Is there a society in the world that is not driven by greed and self-interest?

I doubt it. Communist nations thrive on greed, which is the greed of the government.

Greed is good, of course I call it profit, and profit is an excellent motivator of innovation and efficiency.

Money is the motivator of everyone. Whenever someone says "it's not about the money", it is especially about the money.

I was going to mention Tibet as an example of a non-greedy society, but I guess I won't. I WILL agree that the drive to survive has developed from just that to an unsurpassable worship of material sustenance, not just for more goodies for us, but by taking away the goodies of our neighbors. That's what's wrong with greed. It isn't limited by what is up for grabs. It has come down to stealing what others have worked for, and calling it free enterprise. It's not. Stealing is stealing, even if it's legalized. Read the Ten Commandments. One of them forbids stealing. Another forbids coveting what others own. There is a moral lesson here. If that's over your head, I feel sorry for you...

It isn't fair to say that any society runs solely on greed and self-interest. But it certainly is a factor in all of them.

Believe it or not, some politicians ruin their chances for re-election because they are more concerned about what they think is best for the nation, than about their campaign funds. Most corporations are not strictly profit maximizing, but practice pareto optimizing and show concern for their public image.

Communist nations theoretically oppose greed and self-interest, yet the communist parties always accumulate perks for their members that exceed those of the workers at large. They don't accumulate as much as US CEOs, but Castro's army fatigues are made of much nicer material than his army wears and you can bet he does not swim at the same beach.

Define 'greed'. Define 'self interest'.

In a socialist society, greed and self interest are defined as the pursuit of power and control over the populace. That's you and me. That is 'over others'.

In a capitalist society, greed and self interest are defined as the pursuit of personal wealth. Notice how 'personal wealth' does not extend to power and control over others. By definition, 'self interest' is contained within the 'self' and affects no one else.

As long as 'you' do not try to extend your power and control over me and I am free to pursue my personal wealth, I couldn't care less how 'greedy' or 'self interested' you are.

You see, that's the thing. To a socialist, if they are not successful, they don't want anyone to be successful. To a capitalist, if they are not successful, they simply do with less.

None that have not disappeared. Utopian societies only exist on paper - none have ever existed.

For Sour Taco : You need to read what the Dali Lama says about some of his followers.

Most businessmen on earth arent driven by greed.

I for one, own a $2500 car, a $300,000 house, am married, have 3 kids, and own a 4400sq ft office building.

Most people arent driven by greed...you communist bastard.

The indigenous peoples of many regions of the world, Luddites, Mennonites, etc.

We could learn a thing or two from them.

Tibetans but the Chinese got rid of them

They actually don't produce porno movies in their holy land... unlike the Russians in Israel

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They don't steal other humans $ and land

I can think of lots of them. Ant colonies and bee hives come to mind, they have a community drive and interest.

Not any human societies, no.

No, self-interest is part of human nature and it's not a bad thing.*