Why are the poor so poor? Because they have bad morals. Why are their morals so bad? Because of liberals corrupting them. It all goes back to smoking pot in the '60's. That is the message of Charles Murray’s “Coming Apart: The State of White America, 1960-2010, per Paul Krugman.
The narrative really needs to shift. What are the moral obligations of the rich, whether conservative or liberal? (“Who is my neighbor?” in a gated community.)
I find this is a live question that haunts many a wealthy person and family.
I also find that our clergy are dead scared to address the issue in any way whatever. The feel even talking about money soils their purity, as if preaching about sheep and goats, vineyards, and fruit trees, a widow's mite, and one Roman coin, were applicable to stock, bonds, and hedgfunds.
Why do clergy lack the courage to address the moral obligations of wealth? I would not recommend sermon, diatribe, anathema, or even exorcism, but can we create a mindful silence so that a still voice might be heard? The Holy Spirit cannot tolerate lies, particularly the lies power tells through its puppets to subordinate the poor. Why are we then daunted?
I can't say much about clergy because I rarely encounter them when they're on the job. But I think the same ignoring and aversion to the matter of money is obvious in media. When some tool expresses his opinion, media normally does not identify his position.
Even hallowed NPR that bases its credibility on being independent of geld, fails to see the basic way in which our views are warped by it.
http://www.npr.org/2012/02/12/145472726/when-the-bankers-plotted-to-overthrow-fdr
Posted by: tm | February 18, 2012 at 08:19 PM
By "position" I meant, position within the system of capital, labour and slavery.
Posted by: tm | February 18, 2012 at 08:20 PM
I do best considering clergy as literary critics who suspend disbelief more consistently than I am able to do. Thinking within a frame, as trained to do, is to be a professional. To think about the frame one has been trained to think within is critical inquiry. Whose hand writes in the margin of my discourse? What space is reserved for advertisers? In which pew sits the major donor? The inability to register what is really going on is a prerequisite for many jobs. Think tank thinkers are quite sincere in claiming that they are thinking just as hard as they can. I am grateful for whatever prayers for my redemption the clergy may raise. Critical inquiry is more fun when young and full of hope. How sad to be still looking for truth when I can't even live with the little I have. I would get saved now, but want to reserve that in case I get busted and need to turn over a new leaf. Chuck Colson is a Godly man and so will I be in similar circumstances. I am still on the conniving with evil phase of my journey.
Posted by: Phil Cubeta | February 18, 2012 at 08:29 PM
Just a little harder, honey, and we're done...
Posted by: "I'm thinking just as hard as I can." | February 19, 2012 at 12:40 AM