It used to be that people strived for the unattainable, that they set their goal on something higher than themselves, and just didn't accept that it was undoable.
Now, not so much. Now, we're bringing our goals down to our own level.

Hmm I'd say our desires define us, largely, at least in the moment, so there will always be a desire to play upon, something someone will take advantage of. We can't stop that from happening at all, but maybe we can regulate how much we're taken advantage of.