Though every era's had its share of greed and materialism, it definitely does feel like the breadth and degree of it is far greater in our own time than any before it... It's not that we have a greater capacity to be materialistic; we just seem to have a million more incentives and avenues to express it. With the rise of capitalism, virulent advertising, and the prevailing ideology of the 'self-made man', yesterday's peasants- who might once have been more than satisfied with a hearty meal every now and then- are the average joes at auto shows, drooling over the fancy convertibles they have real hopes of someday attaining (after charging up the right amount of credit cards, of course).
The most interesting byproduct of modern greed is our economic recession here in the states. All those millions of people buying opulent homes they could never hope to afford, all those crazy creditors hoping to cash in on the follies of the dreamers... they're like a system of machines programmed to joyously self-destruct, as long as they get to live fancily while they do it.
The tragic irony of it is, people still aren't waking up.