Reading the story about the Wal-Mart worker who was killed in a stampede yesterday reminded me to check up on WakeUpWalMart.com. Our family stopped shopping at Wal-Mart several years ago now. In fact, it’s become a little joke among our friends that whenever they say they bought something at Wal-Mart, they immediately turn to us and say, “Sorry; I know you guys don’t like Wal-Mart.” So, maybe we talked a little too much about it back when we first stopped going there. 🙂
But now it’s been a while, so I thought a friendly holiday reminder on why you shouldn’t shop at Wal-Mart would be in order:
Sharon… the Marxist / Communist answer is there is no wages. No monetary system at all. How can anyone say that the electricity a power plant provides is any more or less important to society than a hospital or a grocery store? The means of production and the results of production are shared equally throughout society. You’re a teacher, so you go teach. He’s an electrician so he goes electrify things, I am a plumber so I plumb… No one owns anything so there is nothing to covet or want. People are taught to do what they want and what they can. As The New Testament exhorts, if they don’t work, let them not eat. Everyone has to do what they can, IF they can.
John Lennon tried to preach the same message… Imagine.
Jesus tried to preach the same message… Consider the lilies of the field
There are more of us than you all think. Most of us don’t even know it, because our teachers, preachers and politicians have lied to us.
Sharon: No, that is not what I am asking… I live in America because my ancestors came here and my parents continued to live here. I nor anyone else can right all the wrongs of everyone not being able to live in America.
I, for one, and I am not alone, do not like the nationalization (aka socialism) of our country — here a little and there a little — take away a little more — think and read about UN Agenda 21, even the straining of the Constitution with the Patriot Act, the recent G20 summit held in D.C., the recent bank and insurance bailout, next in line the auto industry followed by what other industry … hopefully not medical. Please read about the successes and failures of national health care — on paper it sounds great — the reality is not so rosey.
Yes, I have been in the ER when the ‘patient’ and seemingly every relative five times removed was in the ER having a party in the waiting room. I have been in the ER where people use it as their primary care because they didn’t plan ahead even though they had a medical card and a physician, overhearing some of the conversations is very illuminating regarding a person’s decision matrix.
When I was first married, I could not get maternity insurance because I had to be married for one year (with no deliveries) prior to coverage, so we were self-pay. Same college situation for our second child while again eligible for public aid, asked the hospital if they would reduce the rate to an insured person’s rate which would be significantly higher than the state aid to be paid. No that was not possible because it would be fraud, just get on state aid so you don’t have to pay for your pregnancy. Didn’t do that, self paid again.
In America, you can make it — you can have a mixed bag of a childhood, you can get an education, you can make wise decisions, you can take care of your health, you can live within your means — there are many success stories. You can make very little and still be very generous to charities and adjust your lifestyle to have a great life. Less is more in many cases. And yes, there are some people with pre-disposing factors who require more health care than others — however, I am of the belief that the lack of nutrition, abuse of one’s body and lack of exercise greatly exacerbate our medical conditions and cost because people want to be taken care of rather than help themselves in many cases.
If you have money to purchase frills instead of basics then I have a problem. Our family has not started at the top of the foodchain and are no means there at this point. We work hard and get ahead a little at a time.
Please remember that I live in the inner city — so I have seen a lot of conditions based on the result of some poor life choices which make one’s life very difficult to bear and manage.
I want our county to remain the United States of America, not the United Socialist States of America. I want our country to retain its’ sovereignty and not become part of an one-world government ala UN or EU or any other scoop all into one goverment.
I think that we will just have to agree to disagree.
kcdad: And in a Marxist/Communist country — there is a hierarchy of rich and poor — so how does that work that everyone is not the same? Jesus did not teach communism — he taught about an united order situation.
Karrie: I understand the personal side of your reasoning. My own father didn’t have even have a grade school education past the 6th grade–actually, I believe he was self-taught because he was had carpentry skills, played the trombone in the Peoria Municipal and Shrine bands, etc. But he had a job in the 40s-50s that had no benefits. Luckily, we were fairly healthy–but I didn’t see the doctor or the dentist very often. Maybe if my dad had had insurance, he wouldn’t have died when he was in his early 60s. I remember when I first started working I couldn’t believe that I could actually go to a doctor and not have to pay, etc. So I came from much the same kind of background that you did–and I haven’t climbed much further up the social ladder. The fact that I have an education helped (but I was a teacher and didn’t marry so I’m not on easy street so to speak. But I have a hard time excluding people like my father from our health care system.
I’m just not sure whom you want to exclude from insurance or whom you wish to accept. I understand what you’re saying about the emergency room scenes–wouldn’t national health insurance eliminate much of that? Besides aren’t there very wealthy people with insurance benefits who abuse their bodies with overeating and alcohol, etc.–and therefore use more than their “fair” share of insurance, etc?
I just don’t know how to justify withholding insurance benefits from working people. And many companies (not just Wal-Mart) have found a way to avoid offering benefits to their employees. I see it as a moral dilemma and I don’t really know what the solution is. As with many situations, I do see both sides of the story and have a hard time being firmly in favor of one side or the other.
Karrie: Just saw your post to Kcdad. Jesus didn’t advocate capitalism either. I often speculate as to what kind of economic system he would advocate in his kingdom–frankly, I don’t think it would be capitalism. All his beautitudes seem to lean more toward socialism (not the godless Marxist kind) than to capitalism. Actually, I don’t think he would have expected the government to help the poor–but he definitely expected the church to do so–no way to argue against that. Would he include health care in his commands to care for the poor–yes, I think, so. In fact, the Christian argument is my main reason for believing in national health insurance.
KcDad: Wow, you and Karrie and I are getting very theological and I can’t resist that topic. To me, Marxism doesn’t jive with Christianity either. I guess the main reason is that both capitalism and socialism are man-made economies. I think Jesus will surprise us with a whole new system (you know the new heaven and the new earth, etc.) and that fact that he would run it makes all the difference. Marxism is not free of greed, either–in fact, only a few people “share” the wealth; everyone else shares “equal poverty.” Too deep a subject for midnight–and probably not what everyone else on this blog wants to delve into–but I do enjoy the speculation. Thanks for good conversation.
You are wrong about Marxism. Marxism is not “Godless”, it is elitist-less. It is not a economic system it is an ideology that describes socio-economic systems. Marx was a Sociologist.
Socialism is Capitalism for the elite. True Capitalism does not exist because there is not equal opportunity, equal access to the means of production and no free market. We have lived in a Social Capitalist economy for quite a awhile and before that an feudal capitalism in which the few “Barons” of industry ran everything.
Jesus and Paul both advocated Communism. No personal wealth. Shared responsibilities within the community. Putting the good of others before the good of self. Denial of self. Dieing to self.
kcdad — Was it not Marx who said religion is the opiate of the people? He also said, “The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people is the demand for their real happiness. To call on them to give up their illusions about their condition is to call on them to give up a condition that requires illusions.” Sounds pretty godless to me.
Jesus and Paul did not advocate “Communism.” Christianity is all about changing from the inside out, not the outside in. State-mandated (and enforced) self-denial does not change the human heart.
C.J. is right. Jesus and Paul did recommend all the things you stated, KcDad–but it was all to be voluntary–coming from within, not from without. I believe if you read the New Testament carefully, there is a point at which owning things in common was recommended for a brief time with just a particular group of early Christians–but it wasn’t a mandate and didn’t last that long. Of course, it is possible for Christians to be behave like Christians no matter what economic system is put in place by a particular government.
My personal opinion is that socialism does get a particular bad “rap” because Marx advocated it–that Christians sometimes believe it can’t be adapted to a Christian economic view, etc. I’m not that fed up with capitalism, however. But I don’t get upset by some efforts for the government to help the poor, etc. I would just prefer that all such efforts would build a sense of responsibility with the “giveaways.” There should be some kind of strings of responsibility attached to all giveaway programs–not to satisfy my desire for others to be accountable but because it is good for people to have the sense of worth coming from responsibility.
Sharon,
Don’t want to harp on this, but my name is not Jim. Not even my REAL name. I comment very little on the ‘academy’ and have never commented on your “fear mongering.” Not even sure what set of posts you are referring to…..certainly nothing that references Jim Stowell…….? Anyway, happy hunting!
New Voice: Sorry, I wasn’t calling you Jim nor has it even occurred to me to guess the identities of people on this blog. I was addressing Jim Stowell who had e-mailed me personally to comment on my comment about the academy. I see now that my message was confusing–he is the one who used the term “fear mongering.” I attempted to clarify that in my previous message but obviously I failed miserably.
CJ, yes Marx wrote that. Just as TV (entertainment) is the opiate of the masses today. It is the drug that “makes us rather bear those ills we have than fly to others that we know not of”. It was the religion of the 19th century that called its followers to accept their lot in life, to respect and honor their authorities and await the reward in heaven that was promised to all good and faithful servants.
Sharon: Marx did not “advocate” any form of economic system. He merely expressed his beliefs of the inevitability of social evolution towards certain ends. Just as feudalism evolved into capitalism, it was inevitable (as we see today) capitalism would evolve into socialism and socialism into communism.
I believe everything you’re looking for when it comes to the true socialist state lies 90 miles off the coast of Florida.
Who is looking for a Socialist State? Why look beyond our own shores? We are (and have been) evolving into a Socialist State as predicted by Marx over 100 years ago. It is only the very wealthy elites in this country that are trying to de-evolve back into feudal capitalism.
Look at our military and their connection with corporate interests. (How much of our defense budget is spent on corporate interests? How many industries are in symbiotic- and I mean mutually dependent- relationships with the military?) How much of our economy is dependent upon a few banks? How much of our economy is dependent upon the government for subsidies? Do you happen to know the success rate of private independent businesses (excluding internet based)? 80% fail in the first year… so much for free enterprise and the American Dream.