Imagine the average chip collector. He/she goes up to the cage at one of the older LV casinos and buys an LE. The cashier says "Oh, do you collect chips? I just got ten of these really old chips. I've never seen them before, I think they must have been used when the casino first opened."
What do you imagine the chipper does?

1.) Buys one for their collection and leaves the rest so other chippers can have the fun of discovering a great chip for their collection.

2.) Buys them all. Looks them up in TCR and finds they're listed at $500 each. Sells them at face ($1.00) to his/her friends at the next chip get-together so they too can have a great old chip in their collection.

3. Buys them all. Looks them up in TCR and tries to sell them for as much as possible.

I'd say most chippers (not all mind you) would fall in category three. And my feeling is that's part of the lure of the hobby to many.

If it wasn't for "greed" more of us would be spending time volunteering at the homeless shelter or the local hospital and less on our hobby. I'm not judging it, just saying we should accept it. Like Jim said, it's part of human nature. Think how many people collect: baseball cards, stamps, coins, comic books, barbed wire, the list goes on and on.

What's that old adage? The one who ends life with the most toys wins?