Fending for Ourselves

Dear Mindy:
It seems we are in basic agreement about the message of the Grand Inquisitor, i.e. that many people are terrified of freedom and are willing to give it to anyone who can keep them in bread and rule over them. As you say, even the church is guilty of not thinking adequately about throwing money and goods to the poor withour giving them and insisting from them an opportunity to grow on their own. You might (did) say, let them "fend for themselves" as if that was a bad thing.

I have finished "The Hole in the Gospel" and you may use my copy if you wish. It had an impact on me that I didn't expect, and look forward to sharing that with you. I will just say it challenged me (and Nancy) again to get back to the basics of the Lord's commands to feed, clothe, give drink.

You're right, many do see the mixing of caring for the poor and government in the same sentence as a kind of creeping socialism, mainly from experience in countries that have tried it over many centuries past. What do you mean by government involvement in this area? You didn't say exactly.

For the record, Mark and I spoke briefly about a wacky proposal Tammy told me about during a visit with her in Colorado Springs recently. It seems someone envisioned a resort hotel on the top of Pikes Peak! There is after all, a paved road to the top and many make the trip, as I and Mark have done. However there's not enough room on the top to do that. The solution, shave off a couple hundred feet to make a larger spot. Mining wasn't in the conversation, but it did remind you of "corporate greed", a phrase you used several times in your piece on strip mining. If some think of socialism in regard to government involvement in social issues, others default to "corporate greed" when thinking of for-profit enterprises. Yes, there are a lot of scars on the landscape from mining. I have also seen near your hometown, places where land has been reclaimed after Big Muskie went through, with cattle grazing and crops growing. Granted, requiring a company to do that by law may be part of protecting the peace we have spoken about, and that's OK. Everyone needs checks and balances.

I'd like to speak of greed. For some, greed virtually defines the business world, that of capitalism and free enterprise, and it's the first and only adjective that comes to mind. The good news is, there is a check and balance in a competitive atmosphere to ameliorate that, plus as we described above, laws to make sure it happens. The truth is, every human is infected with greed, whether in business, education, the church or yes, the government. The bad news is, there is no check and balance to greed and inefficiency in the government bureaucracy, that part of society many want to turn over major sections of our lives.

There is a very good reason to "keep the government out of it" in many areas. When that happens, people are free to pursue the best solutions because they themselves will benefit from it. It would be "fending for ourselves" in the best sense, and the poor can and want do it too. That is the essence of the work of Adam Smith, who wrote a book many consider helped set the West on a path of prosperity unprecedented in the history of the world. It is called "The Wealth of Nations". I have actually never read it, but I'd like to read it with you and discuss it. I have an abridged copy on order. The original ran to 900 pages I hear. The minority parties right now have their hands full trying to beat back a 2000 page Health Care bill that will transform society as we know it. If the are successful, time will allow for more studied responses to legal and medical abuses in our health care system. I wouldn't have described the current medical system as destroying the peace of our communities, as you have, but it does need work.
Love,
Dad