Thinking in slow motion

I've been doing a fair bit of reading lately. I'm finding my thoughts in a lot of what I've read. For instance, I've called this blog 'Echoes of America' because I believe that the American ideals that lay out the foundation of the country have faded into the past. All that is left of the greatness of the American Experience is an echo.

When I picked up N.T. Wright's Simply Christian (2006) and read his first chapter I was dumbfounded. In his opening chapter he talks about an echo that we have all heard. The echo that he refers to has to do with spirituality. He talks about what God has done in history and how the West has tried to separate the spiritual from the rest of life. In doing so we have covered over our spiritual inclinations with 'concrete'.

In my thoughts I have explored some many issues and ideas - but I haven't written them down. I suppose I need to spend more time writing. I think that I need to be able to get my ideas out more quickly. I guess a more appropriate title for this post would have been Writing in slow motion because there is nothing slow about my thinking.

President Barak Obama just passed his 100 day milestone. As I've been reflecting from on his first 100 days from a foreign land I can see so many things that has begun to turn around. For instance, the President has opened the door for normalising relations with Cuba. He is acting with grace and humility - something that I know most American's possess - even if they don't display it. Our government has been the face of our country. Our reputations overseas has been soiled under President Bush, who used the royal 'We' to speak on behalf of the rest of country. When I hear President Obama use 'we' I interpret it as being 'us'. He will not be able to change America on his own. It will take everyone of us doing our part.

Every since I was a young child I had thoughts and desires to be involved with politics. I wanted to get involved because I thought it could be done differently. What I see happening in America at the moment, under the leadership of President Obama, is politics done differently. Time will tell and mistakes will happen. Situations may change which may demand a return to the 'old way'. But at least for the moment there appears to be a hope and a future for America. I hope that if we are able to let go of the past eight years we may realise that hope and future in my life time.

Plasmas, baches, and saving behaviours

David Van Beima wrote an article for Time magazine in October 2008 entitled Maybe We Should Blame God for the Subprime Mess (Van Beima, 2008). The New York Times reported that the city of Cleveland, Ohio sued 21 banks because of the abundance of subprime mortgages that were sold in their city (Maag, 2008). There seems to be a lot of finger pointing going on, particularly in the world of economics and finance. We’re faced with the massive global failures in our financial systems and free market economies. As many as 20 million people may be added to the unemployment rolls worldwide before the ‘crisis’ is over (Newstalk ZB, 2008). The finger pointers include those who have lost their homes due to mortgage sales; those who have lost their retirement due to dropping stock prices; and governments who sat back and allowed it to happen in the first place. In all this finger pointing – in all the ranting, raving, and analysis that has been done – we hear very little about the need for us to adjust our individual and collective behaviours.

Micro and macro economics involve various systems. Little changes in one place can mean big changes in another. Our individual and collective behaviours have added up to the mess that we’re now in. Has greed been involved? Yes. Is there justification for $500 million compensation packages? Probably not. At the same time, however, there were those who took out mortgages when they knew they couldn’t afford them. There were others who invested in things that they really didn’t understand. And even though we intuitively know that in all things it is wise for there to be a sense of balance, our equilibrium was out of whack in global proportions.

As the current economic downturn is expected to go well into 2009 and perhaps early 2010 there will be ample time for us to reflect (mostly because we’ll be spending less at the malls and shops). While we cool off from buying house, going on shopping sprees with next year’s wages, and buying big screen plasma TVs just because everyone else is, let’s consider the following:

How will I as a Christian change my behaviours?

What will I do that will impact the global market and the economy?

How will I help to create jobs that will lead to growth?

How will I partake in innovation and other things that will help build an economy?

How will I as an individual in society save, spend and use credit responsibly?

We need to ask all of these questions individually while we are pointing fingers at those who have made obscene amounts of money over the last several years during the economic boom. The economic and financial systems we have are not perfect. But these systems are run and managed by individuals. The systems may need to be adjusted – but so too our behaviours and attitudes. I’m not advocating poverty nor am I advocating prosperity. Rather I would argue for a balance and a renewal to our commitment to find the voice that we as Christians should have and must have in a society that serves mammon, not God.

There have been few Christian voices that have called out in the desert. Many of those that I’ve read point to the top. They appear to absolve the individual of any responsibility for the current situation and suggest that we leave it to God to sort out. As we enter into a time at the end/beginning of the year, it is a good time for us to stop and pause. How have our lives been different from those around us who don’t know and follow Jesus? In what ways can we speak out of our own experiences of God’s faithfulness and his blessings in, on and around our lives? I think we should ponder these things in the hopes that we as a Christian community (both micro and macro) might be able to speak about the experience that we have, but more than that, that we might be able to demonstrate the experience we have in the way we live our lives – not just on Sunday, but every day of the week.

Maag, C. (2008). Cleveland Sues 21 Lenders Over Subprime Mortgages [Electronic Version]. The New York Times. Retrieved 25 November 2008 from http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/12/us/12cleveland.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=cleveland%20sues%2021%20lenders&st=cse.

Newstalk ZB. (2008). Global unemployed to rise by 20 million [Electronic Version]. The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 26 November 2008 from http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10544621.

Van Beima, D. (2008). Maybe We Should Blame God for the Subprime Mess [Electronic Version]. Time, October 3. Retrieved 25 November 2008 from http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1847053,00.html.

America – A voice or an echo?

An echo is sound reverberating off a mountain, hill or wall; a reflection of a sound, heard again; a person [or group of people] reflecting the ideas, opinions, or action of someone else. In Classical Mythology, Echo was a mountain nymph who longed for the love of Narcissus until all that was left of her was her voice (Definitions of 'echo'). Has America become only an echo of the shining light on the hill that it once was?[1] Is it only an imitation of its former self? Does it still possess the voice capable of ringing from the mountaintops? Before I get too sentimental carried away with ideology, we need to reflect further on these questions.

Standing on the precipice of 2008 America is poised on a year of change. The most obvious and most visible will be the selection of a new president to lead the country. In eleven months, Americans will make their decision. In a little over a year, a new voice will be heard coming from the Presidential pulpit. Will this voice be strong and new, or a mere echo of all that has been said before? Will voters turn out to re-elect someone who sounds like everyone else or someone who sounds different? Will American’s exercise their democratic right (some say duty) and show up at the polls or will they leave the decision making up to those who do get involved. A recent Harvard Law Review Note argues a case for compulsory voting in America. The argument considers the fact that only about 60% of Americans voted in the 2004 presidential election. The note cites sources that put European voting at over 80% (The Case for Compulsory Voting in the United States, 2007). New Zealand’s Ministry of Social Development reported that in the last general election (2005) there was a 77% voter turned out (Ministry of Social Development, 2007). America considers itself to be the proponent of liberty and democracy, yet it falls behind when it comes to demonstrating its commitment to the democratic process. Is voter turnout an indication that the American voice is dwindling into an echo? Or is it a sign that there is waning trust in the institutions and individuals who govern it?

Financial challenges also face America in 2008. The sub-prime mortgage crisis that I wrote about previously, is probably only the beginning. Financial institutions will continue to be hurt by the ongoing uncertainty caused by this crisis. The price of gold is surging towards record highs, this in part due the weakening American Dollar (The Associated Press, 2008). It took America years of struggle to establish itself on the world stage. Its citizen’s worked hard, made sacrifices, and were commitment to the ideals of the American dream. As a result, it grew into the economic powerhouse of the 20th century. It now lags behind many developing economies. For 2008, the International Monetary Fund is projecting that US Gross Domestic Product [GDP] will grow by 1.9% while its projections for other emerging and developing markets will grow by 7.4% (International Monetary Fund, 2007). A note of caution – economist think that GDP is not an accurate indicator of economic wealth. Economist have been increasingly questioning the usefulness of the data gathered to generate GDP, particularly since it fails to reflect key elements such as the value of volunteerism, the cost of natural resource depletion, and tasks formally done by individuals that are not done by service industries (like child care and house cleaning) (Robert D. Hershey, 1995).

If America wants to be more than an echo in the 21st century, then political and economic restoration, both domestically and internationally, are vital to reclaiming its voice. Having read or heard about the rise and decline of great civilizations, I have often reflected on where America is in the cycle. I came across this concept recently in Michael LeGault’s book Think. He cites historian James Anthony Froude who summarizes this cycle: “Virtue and truth produce strength, strength dominion, dominion riches, riches luxury and luxury weakness and collapse – the fatal sequence repeated so often” (LeGault, 2006, p. 321). America’s richness and luxury may be giving way to weakness and collapse, but it is not too late. If it wishes to get its voice back it must be prepared to sacrifice again. This will be a painful thing for those American’s who may feel like they have been making sacrifices over the last few years. It will mean settling for lifestyles that are within our means. It will mean helping out those who are less fortunate than us. It means voicing our opinions. It also means closing our mouths, opening our ears and listening to the opinions of others. A voice must be heard and to be heard it must be listened to. It is not enough for us to allow everyone to just have an opinion. We must restore the expectation that if an opinion if voiced, the one voicing that opinion should also be willing to backed up and defended it. In a politically correct society, we expect that we can say whatever we want and others will have to accept it because we say it. In a democratic society, one that is healthy and robust, there is room for plenty of opinion. However, we must also fight to make room for those opinions to be challenged, modified and even recast if needs be.

The Founders fought long and hard to form the words of the Declaration and Constitution. They argued over words and meaning of words. They knew the magnitude of what they were writing and knew the importance of getting it right. They were aware of the impact of spoken and written word: “We hold these truths to be self-evident” and “We, the people of the United States….” They used these words for a reason. They did not write “We, the Catholics, Protestants, Jews, Muslims and Hindus” or “We, the English, French, Polish and German of the United States” or “Some of us hold these truths and some of hold other truths to be self-evident.” I hope you get the point. They were not satisfied to throw out a few thoughts and opinions on government. They would not have expected a government formed on the opinions of one or two to stand for over two hundred years. They debated and argued their thoughts and opinions. But here’s the crucial part, they came to a conclusion, a compromise that they decided they could live with. A politically correct society is apt either to compromise without conclusion or come to conclusions without compromise. The Founders considered the difficulty and challenges they faced as worthwhile because they believed that it would lead to a better future for their children and grandchildren. America must restore its focus on the future. It cannot let a materialistic ‘me’ generation take hold or else the riches and luxuries that our parents and grandparents worked so hard for will lead to weakness and decay. America must rediscover what its virtues and truths are if it is to return to a position of strength. I choose not to name those virtues and truth, because I believe an ongoing healthy debate and discussion is always required to sort out what they are or should be.

America (and the world) stands on the precipice of a New Year, a year that will bring many new challenges. Collectively and individually it must make a crucial decision. Will the voices of the Founders become merely an echo, a shadow of what was? Or, will its people find their voice again and again proclaim, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

In closing, I want to share few words from one of America’s Founding Mothers. Abigail Adams, in a farewell note to her son John, wrote about the times in which they lived and the importance of taking full advantage of them, not only for the present, but for future generations. She wrote:

It will be expected of you, my son, that as you are favored with superior advantages under the instructive eye of a tender parent, that your improvements should bear some proportion to your advantages. These are the times in which a genius would wish to live. It is not in the still calm of life, or the repose of a pacific station, that great characters are formed. The habits of a vigorous mind are formed in contending with difficulties. Great necessities call out great virtues. When a mind is raised, and animated by scenes that engage the heart, then those qualities which would otherwise lay dormant, wake into life and form the character of the hero and the statesmen. (McCullough, 2001)

May America rediscovery its virtues and truths, and in restored character, contend with the difficulties it now faces.

Bibliography

Clinton, W. J. (2004). My Life. London: Hutchinson.

Definitions of 'echo'. (n.d.). Retrieved January 5, 2008, from Dictionary.com: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/echo

International Monetary Fund. (2007, October). Data and Statistics. Retrieved January 5, 2008, from International Monetary Fund: http://www.imf.org/external/datamapper/index.php

LeGault, M. (2006). Think: Why crucial decisions can't be made in the blink of an eye. New York: Threshold.

McCullough, D. (2001). John Adams. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Ministry of Social Development. (2007). Voter Turnout. Retrieved January 5, 2008, from The Social Report: http://www.socialreport.msd.govt.nz/civil-political-rights/voter-turnout.html

Robert D. Hershey, J. (1995, December 19). Business - Counting the Wealth of Nations;G.D.P.'s Accuracy Is Under Attack From All Sides. Retrieved January 5, 2008, from The New York Times: http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9803E5DC1439F93AA25751C1A963958260

The Associated Press. (2008, January 3). Gold Futures Near Record High. Retrieved January 2008, 5, from The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/business/AP-Commodities-Review.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

The Case for Compulsory Voting in the United States. (2007, December). Retrieved January 5, 2008, from Harvard Law Review: http://www.harvardlawreview.org/issues/121/dec07/notes/compulsory_voting.pdf

[1] Bill Clinton, in his autobiography, reflects on his journey through Russia and the Baltic States in the late 60s, recalls that American Democracy was still seen by those under communist rule as ‘a beacon of light.’ See (Clinton, 2004, p. 170)