Posted on 02/29/2020 3:59:03 PM PST by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
To those who see no link between Lent and our failing economy, it might be the case to look again.
Economics is about people. It cannot be reduced to numbers, formulae and analyses. “The subject matter of economics,” observes economic historian Odd Langholm, “is properly the habits, customs, and ways of thinking of producers, consumers, buyers, sellers, borrowers, lenders, and all who engage in economic transactions.”
That means our moral habits can have a definite effect on determining if our economy grows — or fails.
In my new book, Return to Order: From a Frenzied Economy to an Organic Christian Society—Where We’ve Been, How We Got Here, and Where We Need to Go, I show how our present economic crisis is being caused by what I call “frenetic intemperance.”
Frenetic intemperance can be defined as a restless spirit inside certain sectors of modern economy that foments a drive inside men to throw off legitimate restraints and gratify disordered passions. It is not a specifically economic problem but a moral and psychological vice that throws everything out of balance. When frenetic intemperance dominates, it often sends the whole system into convulsions—as we saw during the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis. And, unless addressed, it is virulent enough to crash the entire financial system.
In our daily lives, we see frenetic intemperance in the tendency to desire everything, right away, regardless of the consequences. Everyone must have the latest gadget even though they do not need it and really cannot afford it. The mad lack of restraint leads to an unstable economy laden with boom and bust, debt and stress. It creates a cold mechanistic economy where money rules. It gives rise to a materialistic culture which values quantity and utility over quality and beauty...
(Excerpt) Read more at tfp.org ...
From 2013, but it could be quite pertinent today, as the response to WuFlu causes global supply chains to break down.
God first, then your latest iPhone.
PING!
I keep hearing it's the best economy in 50 years. So, which is it?
We are $23 trillion in debt, and we celebrate GDP growth rates of 2% as if we had just won the lottery. Does that sound like success to you?
“God first, then your latest iPhone.”
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Is that the “TLDR”? If so, I agree and thanks for saving me some reading time!
Another reason for a very high import tariff.
All the tariffs in the world don’t mean a damn thing if the government can’t be fiscally responsible.
So do nothing?. Ok, loser GTFAFM.
I agree with you 100%
Does that sound like success to you?
No, it doesn't. And I'm pleased to find someone on this board who doesn't buy the "best economy" mantra that I constantly hear on FR.
Yet the employment rate is very good right now.
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