... resource dilemma, and also the conflict between self-interest and collective interest. The name was derived from centrally located public pastures in old English villages called the "commons", where villagers could freely graze their cows, or other livestock. Imagine one hundred villagers sharing a common pasture which is sufficient enough for the grazing of 100 cows. If all the villagers cooperate, the pasture would be optimally used. But non-cooperation - such as is each villager attempt to graze as many as their own livestock as possible - would inevitably result in overgrazing of the pasture, and the commons would become nothing but a sad, grassless and muddy field. Therein is the tragedy. Each man is locked into a system that compels him to increase his herd without limit - in a world that is limited. Ruin is the destination toward which all men rush, each pursuing his own interest in a society ...

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