The Basic Struggle Today
We are living in an age of bullies. Those with power are less constrained today than they have been in my lifetime, since the end of World War II.
The question is: How do we lead moral lives in this era?
Putin launches a horrendous war on Ukraine.
After Hamas’s atrocity, Netanyahu bombs Gaza to smithereens and is now starving to death its remaining occupants.
Trump abducts thousands of hardworking people within America and puts them into detention camps — splitting their families, spreading fear. His immigration agents target people with brown skin and Mexican-sounding names.
He usurps the powers of Congress, defies the courts, and prosecutes his enemies.
He and his Republican lackeys cut Medicaid and food stamps — lifelines for poor people, including millions of children — so that the wealthy can get a tax cut.
Hate-mongers on right-wing television and social media fuel bigotry against transgender people, immigrants, Muslims, people of color, and LGBTQ+ people.
Powerful men (such as Trump) sexually harass, abuse, and rape women. Some of the abused are children.
Powerful male politicians make it impossible for women to obtain safe abortions.
CEOs rake in record profits and compensation while giving workers meager wages and firing them for unionizing. Billionaires make large campaign donations — legalized bribes — so lawmakers will cut their taxes and repeal environmental and safety regulations.
https://robertreich.substack.com/p/the-basic-struggle-today]
= new reply since forum marked as read
Most of the world operates under this foundational religion. Money is God.
I don't give a damn what they say. This is how they live, and your religion is what you do, not what you say. Words are twisted, and often used as weapons, for damaging effect, unbound by truth or even meaning.
For years, since the 60's, when churches' Clavinistic beliefs were dumped en masse, many suddenly poor "religious leaders" sought secular power, to legislate, when persuasion fell off a cliff. Worse, they threw their lot in with the now racist "Southern Strategy" GOP, which also was losing relevance, and resorted to racism, and "Patriotism, the Last Refuge of the Scoundrel" (Samuel Johnson)
Their moral teaching became totally corrupted, and anti-Christian. And that's why morals are in the sewer IMO.
I just want to call out a point of extreme hypocrisy with devastating effects.
Kick in to the DU tip jar?
This week we're running a special pop-up mini fund drive. From Monday through Friday we're going ad-free for all registered members, and we're asking you to kick in to the DU tip jar to support the site and keep us financially healthy.
As a bonus, making a contribution will allow you to leave kudos for another DU member, and at the end of the week we'll recognize the DUers who you think make this community great.