One More Day Alive

What do all predictors of doom have in common? Answer: they are usually wrong. And they get a whole lot of attention by convincing a whole lot of innocent bystanders something is about to bring about the end of the world as we know it.

A few months back on May 21, one of those crazy, but extremely rich and crafty doomsayers named Harold Camping predicted Judgment Day. He claimed God revealed this date to him, even though the Bible clearly tells us no one will know when this day will come.

In fact that’s the whole point – we don’t know because we don’t need to know. Anymore than we need to know the nature of heaven or what God looks like. These are things not for us, but for God to worry about.

Camping was wrong. And most doomsayers usually are. But we don’t know they are wrong until God has proven them wrong with a good dose of reality. In the meantime they make a whole lot people very unhappy and cause some very bad things to happen.

Camping’s stunt convinced a number of vulnerable people to sell all their belongings, or to quit their jobs, or to uproot their families and bring on much needless pain, suffering and worry, as opposed to simply living a good life and leaving the rest to God.

Reflecting upon this man’s irresponsible, panic-causing actions, I couldn’t help but think of a few other doomsayer movements.

There was that group of people back in the 1970s who said that if we continued to have children the world would come to an end by the year 2000. They were wrong, but they were partially responsible for a skyrocketing rise in abortions in the world, not to mention a whole lot of childless couples who felt too scared to bring more children into the world.

Then there were those who said the Soviet Union and the United States would blow each other to smithereens. That never happened because both sides were filled with people who not only didn’t want that to happen, but were doing everything possible to prevent it. But it did terrify my generation for most of our youth causing hellish nightmares and undue stress.

Finally our latest and greatest doomsayers are hell bent on convincing us man is an evil nuisance whose presence is destroying the planet, and that we need to turn our world upside down to fix it, or else we will all melt away.

Yet mounting evidence is proving the whole temperature cycle of this planet is much more complex and out of our control than we could ever imagine. Furthermore, esteemed British scientists at Rothamsted, the United Kingdom’s largest agricultural research center, have recently suggested extra carbon dioxide in the air from global warming could dramatically increase crop yields and reduce water consumption by about 50 percent or more by 2050, feeding and saving the lives of millions of starving people across the world. God works in mysterious ways.

Clearly, we pollute as we live. But we also clean up. There is plenty we can do to improve on that for the sake of the human beings it will help. But we don’t need to stop all of our industry, quit our jobs and jump out a window because it will be better for the earth if we are not around.

We are commanded to live meaningful, loving lives by obeying God’s commandments, and then to trust in the Lord. Whether that means preparing for Judgment Day by respecting God, our families and friends, or responsible natural family planning, or not waging war against our fellow man needlessly, or preparing a better and cleaner world for our children by not selfishly or haphazardly polluting it, there are always ways to live better and to be better servants of our Lord.

Let’s concentrate on that, and let God worry about the end of the world.

What do all predictors of doom have in common? Answer: they are usually wrong. And they get a whole lot of attention by convincing a whole lot of innocent bystanders something is about to bring about the end of the world as we know it.

A few months back on May 21, one of those crazy, but extremely rich and crafty doomsayers named Harold Camping predicted Judgment Day. He claimed God revealed this date to him, even though the Bible clearly tells us no one will know when this day will come.

In fact that’s the whole point – we don’t know because we don’t need to know. Anymore than we need to know the nature of heaven or what God looks like. These are things not for us, but for God to worry about.

Camping was wrong. And most doomsayers usually are. But we don’t know they are wrong until God has proven them wrong with a good dose of reality. In the meantime they make a whole lot people very unhappy and cause some very bad things to happen.

Camping’s stunt convinced a number of vulnerable people to sell all their belongings, or to quit their jobs, or to uproot their families and bring on much needless pain, suffering and worry, as opposed to simply living a good life and leaving the rest to God.

Reflecting upon this man’s irresponsible, panic-causing actions, I couldn’t help but think of a few other doomsayer movements.

There was that group of people back in the 1970s who said that if we continued to have children the world would come to an end by the year 2000. They were wrong, but they were partially responsible for a skyrocketing rise in abortions in the world, not to mention a whole lot of childless couples who felt too scared to bring more children into the world.

Then there were those who said the Soviet Union and the United States would blow each other to smithereens. That never happened because both sides were filled with people who not only didn’t want that to happen, but were doing everything possible to prevent it. But it did terrify my generation for most of our youth causing hellish nightmares and undue stress.

Finally our latest and greatest doomsayers are hell bent on convincing us man is an evil nuisance whose presence is destroying the planet, and that we need to turn our world upside down to fix it, or else we will all melt away.

Yet mounting evidence is proving the whole temperature cycle of this planet is much more complex and out of our control than we could ever imagine. Furthermore, esteemed British scientists at Rothamsted, the United Kingdom’s largest agricultural research center, have recently suggested extra carbon dioxide in the air from global warming could dramatically increase crop yields and reduce water consumption by about 50 percent or more by 2050, feeding and saving the lives of millions of starving people across the world. God works in mysterious ways.

Clearly, we pollute as we live. But we also clean up. There is plenty we can do to improve on that for the sake of the human beings it will help. But we don’t need to stop all of our industry, quit our jobs and jump out a window because it will be better for the earth if we are not around.

We are commanded to live meaningful, loving lives by obeying God’s commandments, and then to trust in the Lord. Whether that means preparing for Judgment Day by respecting God, our families and friends, or responsible natural family planning, or not waging war against our fellow man needlessly, or preparing a better and cleaner world for our children by not selfishly or haphazardly polluting it, there are always ways to live better and to be better servants of our Lord.

Let’s concentrate on that, and let God worry about the end of the world.

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By Chris Benguhe

In 1992, I graduated from college dreaming of becoming a writer. That same year Franky Carrillo went to jail for murder — sentenced to life for a crime he didn’t commit.

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A perfect stranger found my sunglasses the other day in the middle of a parking lot and turned them into the office of my condo complex. What are the odds of that today when we are more apt to expect someone to steal our stuff than return it? Not to mention who even has the time to do the right thing in today’s hustle and bustle world?

It made my week. You see, the week before I lost a tooth, had my hand blow up after being bitten by a wild animal, and lost a lucrative book contract. Losing my sunglasses was just one of those punctuations to a dreadful batch of events — the kind that often leads to dramatic breakdowns in bad Hollywood movies. Having them returned brought me back from the brink.

Now I know sunglasses are not the end all, be all (unless you live in Arizona) but the point is that sometimes it’s the simple things that remind us of how wonderful the world is — and how easy it is to make it even better.

Maybe we don’t have to personally stop global warming, or end all of the world’s almost countless wars. Maybe we don’t have to have the greatest job in the world, or make a world-changing discovery. Maybe we don’t have to single-handedly save the world.

Maybe we just have to do the right thing every day in our own lives, and let God work in His amazing ways in our hearts and others to do the rest.

If you watch the news or read the papers lately, you might believe it’s the end of the world. Only God knows when and how the world began and when and how it will end. That’s not for us to be concerned with.

Nor should we allow ourselves to be so stressed out with fixing all the problems in our world — the big ones and even our small ones — that we forget how to simply live our day-to-day lives the way Christ wanted us to.

He said to love our neighbor as ourselves. He wanted us to rise up every day to the challenge of rejecting those negative human emotions that are all too easy to give into: fear, hatred, selfishness, self-pity and self-indulgence.

That’s the “big job” that God asks, if not demands, from us every day. And when you do it, some pretty incredible stuff can happen. When you don’t, all the “world-changing” work in the world may not matter.

The world is a good place when we make it one with our kindness, caring and hopeful spirit, one which believes that “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

Go out today and make this a heaven on earth, at least in the way you live, and you might just help a crazy writer or a hundred other people you don’t even know not to have a nervous breakdown. Who knows all the ways that will help the world?

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A few months back my bed broke — OK, no jokes! That might be nothing more than a minor inconvenience for some, but for me it was one big challenge. And one I am glad I didn’t have to face alone.

That’s because I have battled anxiety and insomnia most of my life, so a broken bed inspires both of my lifelong challenges. To say I was a little agitated is an understatement. After three months of sleeping on the floor

I was losing it.

Adding insult to injury is that it’s hard to explain your troubles to anybody else because their first response is, “Just go buy a bed.”

Ugh. Not so easy. Here’s the problem: For insomniacs, all it takes is a little bit of discomfort and agitation to make it impossible to sleep. And of course, anxiety over finding the right bed makes it difficult to find the right bed since every time you lie down on one, you are anxious about whether or not you will be able to sleep on it. That anxiety makes you actually unable to sleep on it.

For all of you out there saying, “That’s crazy!” welcome to my world.

For those thinking my difficulty choosing a bed is somehow connected to my inability to choose a mate at 42, that’s an entirely different conversation.

Now I share this personal dilemma of mine with you for two reasons.

First, I want to give my friends and family a break from hearing about it, and you are the only ones left I can “entertain” with my situation.

The other reason is that it’s important for people to be honest, to be real and to talk about the “little” problems that sometimes don’t get talked about, so we all can all feel a little better and realize we are not alone in our varied mental anguishes.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, some 64 million Americans regularly suffer from insomnia each year. The principal causes range from simple stress and tension to full-blown anxiety issues. I am clearly not alone.

Most of my friends and family know about my sleep issues, and my anxiety issues, which makes life a whole lot easier to deal with. That’s because they are constantly reaching out and trying to help, even if it’s with a joking jab or two from time to time.

As for dealing with my underlying insomnia and anxiety issues themselves, it’s very important for me to stick to schedules, to exercise regularly, to eat well, and pray a lot. But just talking about it makes it easier, turning it into something almost funny instead of maddening, which it can truly be at times. 

We all have different crosses to bear in life, and this is mine. But when I share it, it makes it easier for my friends and family to share them with me, and we all help each other carry our loads. 

Reach out to friends and family in whatever way you can, and you never know how they will be able to help.

That’s why, despite my honest and hard-fought efforts to buy a new bed (I have already bought and returned three that just didn’t work), I am currently sleeping on a mattress that a friend loaned me, which is doing the trick. 

You never know when a friend will be able to help you to rest your weary head, too.

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Every year around this time we are overrun by Cupid and his minions – the Chocolate Makers and the Florists. Not a problem – I am a chocoholic myself.  But the most important thing to realize on Valentine’s Day is how amazing it is that love is so important to us. It’s the greatest evidence that there is something out of this world going on in this one.

There must be a God, because otherwise how on earth would a concept as impractical and intangible as love actually come to be so powerful that it could eventually rule the world.

Just a few months ago we celebrated the coming of Christ. He came here to bring the new covenant – and to assure that God so loved man He gave His only son to be sacrificed for our salvation. He preached on this earth for 33 years a simple message – to love God and each other as ourselves.

In those 33 years that He walked the earth, scores of the world’s most powerful men tried to stop him from spreading His message of love.  From the Emperor who tried to prevent his birth and end his life at infancy to the Pharisees and church leaders who tried to belittle and disqualify his message, he continually thwarted all their efforts and not only to succeeded dramatically at spreading his message but was able to amass a following that would be the envy of any of today’s greatest, most successful and powerful world leaders. 

He did it all without money, without an army, without any station or backing and without offering those who followed any of the typical worldly rewards that most ambitious leaders today offer.

To the contrary, this simple man offered hardship, struggle and the realization that life on this earth would never be what we wanted it to be. Nor should we even ask or expect it to be.

In a world that was at that time centered entirely on power and how to use it, he offered a completely new idea of a life based not on domination of others or the satiation of our animal desires. But for the first time in history here was a man who suggested a new vision of existence that claimed the entire point of our lives was to love others and revel in the love of God and our brothers and sisters.

The amazing success he had with that uncommon message was echoed exponentially after his death and resurrection.  From a simple initial following of 12 apostles, his message of love has now been accepted by over 2 billion in the world who call themselves Christian.

And how many others accept His call to love even though they might say they don’t believe in Christ? How many major movies, books, and works of art nowadays cite “love” as their goal? Even the band at halftime during the SuperBowl a few weeks ago spelled out “love” in lights during their performance.

How many world leaders routinely say (at least they claim) that they are committed to love of mankind? In Christ’s era, nobody could even dream that the world’s most powerful men would talk of “love”.

Now it’s true that many of these love devotees may not really appreciate the deep commitment to and respect for the dignity of human life.  But still the realization that the majority of the world is now devoted at least in name to the goal that Christ set as the new goal of man 2000 years ago is beyond comprehension; it is nothing short of – well – a miracle.

And it’s a mighty wonderful realization to reflect on this Valentine’s Day as we reach out to love all those around us.

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Let’s start the year off right and realize how incredible all of us are. When push comes to shove, we love more than hate, we help more than hurt, and we care more than we care less about others. Let’s remember all those wonderful people out there who helped all the rest of us wonderful people make it through another year.

I have more of an opportunity than most to see that outpouring of love by writing stories about people reaching out to others, and giving talks to people from all walks of life all over America who tell me their wonderful accounts of those who rose to meet the needs of others.

Like the outpouring of emails and supportive notes I received after my last column when I wrote of the young mother who almost wound up on the streets because of a temporary financial hardship. Not only did so many of you sympathize with her, but one reader even offered her a free house to live in for a few months if she needed to get back on her feet.

Or the young lady who came to one of my talks and spoke passionately about her financial woes after losing her father, her marriage and her job, all within a few months. Within minutes she was embraced by several in the crowd who offered guidance, understanding and job references. Later in the year she showed up at a totally unrelated Catholic gathering brimming with joy – and employment – having found solidarity and support from the many who reached out to help in the Catholic community.

With times tough all over, the cynics would expect self-serving people to be hoarding, not offering, whatever blessings they had to others.

But therein lies the rub. We are independent in America, but by no means selfish. We are constantly looking for ways to help others, especially when the chips are down.

That’s why giving to charity continued to be upwards of $300 billion last year yet again.

That’s why the crime rate is down, even as unemployment and frustrations are up.

That’s why the divorce rate is down, as families realize it’s better to stick together.

And that’s why, despite all the troubles and tribulations, we continue to love each other, to help each other, and to spur each other on as if we were inexorably connected – as if we were all part of something bigger than ourselves.

We are part of something more – it’s called the Body of Christ.

When we remember that, we rediscover our reason for being and our courage to push on amidst the steady stream of pain, suffering and struggle.

So as we continue to fight the good fight, let’s not forget what we are fighting for. Here’s a helpful reminder, a list of five questions to refresh your memory. Fill it out and fill up your life with all the love that’s already there.

Happy New Year!

Road map to happiness

• Who do you love (pick one person) and why are they so special to you?
• What’s the nicest thing anybody ever did for you and how did it inspire or help you?
• What’s the kindest thing you ever did for anybody else that helped to make their day or their life better? How has helping that person enhanced your own life?
• What is something positive that you saw somebody else do yesterday or today to help someone else which filled your heart with happiness? It could be a family member, a friend or even a complete stranger who you felt made somebody happy.
• Who loves you and how do they show it? How has their love changed your life?

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Last month, just a few weeks before Thanksgiving, I walked into a coffee shop I frequent and the ever-effervescent girl behind the counter was ashen face, with smears of wiped-away tears revealing what her brave face was otherwise trying to hide. She was in trouble.

“What’s wrong?” I asked sincerely and quietly, making sure we had a private moment.

“I can’t pay my rent this month, and I think my daughter and I will be kicked out of our apartment. I really don’t know what to do.” She went on to explain the personal series of unforeseen events that had led to a shortfall this month, almost too ashamed to elaborate.

Luckily I know a few things about how to get help in such situations. I told her to contact her local St. Vincent de Paul which assists those in short-term financial need with help paying their rents or mortgages as well as for utilities and groceries.

Things worked out. Thank God I asked. But what if I hadn’t? And what if she hadn’t told me?

A couple of years back, I wrote about the importance of asking for help. Since then the world has been turned upside down financially, and this Christmas there are even more people in need in this nation. If you are one of them, don’t be afraid, ashamed or just plain too shy to ask for help.

God wants you to get help if you need it. In fact, if you don’t ask, you are doing yourself, God and the rest of the world a big disservice.

Here’s why. Answer these simple questions: Do you enjoy helping others? Do you grow in your spirit and in your relationship with God and others when you help? Of course you do. What would happen to you if others never allowed you to help them? That would be denying you all the grace that you receive through loving others.

You should be proud of your need. Because it allows people to help you, and enables God to work through them in your life, bestowing grace upon them as well.

So if you don’t allow others to help you, you are denying them their access to that same grace. And the only way that others really know you need help is if you ask for it.

God created us to live in community with each other. He designed us to need each other. I am not smart enough to understand everything God did and does, but I do know what is in the Bible. And the idea that we are created in the image of God and that all human life is sacred and innately valuable is irrefutable.

If all that is true, do you think that God wants you to disrespect yourself or subject yourself to abuse? Denying yourself the love and support of others who God works through is not respecting yourself and others.

Now all of this is not a rubber stamp for all those children out there to spend the next couple of weeks nagging their parents for all the toys their hearts desire. I am clearly talking about those who are in true human need reaching out to others.

And that also doesn’t mean you cannot give at the same time as you receive in whatever way you can. Though you may not believe it right now, you reaching out may allow someone else to talk about their needs, to share with you their feelings or simply to cultivate a new relationship or deepen an old one in a way that will help that person now or in the future.

For instance, a few weeks later I rushed out of the house without my wallet — and the coffee was on the house.

Merry Christmas!

Anyone who would like to contribute to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul may do so by calling (602) 850-6737. Those needing help this Christmas can contact their local parish SVdP

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By Chris Benguhe

Approximately 20 percent of the 30,000 suicides in this country each year are committed by veterans. That’s about 18 veterans committing suicide each day!

Sometimes we need to take a break from all of our own problems to talk to someone who needs desperately to be listened to and let the good Lord inspire us with something positive to say in return. Our returning soldiers need an extra heaping of that lovin’ nowadays.

A startling proof of that came a few years ago when I met Robert, a young American soldier who had returned from Iraq a few months earlier after waking up on a pile of rubble with most of his legs gone.  The former U.S. marine got blown up while trying to charge a rocket launcher aimed at a mosque where a rival religion faction was organizing a voter-training meeting.

He was rescued by his comrades in arms and rushed back to a hospital in time to save his life.  Then after a whole lot of surgeries and rehabilitation overseas, he was sent back to the United States and his family. 

Predictably, things weren’t easy for Robert.  His wife left him a few months after he returned, unable to deal with the pain that plagued his body and the darkness that persisted in his heart and head.

Months later in a tiny Irish pub, Robert was sitting, staring pensively at the traditional Celtic band as they played a maudlin musical lament that perfectly illustrated his mood.

While sipping my usual cup of espresso in my favorite booth, I spied Robert looking a bit forlorn to say the least.

“How’s it going?” I shouted over the music.  “Are you havin’ a good time?”

With military precision and conviction he shouted back.  “I’m all messed up,” as he pointed down toward his strapped up legs – two prosthesis, bustling with wires, springs and plastic.  “I’m in the hospital every other day,” he continued.  “I’m in constant pain.  At night I pop pain pills until I pass out.  Then I wake up from the nightmares and pray to God I don’t fall asleep again.”

A bit overwhelmed by his honesty, I was tempted not to pursue the matter further, but my humanity got the better of me, and I walked over to his table to learn more.  I soon discovered that what made Robert’s pain and suffering truly unbearable for him was that he could not be there for the most important person in his life – his six year-old-daughter.  “I’m no good for her now,” he cried.  “Not like this.  I can’t even take care of myself, let alone be a dad.  Seeing me so depressed and down isn’t what she needs right now.”

Because of this he had given up visitation rights to his daughter until he could get his life back on track.  The way he spoke of his daughter lit up the room and my heart as well.

“You love that girl so much that you gave her up for her own good,” I told him.  “Do you realize what a tremendous sacrifice that was? Being aware of your own devotion to her will fuel you to overcome this obstacle so you can get back to her.  You now have a greater reason in your heart than you have ever known to recover!” 

Robert raised his head from its slumber and got a bit of a twinkle in his eye as if a light bulb went off.  “That’s true,” he uttered softly – the military acuteness giving way to a sober serenity. “I’ve really got something to work on now.”

I ran into Robert again a few weeks later, and I realized my words came at the tight time.

“You saved my life,” he whispered as he pulled me closer to give me a huge hug.  “I was ready to swallow a bottle of those pain pills that night.  But you made me realize how much I had to live for.  I wasn’t messed up – I was alright.  And I’m going to kick this all and get back to being a great dad for my little girl.”

Shock, amazement, confusion – I can’t even begin to express what I felt.  I told him thanks for his words of thanks – and to pass on the favor some day. 

Today, I am asking you to pass on the favor. If you know a vet, see one in a restaurant or even pass them on the street, take the time to say thanks and maybe to listen to their story. You just might help them to win the hardest battle of their lives, so we all can win the war we fight every day to make this world a better place. 

Want to help our vets financially? Buy Chris Benguhe’s latest book, “Overcoming Life’s 7 Common Tragedies: Opportunities for Discovering God” this month through his website at http://onemoredayalive.com/buy-the-book/ and a portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Wounded Warrior Project!

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October 16th

10 am

St. Rose’s Parent/Teen Picnic and Retreat

Good Shepherd Mission

45033 North 12th Street

New River, AZ

A Grand Canyon University Sponsored Event

October 24th

7 pm

St. Theresa’s Youth Group

St. Theresa Parish
5045 E. Thomas Road
Phoenix, AZ

A Grand Canyon University Sponsored Event

October 30th

Singles Talk

Mount Claret

4633 N. 54th Street

Phoenix, AZ

A Grand Canyon University Sponsored Event

November 8th

8 am

Seton High School

Featured Keynote to School Assembly

7 pm

Talk to Parents

1150 N Dobson Road

Chandler , AZ

A Grand Canyon University Sponsored Event

November 19-20

Overcoming Life’s 7 Common Tragedies Retreat

Bishop de Falco Retreat Center

2100 North Spring
Amarillo, TX
806-383-1811 

December 1st

7 pm

Holy Cross Youth Group

1244 S. Power Rd.

Mesa AZ

A Grand Canyon University Sponsored Event

December 4th

Advent Parish Mission/St. Rose’s

Good Shepherd Mission

45033 North 12th Street

New River, AZ

A Grand Canyon University Sponsored Event

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By Chris Benguhe

Is humanity evil, and is it government’s responsibility to rehabilitate it?

Or is mankind innately good, and with the most basic of oversight and moral motivation will the majority of us choose to do the right thing, allowing government to focus on controlling only the most aberrant humans?

Maybe Michael Moore didn’t think about answering those questions before he concocted his attack on capitalism a few years back. But as President Obama attempts to “fundamentally transform” our nation by restructuring our economy, our society, and our national mindset hoping to ultra-regulate America out of immoral business practices and legislate morality with new social policies – these are a couple of questions which really need to be answered.
  
There are plenty of examples for the evil humanity argument. Over the last few years, we saw greedy hedge fund managers play a shell game with investors and invested funds.  We watched everyday people lie about income and fraudulently promise to pay more than they could afford, so they could have more than they needed in a nation seemingly obsessed with having more, bigger and better stuff.

Then we topped it all off with Wall Street financiers and Big Business bosses looking for government bailout packages, unions refusing to negotiate wages for the good of ALL the employees and the nation, and everyday folks all looking for what their country can do for them, instead of the other way around.

What do all these things have in common? They are all selfish and immoral. But was any of this really the fault of capitalism? Or was it actually quite the opposite, that these were all directly or indirectly the result of a combination of government intervention, greed and irresponsible stupidity and could capitalism save us?

To determine that, first we might have to get out from under the recent tirade of media maniacs deriding capitalism, to get a little background on how capitalism actually works.
 
You see, if you believe that human beings are inherently good, then you are also a fan of capitalism.  Because you also believe that people will eventually act in the best interest of society more often than not, when left to their own devices in a free market system. But when the system is played around with too much, for instance when government favors one industry, or group over another, such as the oil industry, or the real estate industry, or the auto industry, then it screws everything up. That stops people from doing the right thing, which they already wanted to do.  At least that’s the idea behind the philosophy of capitalism. It also leads way too many people to forget about what’s best for them and the rest of society because they are so busy trying to beat the system of government regulation.
 
Don’t take my word for it – listen to Adam Smith, the founder of modern capitalism.
 
Most unethical opportunists today point to Smith’s claims in his famous “Wealth of Nations” that self-interests alone are what make capitalism work. But Smith wrote another book. In his “Theory of Moral Sentiments,” he explains “self-interest” includes the interest of the rest of society, since the social acceptance, status, and support of all affects the interests of the individual. He argues only a society which values social justice achieved through community and moral obligations can achieve prosperity.

In simpler terms any capitalist with a brain in his head knows that for him to prosper in the long run, so too must his neighbors, his community, his nation and his world prosper. Maybe the real problem is that a few too many of us capitalists forgot about that recently.

But Smith doesn’t stop there. He says not only “should’ we act morally, but free from the tyranny of government we “want” to act morally.
 
Says Smith: “However selfish man may be supposed, there are evidently some principles in his nature, which interest him in the fortune of others, and render their happiness necessary to him, though they derive nothing from it except the pleasure of seeing it.”
 
That’s probably why despite the all the financial doom going on in America, Americans, left to their own compulsion to care gave over $300 billion away last year. None of that was caused by Obama’s stimulus package. It was given of our free will.

That, by the way, is another positive precept of capitalism – it fosters free will, which is a basic requirement for morality.  You cannot be moral if someone has forced you to do so. That’s the whole theological argument behind why God allows people to sin, because if he didn’t they could not choose to love Him and choose to do the right thing.

So maybe capitalism is a good thing, a moral thing. If so, then will less capitalism mean less morality? Or to put it more specifically, do we want government to tell our businesses and our people how to behave ethically ironically leading most of us to do the opposite?

Will such heavy-handed attempts simply enrage free-willed Americans making them less apt to act in accordance with their conscience? Will taking away our free will make us incapable of loving and respecting each other? A quick look back at the Soviet Union suggests so.

Do we really want to live in an Orwellian world where Big Brother forces us by dictatorial edict to do what it believes is right, or should we leave people alone to choose to act morally and let government concentrate on protecting the right to life, liberty and the PURSUIT of happiness?

We better choose now before the choice is taken away.

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