Somethng for Nothing

The other night while watching T.V. my mom and I saw a clip of a Barry Bonds' at bat. She remarked that no-one seems to be held accountable anymore. I initially agreed with her of course but on further reflection realized that this is precisely what both conservativism and liberalism in modern america are selling (What follows are essentially straw men of conservatism and liberalsim used to try to show a connection. I do not claim to grasp the whole of either ideology).

What passes for conservatism in taliking head american politics is essentially profit without consequences. We are taught that we can make more and have more without the consequences of environmental damage, alliances with corrupt third world dictators that ensure our easy access to resources and production, and the damage that affluence can do to our social and spiritual connections.

What passes for liberalism with it's "defend the sexual revolution at all cost" (Crunchy Con) ethos tells us that we will not have to deal with any consequences for removing sex from it's proper place (the marriage bed).

The problem is that neither one is a solution for each other. The exmeplar of poverty in America is the single mother. Both conservatism and liberalism are to be blaimed for this because we have an economy which has not only created ghetto's but now outsourced them. By making profit the ultimate goal of business we have allowed corporations to exist that feel more accountable to their shareholders than to their employees or the people providing the resources neccesary to do business. But, we have another problem because we allow a culture of sexual promiscuity which does not see a problem with meaningless sexual hook ups ewven if they do create life. Indeed the one night stand might be the perfect embodiment of late capitalism.

In neither of these political streams is the discussion based around the needs of society or our neighbors. The goal is profit and expansion not health. The goal is satisfaction and freedom not, well, health. We have somehow believed we have modernized ourselves into individuality were
we only have to be concerned about how our actions effect us.

What needs to change is where our reasnoning starts from. Our thought process should begin with the Kingdom of God with a desire to see the world as such a place where each person, plant, and animal is respected and cared for. In a religiously pluralist society we can call this the commonwealth. We should conduct our business and our sexuality with a desire to create a culture and economy which is most generous and healty for all.

I sometimes think that we trick ourselves into thinking that we can't do more. We think that global poverty and deteriorating sexual mores are beyond any help and this isn't so. If you are concerned about how consumerism teaches us to view people as disposable asssets; marry and a raise a family. If you are angry about the high rate of divorce and children born out of wedlock; then invest in companies which will stay in one place long term and provide stability for a community.

Ultimately it leads to making a choice, a choice that no political leader on the right or the left would ever ask us to make, choosing to sacrifice.

"The most alarming sign of the state of our society now is that our leaders have the courage to sacrifice the lives of young people in war but have not the courage to tell us that we must be less greedy and less wasteful" ~Wendell Berry