As he opened the second layer, he found 5 large emerald diamonds well arranged on the layer. His eyes now widely open as he never expected to be better than the previous.
Then, he opened the last layer and found a piece of antique brownish scroll, which he gently unscrolled to his view. As he spread it with his hairy hands, He immediately recognized the writings were his native language facing backward as the front view of the scroll was facing backward. He turned it straight, and he reads quietly:
“Whoever reads this letter, should remember, all treasures contained in the chest, which the letter was found in, is now yours. If you so wish to share with the needy and poor do so at your kindness. A token from the Ancestor!”
As he reads the last words, he wondered who’d hidden the chest here. He remembered as his father once told him that people of different generations had live here. He thought how he put the treasures to use. These were his thoughts.
Finally, a flash ideas invaded his thoughts! He repacked the treasure as it was, and hide chest back in. Shortly, he heard horselaugh outdoor (hee-haw!). He checked the window, was his wife and two kids on horse carriage back home from school. He was excited to announce the secret treasure he’d found.
Two weeks later, He decided to sell few of the gold in exchange of large piece of lands and properties. He blessed his good wife with her dream store full of merchandise in the most busiest place on the island, where she sell varieties of merchandises source from close and far places. He enrolled his two good kids in the best school in the city, in additional kindness to his kids, he established small businesses of their young ages. He found for himself a shipping transport business, where he convey merchants and merchandise from places to places, as he knew the city was on the biggest and most commercial island among many islands in the country.
He founded a foundation where he feed the needy and poor in three-square meal daily with half of food production he’d cultivated from the large piece of lands he acquired. He invested in young entrepreneurs with ideas and empowers skillful inventors. He loan the governor of the Island a large gold coins with which used built the first and the biggest bridge linking the Islands with the mainland thereby reducing the water traffic. In turn, the government pays the loan for ten years. Such is example of good person whom money empowered to do more good.
Another story, this time, a bad man whom money empowered to do more bad was a servant of a good king of a mighty Kingdom in near east. Kingdom blessed with bounty of natural resources.
The bad man servant had always been critic of king’s kindness towards people, of examples are the public well-fare which the king by himself took part in daily offering foods, cloths to citizens, the hundred percent funded scholarship for students inspired to be sages and, most especially, the 5000 years peace agreement with neighboring kingdoms, whereas the King had the might to get all of them in kneels, all of which the evil man servant discern as waste of time, money, resources and opportunities.
Since the good king never had an heir to the throne, He inadvertently appointed the bad man as his successor as the king by himself scored the bad man the most obedient servant of all fit entrusted with responsible of the kingdom.
One bad evening, the good king left the world for the hereafter, and the kingdom was now under the rule of the bad man servant of the deceased King. The proclaimation of the bad man servant the new king was made shortly after the burial in accordance with the will of the deceased king.
Upon ascending to the throne, the new king announced there be new reforms in hope to expand the riches of the kingdom, and as part of the reforms is the closure of all public well fares citing a waste of public fund, encouraging laziness. Instead every citizens must work to survive. “No food food for the lazy man”, a nasty qoute he often repeat. He begin his imperialistic plans with this so more citizens will work and be taxed. By that means he would amass lot gold and silver to sponsoring the conquest of neighboring kingdoms one after the other. But, now he’s short of fund.
He figured out how he’s reintroduced taxing following the first step without citizen hating him. He have to have a figured head with whom execute his evil plans, and on whom blames be upon if there be any problems upfront. Within a week, he appointed for himself a vizier, a notorious man who not once, but countless times convicted for felonies.
2 years after ascension, the evil king ordered the new vizier to reintroduced tax on every citizens, old down to infant. A practice that was abolished 5000 years back by the unifier of the kingdom. He taxed high-earned citizens at 10% their annual earnings, citizens such as miners, farmers and bankers. While the rest of the citizens were taxed at %5 their annual earnings. He increase the tax percentage each year by 0.01%. Since the taxing is low and the increment is bit, citizens hadn’t felt the tax policy.
However, citizens who shown signs against the will of the king will either be charged of treason or adopted and never be found again. He secretly hired sorcerers and sorceress from faraway cursed lands, and encamped throughout the boundaries of the kingdom. Sorcerers whose main job was to induce fear in heart of citizens, as each sorcerer possessed magical powers, which help them transform into scariest creaures the likes of which citizens never seen before. Of the least scariest of the the creatures were a 100-feet tall, 40-feet wide bears, snakes of a human face whose length ends nowhere and giant spiders with enormous eyes. Each monster has a unique way of increase in numbers and size as per the numbers of group of citizens trying to desert the kingdom. These monsters are meant to drive or even kill any citizens trying to flee the kingdom; in turn, the citizen were forcefully curtailed within the kingdom.
Sages came all way from parts of the kingdom pleading the king to change the new policies that’s ruining the kingdom, and that’d angered the God for which the God unleashed the monster of earth as a means of reminding the king of his unwise policy. The sages never knew the King was the actual perpetrator behind the monsters hanging.all corners of the kingdom. The evil king pretended as though he conformed with sages. As sages on their way returning homes, the evil kind ordered all of them be killed. To make the matter more complicated, assassins were never found. The news of assassinated sages spread throughout the kingdom. Critics emerged from no where, demanding a thorough investigation of the recent assassination of sages, and the end to the continuing adoption of innocent citizens and other evils which have spread throughout the kingdom. As the news reached the king, he set a date for a meeting demanding all abled citizens must attended.
On fine day, The king had instructed the citizens be gathered around surrounding the king’s podium. The Evil King’s comments shocked the crowd as he accused the neighboring kingdoms to have conspired the sages assassination and that of adoptions that were carried out throughout the kingdom, because they had long wanting the kingdom for theirs. He brought out a scroll with war campaign which he skillfully redesigned from a scroll which a neighboring kingdom had sent 5000 years back, as an evidence and pretex of waging war. Adding that is the reason why he had reintroduced taxing to raise money for the war effort.. He ordered the arrest all non-citizens merchants whose origin were from neighboring kingdoms. Since citizens had learned stories where kingdoms against another for domination, the king’s claims could possibly be true. Almost all citizens believed the cocked story while few couldn’t believe, the rest were completely skeptical.
Over 5 years have passed taxing citizens, he had amassed huge gold with which he recruited the strongest mercenaries, had trained the most formidable army on earth and had hired the most skillful technicians to build the most powerful weapon of that time. He’s set for conquest.
He ordered the invasion of the nearby kingdom. His army destroy each and every forts they came across, and ransacked it riches and slaughter every adult males as well as the king and princes, and sold all women and children in slavery in exchange of fine gold and silver which he added to his excessive possession. The street were all in red of the blood stain of citizens, buildings destroyed, library were completely in flames.
The army returned with heads of the king, princes and nobles of the conquered kingdom. New territory added to the kingdom.
With the success of his evil conquest, he buy more supports of his people, as people, tended to attribute success with positive sign of good cause. They failed to realize that one could attain success in wrong cause. Soon, the news of the brutal conquest reached far distances lands, and they were all in fear who could be next. Within the first 6 months of the new year, he conquered three more kingdoms gaining additional territories.
By the eve of the last day of the year, more influx of kings came succumbed to the evil king’s demands which is either cession of terroritories, or payment of annual tributes totaling five thousand gold and silver blocks, one thousands camels and horses for assuring peace. Otherwise there be non-stop war.
The Evil King grin in dark as he’d successful gained territories and evil passive income trailing each year adding the kingdom’s wealth from the conquered kingdoms. Meanwhile, in fear they may exposed him, He ordered all sorcerers be killed at once accused of spreading evil in the land. The people of conquered territories were scattered throughout the empire, and were deemed second class citizens, in which they’re compelled to pay five times the annual tax which normal citizens pay. The age of tyranny rekindle! Such is a bad man whom money empowered to do more bad!
