To understand the system look at the incentive structure. Whether is government, economics, or individual behavior. Incentive structures are how people behave. We should plan for the least common denominator and try to improve the system, not the people. People aren’t perfect and always will make mistakes. People haven’t just been greedy now, they have always been greedy. The incentives can typically help explain peoples behavior.
If you want to test your system, let your enemy run it for ten years – paraphrased from Naval Ravikant