Forbes magazine recently published a list of the richest cartoon characters and actually attached an estimated dollar value to their wealth. Boy, do they have time on their hands! On the list at nearly $29 billion is Scrooge McDuck, the rags to riches Scottish shoe-shine boy who becomes deliriously rich --and greedy.
The timing was interesting (March) because a few weeks later Goldman Sachs, the huge investment company was charged with misleading customers about dodgy investments. In what may be the height of the greed and reckless self-interest, the company is accused of selling product which it knew would fail, and then bet against itself for profit. Yuck. While the response has been denial, denial, denial, if you have seen any of the proceedings of the enquiry you will have a sense that these men don't have a leg to stand on.
Jesus spoke often about both contentment in simplicity and the perils of greed. He taught what is later reinforced in the first letter to Timothy, that "the love of money is the root of all evil."
I am disgusted by the cynical, "greed is good" approach of a number of companies which contributed to the global economic free-fall. At the same time I need to be aware of the log in my own eye. There are times when I succumb to my own forms of greed, and I am keenly aware that I am wildly wealthy compared to probably 95% of the population on this planet. Why don't I share more?
What is your response to the Goldman Sachs revelations? Is it unfair to compare our wealth to that of the big players in the financial scandal? Are you generous?
3 comments:
Am I generous? Well, I like to think I am, but I know that I am very wealthy compared to lots of people in this world. We talked a lot about "enough" over the past four weeks in church. As a society, do we even know what "enough" is anymore? Would there be more to go around if we all could live with "enough", whatever that may look like.
I am disgusted with those who don't even grapple with these questions and focus more on how much money they can make or even take from others.
I'm definitely not as generous as I should be. Yet another corner of my personal and psychic garden I need to tend more often.
The Goldman situation is really indicative of the American Dream gone awry. Historically, you can trace the rise of greed in that society to Ronald Reagan's rise to power in 1981. His pronouncement that "government is the problem" with American society and the subsequent deregulation of American markets helped lay the foundation for what happened in 2008. George W. Bush's neo-Reaganism really brought the situation to fruition through measures like unopposed bank mergers.
Scary stuff.
Is it about being generous?
Or is it about learning to share?
Or is it about saying and meaning it is enough?
Can we (privately and corporately)in the Western world even distinguish between need and want anymore?
Sounds like a topic for discussion group or study group to further explore.
Post a Comment