The march and occupation of Wall Street has created a talking point for many of us. I have friends from many different walks of life, and different economic belief systems, and everyone has an opinion on how things should be fixed, whether the protest is ill informed or a ground swell of grass roots call for change.
I have my own opinions, but what I would rather have is a plan. You see, it makes much more sense to me, to actually live a different reality, than to put too much effort into changing someone else. That doesn't mean we aren't to turn over the tables, and make a statement. Not at all. But if we aren't demonstrating an alternative, we are just malcontents, not prophets.
Over the next few weeks my family and I, and those in our community are going to be exploring how we can go further in our pursuit of living out the economy of God. We will be using Ched Myer's book Sabbath Economics as a guide. If anyone wants to go on this journey with us, lets talk.
rev
9 comments:
Once again, you choose some wacko, "out there" on the fringe ideas. Even I can see problems with Ched Myer's "Sabbath Economics" ideas.
For a critique see http://www.colsoncenter.org/the-center/columns/call-response/16826-redistribution-and-the-church
without the radical fringe David, there would still be slavery, feudalism and typewriters. But way to call on conservative Christian writers when they help your case. Of course conservatives dont actually change anything, and what we need now, is change. The same old thing is leading us to the greatest disparity in wealth in the last 100 years.
rev
I'm more of the inclination that there is no one "system" that will work for all people for all time.
We should have a world in which different and competing economic systems can live alongside each other. Diversity is a good form of insurance for our future.
How can you do that in a increasingly globalized and interconnected world?
Wall street is filled with Evil Greedy people but it is also an economic engine that allows us to live in one of the best countries on the planet. No one has received a job from a poor person and you get hired to make an owner a profit, its how things work. The problem comes in when unbridled greed gets power and no one checks them. The best thing a poor person can get is a job that wont leave them on the street anymore. To have jobs you have to have people who create jobs. people dont start businesses for social justice, they do it to make a living. Obama is creating class warfare because its his only tool to win. His record stinks and his socialist economic policies are running the country into the shitter. There is NO example of a successful socialist economy in the world. The best economies in the world have low taxes, less govt. intervention and an environment that fosters the confidence for people to innovate and create jobs. Just an economic fact. In this situation, if you took every penny from the top 1 percent of wealthy people in this country, I mean every asset, every nickel, it would not fund the govt for 1 month. mathematical fact. Taxes arent the problem and it wont get better by raising them, it will get better when govt chooses to spend less money, say on decade old war, useless social programs, re evaluate entitlements and how they are managed, etc. Conservative principles are the way out of this mess. Obama is proving the obvious that socialized economics dont work.
Well you seem to be unaware of the countries of northern Europe who are socialist and among the most satisfied people in the world.
However the wall at protest isn't about left or right it's about corporate interests controlling politics. It's about controlling corporate greed. It's about the inequitable policy thy bails out the rich while allowing the working poor to lose their homes retirement plans and their jobs
I have no problem with responsible capitalism the problem is people can't be trusted to be responsible... Neither can governents either. Which is why I do not believe the answer is in either camp
Rev
Those scandanavian countries dont deal with the same problems this country does. Rife illegal immigration, a large rate of incarceration and recitivism, a population segement that wont work, etc. Basically they are a homogenous group of whites that have a small population that shares more of a collective psyche than America. America is extremely divided and the mega rich have destroyed the middle class. I guess Im saying its kind of apple and oranges in terms of the population and their mentality. Personally, I agree with you that the answers cant be found in the extreme part of either party but in OUR situation, Responsible Conservatism is the answer to get us back on track. IMO. Love ya bro.
So "there is no example of a successfully running socialist economy in the world" means there are some successful ones?
What about Australia? Socialized medicine, socialized higher education, medium high taxes and they faired better than almost any western country in the world. And don't tell me they don't have immigration issues I lives there
Rev
What kind of idiot would want to live in the USA, anyway?
What a completely fucked up country you live in, John.
I'm not reading all these comments...
WHen are you going through the book? I have a copy. I want to go through it again.
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