Upholding Values or making money .. which is important ?

I was talking to a very close friend of mine yesterday and he made a passing remark that if one is smart and has some brains, he can make loads of money, it does not matter how one makes it .. Values have no role to play in our society .. I have been hearing such comments from businessmen friends of mine ..

I was shocked.. !! Make as much, in all wrong ways, till one day you get caught and lose all respect in society .. For every Raja, there are thousands more who go scot free, for every Janardhana Reddy there are thousands who escape the law, for every Kalmadi there are hundreds who never get exposed .. But does that give reason to fulfil our desire to make money illegally , compromising all human values, like concern for the poor, sincerity, honesty, care for the less privileged, love, affection for all members of society .. ..

Aren't these more important things in life than just money ? Is not the selfish thought that only I should live well in society, I do not care how others live or others should be subservient to me, let me make as much as I can in as short a time as possible, leading to all this..?  Is not a feeling of insecurity in oneself that is the reason for all this ? 

Good health, peace of mind, happy family life, loving children, parents and relatives, good friends, respect and support from society and loads of time to do what you like most, of course, just enough money to stop you from going abegging, are some of the  important things one needs to help you lead a happy life..

If we get obsessed with money and how to make it by all means, fair or foul, we are in for trouble. Loss of health, loss of peace of mind and loss of respect can be very devastating in life ..

Also as one reads and gets more educated, he gets to appreciate the safety and security of his fellow beings on earth much more than a person who is not well read .. Education and wisdom has a role to play in life. After all, all the things on this earth are here for you, nobody takes it with him/her after death, so why hurry and deprive your fellow beings of this ..

'Live and let live', should be the policy than ' I am worried only about how I live, I do not care how others live' !!

Are the traps of the materialistic society which values material possessions much more than human values and spiritual possessions reason for this deterioration ?

Upholding values or making money, hook or crook, which is more important in our society ?

Leaving you with a quote by Mahatma Gandhi

“Your beliefs become your thoughts, 
Your thoughts become your words, 
Your words become your actions, 
Your actions become your habits, 
Your habits become your values, 
Your values become your destiny.” 
― Mahatma Gandhi

ge..