Greed and Politics - Silent Ways to Rebel Against God

[Jason76]

Much has been made of what trash drug and porn addicts are. However, what about those involved into politics and greed? I mean, those folks aren't going to be labeled "dirty names". In fact, they might be highly respected members of the community! They could be working at your bank or being a boy/girl scout leader.

However, though demonic enslavement is just the same with "the above" as with drugs and porn - and in fact, politics and greed are another "devil's playground".

Now, how can we balance these things - to where they're not an idol, an addiction?

 

[tango]

Has much been made of drug and porn addicts being "trash"?

Firstly I assume that when you refer to "drug addicts" you're talking about people who are addicted to some kind of illegal substance, rather than someone with an unhealthy dependency on prescription medication or even something like alcohol? And how can you tell someone who is addicted to porn from someone who is not, unless you know how much time they spend watching porn? The porn addict could be the person next to you on the subway, driving the car next to you on the freeway, they could even be the person in the pulpit preaching this week's sermon. Some forms of drug addiction make their presence very visible but I defy anyone to look at any group of people and figure out, just by looking at them, who is addicted to porn and who is not. It still seems like you're using a very broad brush here, I don't recall very many people describing addicts as trash. When my friend's brother died in his late 30s (he was a heroin addict who overdosed) the church was packed for his funeral, packed with people who wanted to remember him and support the family. Nobody referred to him as trash.

And then you talk as if getting involved in politics is a fast track to demonic enslavement? Greed is one thing but it's perfectly possible to get involved in politics without being entirely self-serving. That said if you look at some of the talk coming from the political left anyone who even tries to make a bit of money through any means other than working a low-paid job risks being described as "greedy". You know, you buy a rental home and provide someone with a place to live and that makes you a "greedy landlord". You start a business and create jobs but then you're a "greedy boss" because you don't pay your staff enough. If you invest in mutual funds and try and make money from the stock market you're a "greedy investor" hoping to profit on the backs of the underpaid staff who do the work.

Honestly, in many ways I suspect envy and covetousness are more of a problem than greed.

 

[Jason76]

Has much been made of drug and porn addicts being "trash"?

Firstly I assume that when you refer to "drug addicts" you're talking about people who are addicted to some kind of illegal substance, rather than someone with an unhealthy dependency on prescription medication or even something like alcohol? And how can you tell someone who is addicted to porn from someone who is not, unless you know how much time they spend watching porn? The porn addict could be the person next to you on the subway, driving the car next to you on the freeway, they could even be the person in the pulpit preaching this week's sermon. Some forms of drug addiction make their presence very visible but I defy anyone to look at any group of people and figure out, just by looking at them, who is addicted to porn and who is not. It still seems like you're using a very broad brush here, I don't recall very many people describing addicts as trash. When my friend's brother died in his late 30s (he was a heroin addict who overdosed) the church was packed for his funeral, packed with people who wanted to remember him and support the family. Nobody referred to him as trash.

And then you talk as if getting involved in politics is a fast track to demonic enslavement? Greed is one thing but it's perfectly possible to get involved in politics without being entirely self-serving. That said if you look at some of the talk coming from the political left anyone who even tries to make a bit of money through any means other than working a low-paid job risks being described as "greedy". You know, you buy a rental home and provide someone with a place to live and that makes you a "greedy landlord". You start a business and create jobs but then you're a "greedy boss" because you don't pay your staff enough. If you invest in mutual funds and try and make money from the stock market you're a "greedy investor" hoping to profit on the backs of the underpaid staff who do the work.

Honestly, in many ways I suspect envy and covetousness are more of a problem than greed.

I see your point, but tons of people "have pride in being righteous". In other words, they feel like they worked to earn everything they have, and they've avoided what society considers deviancy - so they then bash the OTHER. However, are we so sure that the "normal people" are not hiding stuff?

 

[NewCreation435]

I think greed and politics so to the heart of issues related to a person's character. Politics can be good if people use it to help people and put laws and systems in place to benefit others, instead of nursing their own ego

 

[tango]

I see your point, but tons of people "have pride in being righteous". In other words, they feel like they worked to earn everything they have, and they've avoided what society considers deviancy - so they then bash the OTHER. However, are we so sure that the "normal people" are not hiding stuff?

Many people have worked to earn everything they have. Frankly, having known people who range from being incredibly rich to incredibly poor, the thing I've noticed is that very often the people who have truly worked their rear ends off to earn what they have are the most likely to acknowledge the combination of hard work and good fortune, whereas the people who have done the least to acquire their wealth are the most prone to judge those who don't have it.

It's also worth noting that "pride in being righteous" isn't confined to the rich. The concept of the "reverse snob" who takes such pride in being working class and shows such unwarranted derision to anyone who has worked hard and become rich as a result is no better. So many people have such different ideas of what counts as "deviancy" and take pride in not being "deviant" that there's really no point acting as if one group is better or worse than another. Just look at the endless and pointless posturing on social media as people clamor to show they are on the correct side of any given issue and even how the language within social media twists what is needed. A few months back something showed up on my Facebook feed about some charity or another, and how I could support the charity by clicking a link. Maybe I'm old fashioned but I always figured the best way to support a charity was to give them some money. But it happens all the time - let's face it, it's so much easier to do something simple like update your profile picture to show your support for a political candidate who promises some utopian vision than it is to use some of your time and/or money to directly help the people you consider so deserving. Some people (mostly old-fashioned folks like me) even believe you can do something good without posting about it on social media. It still helps the people just as much, from what I gather.

 

[Jason76]

What I said about trash was "tongue in cheek".

Many people have worked to earn everything they have. Frankly, having known people who range from being incredibly rich to incredibly poor, the thing I've noticed is that very often the people who have truly worked their rear ends off to earn what they have are the most likely to acknowledge the combination of hard work and good fortune, whereas the people who have done the least to acquire their wealth are the most prone to judge those who don't have it.

It's also worth noting that "pride in being righteous" isn't confined to the rich. The concept of the "reverse snob" who takes such pride in being working class and shows such unwarranted derision to anyone who has worked hard and become rich as a result is no better. So many people have such different ideas of what counts as "deviancy" and take pride in not being "deviant" that there's really no point acting as if one group is better or worse than another. Just look at the endless and pointless posturing on social media as people clamor to show they are on the correct side of any given issue and even how the language within social media twists what is needed. A few months back something showed up on my Facebook feed about some charity or another, and how I could support the charity by clicking a link. Maybe I'm old fashioned but I always figured the best way to support a charity was to give them some money. But it happens all the time - let's face it, it's so much easier to do something simple like update your profile picture to show your support for a political candidate who promises some utopian vision than it is to use some of your time and/or money to directly help the people you consider so deserving. Some people (mostly old-fashioned folks like me) even believe you can do something good without posting about it on social media. It still helps the people just as much, from what I gather.

I don't think socialism is that great an idea. The bigger problem is that many don't have credit and possessions to get loans. I mean, the banking industry "is supposed to" help out those struggling.

 

[tango]

I don't think socialism is that great an idea. The bigger problem is that many don't have credit and possessions to get loans. I mean, the banking industry "is supposed to" help out those struggling.

The banking industry, much like any other industry, is there to make a profit. One way it makes a profit is by lending money. It doesn't make any profit if it makes loans that aren't repaid, which is why people with little to nothing in the way of assets or income usually can't get loans. No industry "is supposed to" do things that incur losses, although some choose to as an act of charity.

A problem bigger than people being unable to get credit is an economy that relies so heavily on credit in the first place. For many many years economies of scale resulted in prices slowly falling, so if you didn't need something now you could wait until next year and it would be cheaper. Then came the genius idea that prices should rise over time, money became devalued and the people at the bottom of the economic spectrum paid the price. To make it worse an economy heavily reliant on consumers borrowing and spending stalls if the products on offer are too good, so you get built in obsolescence and things designed to fail shortly after the warranty expires. Again, the people at the bottom get hurt the most because they are the least able to afford to keep replacing things, and there's not as much out there that lasts long enough for there to be much of a secondary market in used appliances.

Back in the days when household appliances would be expected to last 25 years or more, a wealthier homeowner who had a fridge that was still in perfect working order but didn't fit the color scheme of the new kitchen they wanted might sell it, and so a less wealthy household could get a product they wouldn't normally be able to afford and be confident of getting several more years use out of it. Now there's no way of knowing how much longer something will last because it's designed to fail. It's not only designed to fail but also designed not to be serviceable so about the only option is to take it to the landfill and buy another one. These days it's not even as if someone who was less well off but handy and willing to improvise could get by picking something up with a weird fault and fixing it, because it's often all but impossible to get the parts.

 

[Webster]

There are multiple ways to rebel against God but the easiest of those ways is what is, as pointed out in another thread elsewhere on this board, is to sacrifice one's Christian faith (and all that goes with it) for the praise of the world; we're called upon, each and every one of us, to be the light and the salt of this world and the easiest way to corrupt one's faith is become of the world, with all the sins that go with it.