With the dramatic rise of bitcoin, many are talking about this crypto-currency as the new money of the future. Such a simplification is understandable, since the matter of money is complex. Not all that glitters is gold. Likewise, what appears to be money often is not. Free Book: Return to Order: From a Frenzied Economy … Read more
At a recent holiday gathering, I was with some adults inside the house while the children were outside playing some team sport. It was bitterly cold but that did not seem to diminished the noisy activities outside in the snow. As I was conversing with someone else, we both noticed a little boy, all bundled … Read more
As the Christmas season ends, there is a general agreement that the age of malls is coming to a close. Retail sales are no longer dominated by the vast complexes of physical shops anchored by big-box stores once found all over the country. Indeed, malls are no longer delivering the goods to shoppers looking for … Read more
If the pace of life seems overwhelming, it might well be because we have assumed so many of the jobs once held by others. This is the position of Craig Lambert in his book, Shadow Work: The Unpaid, Unseen Jobs that Fill Your Day (Berkeley, Calif., Counterpoint Press, 2015). The Harvard sociologist takes a look … Read more
There are those who claim that greed serves an economic purpose in that it increases demand for goods and services. Thus, greed can stimulate economies and advance prosperity. However, greed has moral and social dimensions that are not considered by those who hold it as an economic stimulus. Order Today: Return to Order: From a … Read more
Last year, I made a New Year’s resolution that I would make my Sundays Internet-free. It was not easy but, with one small exception, I was able to make a complete break with the worldwide web on Sundays. As we enter 2018, I will be renewing the resolution. I made the resolution because I was … Read more
The typical American lifestyle is an illustration of what has been called frenetic intemperance – a frenzy of economic activity to attain as much as possible as quickly as possible. This need for immediacy in all things has had dire consequences on multiple levels in society, a fact that is well documented in John Horvat’s … Read more
As I was reading an article on an online news site, I chanced upon an advertisement for a beautiful Christmas tree. Indeed, it was an actual Christmas tree, not a holiday, winter or sparkle tree that celebrates some unknown winter solstice festivity. This letter unapologetically used the word Christmas and the tree actually looked inviting … Read more
One of the perceptions that fuel frantic lifestyles is the idea that everyone is involved in a particular fad or fashion. Especially in our mass society, the penalty for not being part of what “everyone is dong” is to risk being labeled out of sync with the times. No where is this perception more common … Read more
In the moral order, the world is composed largely of sinners, selfish creatures who live not to serve God, but to please themselves. These self-serving souls comprise the vast majority of mankind, especially in times of decadence – as were the days of Our Lord, as are our own. In their selfishness, such men strive … Read more
