Engulfed in Flames

Beginning with Louis XIV, France is the European superpower. Embarking on a series of wars that overextended their resources, the thousand-year old kingdom of France is in financial trouble. Tax revenues are inadequate to cover the cost. How did they solve the problem?

With the highest national tax rate among the countries of Europe at the time, France still spent half of the budget servicing their debt.

The king's advisers were fired, one after another, for recommending an equitable tax reform. Finally with the king's consent, the controller general of finance, Charles de Calonne, recommended France begin taxing the previously exempt nobility. The nobility refused, even after Calonne pleaded with them during the Assembly of Notables in 1787. None of the wealthy were willing step up and pay their share of the cost to have a governed country.

In desperation, the king called for a meeting of the ancient Estates-General whom he hoped would resolve the national crisis. The 'three estates' were the aristocracy, the clergy, and everybody else, the first two being tax exempt, and each estate having but one vote.

How did they solve the problem?  They didn't, and it didn't work out well for them.  As the wealthy isolated themselves in luxury, they were engulfed in the flames of revolution in 1789.
 

King Louis XV's comment, après moi le déluge, ("After me, the deluge,") predicting the revolution to come.  It was both visible and avoidable, but without change it was inevitable.

The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed within three years. French society was shattered; class-based privilege evaporated as persistent masses in the streets and peasants in the countryside fought back.  The death toll: 16,594 were executed by guillotine, and 25,000 more summarily executed across the country.  The monarchy, aristocracy, and religious leaders were summarily cast aside to eventually be replaced by new principles of liberté, égalité, fraternité  (liberty, equality, and brotherhood).  Referred to as, "The Reign of Terror," it was not a peaceful transition.  More than a century would pass with the country in upheaval and war.

So, the lesson of history...

The government favored the wealthy, and working folks carried the burden.

None of the wealthy were willing to pay their share of the cost.  Instead they rode on the back of the working class, and the country went down the drain.  

So the 99% got angry over unequal treatment and they fought for change.  The country fell apart and they spent decades rebuilding it from scratch.  

Is that the lesson?  Nah, couldn't be.  Congress would tell us if it was.  They're smart, and they watch out for us regular folks and for our country.

Gabby Douglas and her hair!

 

Stunning!  Absolutely perfect.  Breathtaking!  Extraordinary precision and power. 

All are descriptors a serious gymnast might deeply appreciate.  After years of preparation for which there is no adequate description of the demands and sacrifice, sixteen year-old Gabby Douglas exploded onto the international stage as a champion.  She thrilled the world! 

A side-conversation erupted almost immediately on twitter and elsewhere even before the competition was over.  Criticism of her hair was rather wide-spread.  Her hair?  Thousands, then tens of thousands of comments about her hair.

As a guy, to me this makes no sense at all.  She's in a high-intensity physical routine, and her hair just needs to stay out of the way.  Guys like me don't care or even notice such things beyond the 'out of the way' requirement.  Apparently, though, it was a matter of some concern to others.

Interestingly, some of the roots for such comments are perhaps traceable.

From Lauren McEwen in the Washington Post,

"..., the insecurities that would lead a middle-aged black woman to hiss her teeth at the thought of a black female Olympian with less-than magnificent hair became so easy to understand. 

They are the same insecurities that cause my (usually very enlightened) mother to act like a wrinkled shirt is the end of the world. She doesn't want me to go out in the world (read: in front of white people) looking messy. Not only does she want me to perform well, she wants me to look good doing it – to leave no room for the criticism that she feared growing up in the 1960’s."

Suddenly, I remember.  I grew up white through the 50's and 60's.  I remember those years fondly until I remember the 'white' and 'colored' water fountains at the store.  The "criticism that she feared" was all too present.

Curious how many generations it takes to get beyond such a wicked root?  All from the thought that one person might somehow be above another just because of color or race or class.

You've spoken of being the target of bullying and racism in your gym in Virginia and also growing up. How did you deal with that?
"It was a long time ago. It was very painful to be made fun of, but I have a forgiving heart, I forgive them, and I've moved past that."

Gabby Douglas and her Olympic championship are all the more spectacular;  I smile as I think about it.  We're so proud of her, of her family, of her community, and of her nation as it continues to progress.  

She's more than a champion.  She's an inspiration and role model and the leading edge of the good for which we all hope.  Thanks, Gabby.

Now there are no longer insiders and outsiders, upper and lower, black or white or brown or whatever, just the one human race, thank you Father.

UPDATE:  Summer Olympics 2016, she's still incredible and shines brightly among the many she's inspired.

The Grocery Bill

The thrifty plan for a family of four is $146 a week, according to this month's USDA report.  A liberal plan is calculated to be $289.  The numbers are generated as a baseline for determining food assistance levels.

At the beachfront, fishermen bring in their catch of small fish.  

The larger fish are rare these days having been depleted by
 wealthy countries fishing illegally in African waters.

Breadfruit; tastes like a
foam-rubber pillow, but
it's a staple.

In most of the world, that much money would be such a blessing.  For 80% of humanity, the typical family will have a total income that's too small to cover the thrifty plan.

An income of $65 per month is common, and food is not inexpensive.  The all too common result is malnourished children and hungry families.

The pictures here are from a more fortunate country; the climate is tropical and the land is fertile.  For much of sub-Saharan Africa, it's more difficult.

The capital city's marketplace 

The commonly low income isn't due to a lack of effort. Most folks work harder and longer hours than folks in the developed world. Chores for children occupy a portion of every day and often conflict with school. Even places that have clean water still require someone to carry it to the house.

Most folks live simply, most often in houses they build themselves.  Their hope is for staying healthy and feeding their children.  Both are increasingly difficult tasks in a now-global economy dominated by billion-dollar plays in the international finance market.  The price they pay for corn meal is determined in Chicago, New York, and London financial districts.

There are reasons to be thankful if you're living in the developed world, and there are opportunities to be a help-bringer here and elsewhere.  Ask.

World at War

Curious how the war is progressing?

Now that the developed world controls the global marketplace, the impact on the lesser developed nations has become troublesome.  It took about three centuries.  

In terms of population and income, 80% of the world lives on less than one-fifth of the developed world's norm. If that weren't distressing enough, we find that it's getting progressively worse. Note the rate of progress among the nations.

Governments serve the financial industry and transnational corporations.  That's how we arrive at statistics like those shown here.  Most banks in the developed world are larger in capital and influence than all the nations at the bottom of the list, and the banks have no accountability for the damage they do.

The war?  Apparently it's a contest between those who have and those who don't.  For now, the 'haves' are winning, and the losers are dying at more than a thousand times the western rate from things like tuberculosis, diarrhea, and malaria; all easily dealt with in an equitable economy.

How might an individual of character and conscience respond?  What would they add to their life purpose and goals?

Short attention span ...

The quantity of information we face in any given day is just too much, almost a technological curse.  I can, therefore obviously I should glance at a dozen web articles, even if I'll forget the first before I finish the second.

I'm compelled.  A thousand times a day, important things cross my view, info-noise which doesn't stick, but it does certainly dilute my attention.

I used to read books when I was younger. Big books, college library stuff, that took weeks to get through, and if they were really thought provoking, I'd read chapters more than once.  They informed me, shaped my thinking, required me to struggle with implications and to make decisions.

Today, if I'm not careful, I'll cover that much ground in an hour, and little if anything will remain after the high-speed fly-by.  Such a flood of knowledge without thoughtful consideration is trivia and without benefit.  It isn't even knowledge, really; more like entertainment, passing the time.

Today, a person is subjected to more new information in a day than a person in the middle ages in his entire life.  Unbelievable.

Fortunately, I have thoughtful friends who give me good books that, once begun, I have to finish. One or two every year or so; it's enough to remind me that thinking is required; and decisions.  It's a bit of a delicate balance, isn't it.  We're having to learn to manage our goals and priorities while living on the flood plain.

Is there a central focus in our lives?
   Is there that which provokes us, empassions us?
       Can we selectively channel this incredible information pipeline so that we move forward?

What are we going to do with what we know?     It's quite an invitation to adventure when you think about it.

Tell the rich folks to quit being so full of themselves and so impressed with their own possessions, which are here today and gone tomorrow. It's not their merit that made them wealthy and others less so. Tell them to go after God who is generous to us all - and tell them to do good, to be rich in helping others, to be extravagantly generous. If they do that, they'll build a treasure that will last, gaining life that is truly life.


1 Timothy 6:17-19

Addition Problem

It must have been pretty important, I guess, and real as opposed to just talk.

Consider it as practical rather than religious   

Peter wrote to some of the gatherings, at least a couple letters we know about. He's reminding them of things they need in order to change for the better.
            
Near the end of his life at the time, he promises to remind them as long as he can, and that he'll do his best to make sure they get reminded after he's gone.

He begins by telling them that their Father has given them what they need and that they can add on to it by choice.  He tells them they can even avoid the rottenness that seems to plague most folks.

If you can read it as practical instead of religious, it's good; an addition problem we can do that makes a difference.

It begins, Peter says, with the faith each one has been given,
 and he says to add virtue or goodness.
      If we're happy about our faith, perhaps it's almost automatic that we'd begin looking for ways to live it well.

Then add knowledge.
      Curiosity and maybe excitement feed our pursuit of knowledge; the more we know, the more fun the journey.

Then on top of the knowledge, add self control.
      This is where we start to reign in our emotions and desires and channel them profitably, but this is getting hard.

Then perseverance, which seems reasonable.
      Harder still, but if we don't stick with it, it won't become our lifestyle, our character, our example for our kids.  (They learn by what they see rather than what we tell them, by the way.)

Then godliness.
      Since we've already looked at virtue, this perhaps refers to sharing His values, His purposes as our own.

Then brotherly kindness.
      If we make it this far, then we're prepared with a heart to genuinely be lovingly related.

And finally love!  Finally.  The magic land!
      We know this love isn't a feeling; it's a choice, a heart; it's doing.  Not just talking about, not wishing or hoping, it's how we live.

This morning, I was reminded that all of this isn't a call to just think about and say, "well that's nice."

It  requires doing, but I know trying all this on my own probably won't get far.  So it's got to be what you do while you're with Him; a learn-by-doing kind of thing.  Kind of like working in the yard with your dad.

This all presumes Peter knew what he was talking about and wasn't just being religious.  What do you think?  Religion or Reality?