{"id":3396,"date":"2017-03-30T11:11:46","date_gmt":"2017-03-30T15:11:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gnhuu.org\/?p=3396"},"modified":"2017-03-30T11:15:42","modified_gmt":"2017-03-30T15:15:42","slug":"sunday-march-26-2017-guest-speaker-sue-cline-greed-makes-the-world-go-round","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gnhuu.org\/index.php\/2017\/03\/30\/sunday-march-26-2017-guest-speaker-sue-cline-greed-makes-the-world-go-round\/","title":{"rendered":"Sunday, March 26, 2017, Guest Speaker Sue Cline, “Greed Makes the World Go ‘Round”"},"content":{"rendered":"

(c) Sue Cline, Guest Speaker at the Gathering at Northern Hills, All Rights Reserved<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Good morning. Thank you for being here to hear my thoughts on a topic that seems all<\/p>\n

too pertinent today. I have absolutely no academic credentials to make such a<\/p>\n

presentation, so I am even more grateful for your presence. I am a qualified cynic,<\/p>\n

however, having been reprimanded for same in a job performance review.<\/p>\n

So, I knew I could not stand before you and rant about my decidedly one-sided<\/p>\n

opinions. I needed to be better informed and a bit more objective, and informative. So in<\/p>\n

preparation I have done some reading, questioning, and reflection to try to present some<\/p>\n

thoughts on the topic of greed, and leave you with perhaps one thing to think about<\/p>\n

going forward. I do offer apologies to economists and historians in the room: something<\/p>\n

I have learned in this process is that I have certainly bitten off more than I can<\/p>\n

chew\u2014YEARS of study are required to get a proper handle on this subject, to<\/p>\n

understand it in an historical perspective, and to speak with any authority. So we are<\/p>\n

back to observations and opinions, which I hope can at least spur on some thought for<\/p>\n

others in my particular boat.<\/p>\n

Years ago Luke Scott Peck, the author of a popular self-help book, The Road Less<\/p>\n

Traveled posited at the conclusion of the book that the \u201coriginal sin\u201d was\/is laziness.<\/p>\n

This made sense to me at the time and still does, IF one believes, so to speak, in original<\/p>\n

sin.<\/p>\n

Over time, as I\u2019ve become better read, more reflective, and thoroughly psychoanalyzed,<\/p>\n

my own \u201cconclusion,\u201d if you will, is that \u201coriginal sin\u201d is greed.<\/p>\n

Thinking that original sin is greed is fairly easy \u2013 it seems to be everywhere and in<\/p>\n

everyone, to some degree; it\u2019s pretty obvious in most instances; and, for ME, it provides<\/p>\n

a foundation \u2013 and an excuse — for my own greed, for my own natural and well<\/p>\n

cultivated cynicism, and gives me ammunition to be highly judgmental of others and<\/p>\n

personally conclusive about all our global problems.<\/p>\n

The problem with this view, however, is greed itself. I don\u2019t believe original sin is any<\/p>\n

more than a myth created, first, to explain \u201cbad\u201d people, and then, to keep the common<\/p>\n

poor under the thumbs of those whose \u201cgreed\u201d for power had put them in positions in<\/p>\n

which they could benefit from the human condition of the \u201ccommon man.\u201d So there<\/p>\n

goes my excuse for my own greed.<\/p>\n

2<\/p>\n

Of course, as we know, greed is not all about money. Greed for power comes to mind,<\/p>\n

for fame, for notoriety, also. I think one can also be greedy for love. This is a big topic,<\/p>\n

and a subjective one. When does enjoying life\u2019s pleasures honestly become greed?<\/p>\n

My former pastor and friend, Rev. Steven Van Kuiken, was a huge help to me. I<\/p>\n

actually have a copy of his 2000 sermon on Greed, which he delivered at Mt.Auburn<\/p>\n

PC. It is so good, I was sorely tempted simply to begin with a big quotation mark and<\/p>\n

read it to you. But I know better.<\/p>\n

Greed, defined as excessive or rapacious desire, especially for wealth or possessions, is<\/p>\n

a topic that has occupied me for quite some time. I think my obsession began when I<\/p>\n

would read the annual articles in local and regional news about \u201cthe wealthiest people in<\/p>\n

Cincinnati, etc.\u201d I would go on a days-long rant, saying \u201cNOBODY needs that much<\/p>\n

money\u201d, etc., \u201cWhat do they do with all that money?\u201d I took names, and personally<\/p>\n

boycotted their businesses. Years later, during an hours-long procession of a local<\/p>\n

businessman\u2019s hearse through the streets of Cincinnati (so that all the people he affected<\/p>\n

could pay tribute) an African-American friend and cafeteria worker at Cincinnati<\/p>\n

Children\u2019s, where I was working, countered my incipient rant about his apparent racism<\/p>\n

with, \u201cI don\u2019t know about all that, but he did a LOT of good for the poor in downtown<\/p>\n

and Avondale\u2014we are grateful to him.\u201d<\/p>\n

That caused me to reflect on my opinions, and even on some of the facts about this man<\/p>\n

and his family, and try to look at the larger picture. So, my biased blinders slightly<\/p>\n

opened, I will confess that while I resent the establishment of suburban schools in the<\/p>\n

name of religion, that allow the wealthy and white to escape the \u201cOTHER,\u201d I no longer<\/p>\n

boycott UDF. I am not sure whether to be proud of that.<\/p>\n

And I am striving, as I begin to make a personal judgment about someone based on<\/p>\n

appearances, to remind myself that, unless it has been made public, no one\u2019s personal<\/p>\n

story is known to me.<\/p>\n

I worked several years for an advertising agency in Cincinnati, and there began to grow<\/p>\n

a bubble of questions and doubt about our motivation and methods. Advertising, most<\/p>\n

basically, exists to create and sway opinion, and furthermore, to create desire for the<\/p>\n

objects being advertised; the objective is to promote sales and, therefore, to increase<\/p>\n

income for the purveyors and returns for the investors. How many things do we see<\/p>\n

advertised that no one really needs, after all, and how many ads do we endure that<\/p>\n

advise us to \u201cTalk to your doctor about this miracle medicine, etc.\u201d<\/p>\n

Advertising isn\u2019t all bad; it is deployed to promote the United Way, Artswave, pet<\/p>\n

adoption, awareness of racism and xenophobia, and a myriad of important and good<\/p>\n

3<\/p>\n

causes, but these are, in my opinion, mere sidebars to the real goals of advertising.<\/p>\n

(There\u2019s that cynical cap creeping up again\u2026.)<\/p>\n

So I went from advertising to selling beer and supporting first-hand the establishments<\/p>\n

that carried our brands. I ended my working career at Children\u2019s Hospital, a worthy<\/p>\n

institution whose mission is undeniable (but one which, sadly, is beholden to the bottom<\/p>\n

line, just like so many, even \u201cnon-profit\u201d institutions).<\/p>\n

Greed is mentioned in the sacred writings of all the major world religions. And not in a<\/p>\n

good way.<\/p>\n

In the Quran greed is condemned, as is usury and even charging interest on loans.<\/p>\n

\u201cGreed makes men ignorant towards all the suffering around them.\u201d Charging interest<\/p>\n

on loans was condemned also in the Hebrew Scriptures and the Bible.<\/p>\n

There are many references to greed and covetousness in the Hebrew Scriptures: In<\/p>\n

Psalm 10, Verse 3 we hear \u201cFor the wicked boasts of his heart&#39;s desire, And the greedy<\/p>\n

man curses and spurns the LORD.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the story of Job, Job confesses his greed &quot;If I have put my confidence in gold, And called<\/p>\n

fine gold my trust, If I have gloated because my wealth was great, And because my<\/p>\n

hand had secured so much\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

In the New Testament, Jesus and his disciples had a great deal to say about greed. \u201cFor<\/p>\n

the love of money is at the root of all evils.\u201d And another, \u201cFor where your treasure is,<\/p>\n

there also is your heart.\u201d And the memorable analogy, expressed by Jesus himself:<\/p>\n

\u201cAgain I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich<\/p>\n

man to enter the kingdom of heaven.\u201d<\/p>\n

I could go on\u2026<\/p>\n

Native American lore is full with references to greed, avarice, and inequality. There are<\/p>\n

too many to choose or quote. With this, Google is a help\u2026.<\/p>\n

In Buddhism, there are three \u201cpoisons\u201d which prevent us from reaching contentment:<\/p>\n

GREED, aggression, and delusion.<\/p>\n

In my reflections on this topic, I considered the opposite of greed, and determined that it<\/p>\n

is perhaps the Buddhist principle of detachment from material goods and the cares of<\/p>\n

the world. Another clear opposite is generosity, about which, without surprise, much is<\/p>\n

written in all the sacred writings.<\/p>\n

4<\/p>\n

Recent history is rife with examples of greed. (This is my favorite part \u2013 a mini-rant.)<\/p>\n

Banks grant loans to those who, clearly, cannot afford to repay them; stock brokers<\/p>\n

receive millions in pay even when the funds they manage crash and burn; CEOs of<\/p>\n

public corporations rake in 150 times the pay of their front line workers; insurance<\/p>\n

executives become wealthy while the average worker cannot afford to purchase their<\/p>\n

products and has to rely on government and taxpayers (if that fund is not stolen from us)<\/p>\n

to receive medical treatment; senior government executives are willing to put citizens\u2019<\/p>\n

lives at risk, ignore real and urgent danger to our planet, extract fuel with dirty and<\/p>\n

dangerous methods, dismiss scientific facts, ignore sacred lands of our ancestors,<\/p>\n

decimate the world\u2019s animal, fish, and bird populations, and more, of course, ALL in the<\/p>\n

name of profit for the corporations, their CEOs and their shareholders. Universities,<\/p>\n

publicly or privately funded, hire disproportionate numbers of adjunct faculty rather<\/p>\n

than provide the salaries and benefits that accrue to tenured experts. Churches\u2019 pastors<\/p>\n

live lavishly while exhorting their congregants to pray, and to give more to the church,<\/p>\n

to secure eternal life.<\/p>\n

We live in an economy, a global economy, of institutionalized greed. The US, and<\/p>\n

indeed most of the global economy, actually are dependent on greed to keep going, and<\/p>\n

growing. Economic growth, or GDP-Gross Domestic Product, is the global<\/p>\n

measurement of success. Unfettered, deregulated free market capitalism is the enemy of<\/p>\n

the workers who are the foundation of that GDP, and is a friend only to those for whom<\/p>\n

wealth is the only measure of success. Without greed at the top, there is no motivation<\/p>\n

to grow, or even to work. As one can see, greed is a slippery topic: would we be<\/p>\n

motivated to work, for instance, if there were no greed? Interesting question.<\/p>\n

Yes, I am little bit of a socialist. I am all for capitalism that pays a fair and just wage for<\/p>\n

the services that a person performs or the goods that they produce, but we have strayed<\/p>\n

far. In preparing this talk I have read about Andrew Carnegie\u2019s \u201cGospel of Wealth\u201d in<\/p>\n

which those who amass great wealth have a duty to share it with those who have less.<\/p>\n

There are a few examples of those today\u2014Bill and Melinda Gates come to mind, as<\/p>\n

does Warren Buffet (But here comes that subjectivity again \u2013 when one observes the<\/p>\n

luxurious lifestyles of these individuals, could one \/ SHOULD one conclude that there is<\/p>\n

some hypocrisy there? I don\u2019t know.)<\/p>\n

And then there is Ronald Reagan\u2019s \u201cGospel of Greed,\u201d which describes riches piled on<\/p>\n

the tables of the wealthy, with mere crumbs trickling down to the floor for those less<\/p>\n

fortunate (or less intelligent, or less worthy), according to this philosophy. To provide<\/p>\n

more crumbs for the lesser people, just pile more riches on the tables of the wealthy.<\/p>\n

I also have been reading a rather dry, but ultimately fascinating book titled From Greed<\/p>\n

to Wellbeing: a Buddhist Approach to Resolving Our Economic and Financial Crises by<\/p>\n

5<\/p>\n

Joel Magnuson. It explains the movement toward institutional change based on<\/p>\n

Buddhist economic ideals, SEBE, for Socially Engaged Buddhist Economics. It offers<\/p>\n

hope for change of our institutions through first changing ourselves and then changing<\/p>\n

our local communities before attempting to take on the entire globe. A huge effort, and<\/p>\n

not easy, to be sure.<\/p>\n

There is another measure of success, employed in a few places on the planet where the<\/p>\n

business of wealth-gathering is conducted with the wellbeing of the people at the<\/p>\n

forefront. The small Himalayan country of Bhutan measures its success on the Gross<\/p>\n

National Happiness Index, which takes into account the general wellbeing of the<\/p>\n

country\u2019s citizens. Now, Bhutan is a Buddhist country and its government and its<\/p>\n

spirituality are deeply intertwined. The four pillars on which Bhutanese government<\/p>\n

policy is established are: equitable economic development, environmental preservation,<\/p>\n

cultural resilience, and good governance. There\u2019s nothing particularly Buddhist about<\/p>\n

those principles, however, but there is basic morality.<\/p>\n

We read frequently about \u201cthe happiest places to live,\u201d etc. In fact, Monday, March 20,<\/p>\n

was International Day of Happiness, (I had no idea\u2026.) according to the fifth edition of<\/p>\n

the World Happiness Report, an initiative of the Sustainable Development Solutions<\/p>\n

Network (SDSN), created by the United Nations. This report ranks 155 countries on the<\/p>\n

variables of income, healthy life expectancy, having someone to count on, perceived<\/p>\n

freedom to make life choices, freedom from corruption, and generosity. Not a word<\/p>\n

about GDP, or top executive salaries, or the stock market. Norway is no. 1 and the other<\/p>\n

9 in the top ten are: Denmark, Iceland, Switzerland, Finland, Netherlands, Canada, New<\/p>\n

Zealand, Australia, and Sweden. Interestingly, each of these countries provides<\/p>\n

healthcare and education, including higher education, for the wellbeing of its citizens.<\/p>\n

The U.S. is no. 14, and quite frankly I am surprised it is that high in the list, given the<\/p>\n

current general morale of the populace.<\/p>\n

There is a movement among Buddhist economists to change the entire paradigm of the<\/p>\n

global economic systems, measuring wellbeing of the people, not the wealth of the top<\/p>\n

1%, or the GDP, or the stock market. This begins, as with most things Buddhist, with<\/p>\n

individual change, for institutional change cannot come from without. There are<\/p>\n

communities where inhabitants take wellbeing of citizens and the planet seriously and<\/p>\n

where even alternative economic systems are being established. I am eager to learn<\/p>\n

more about these.<\/p>\n

We know that change must come from within. We as individuals need to adopt an<\/p>\n

attitude of mindfulness about all things economic, and that includes the economics of<\/p>\n

fairness and justice, the economics of sustainability, of environmental responsibility, of<\/p>\n

equality across all facets of our lives. Solely as individuals we can be mindful of our<\/p>\n

6<\/p>\n

spending, our use of cash vs. credit, the \u201cneed vs. want\u201d motivation for shopping, the<\/p>\n

motivation for gift giving, our acquisition of things. And not only our material<\/p>\n

resources\u2014we need to be mindful of how we spend our time: is it purposeful, is it<\/p>\n

healing or destructive, is it selfish or generous?<\/p>\n

We need to detach ourselves from our obsession with possessions and acquisitions. We<\/p>\n

need to be generous. We need to use our resources, be they many or few, for good.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor where your treasure is, there also is your heart.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thank you for this opportunity.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(c) Sue Cline, Guest Speaker at the Gathering at Northern Hills, All Rights Reserved   Good morning. Thank you for being here to hear my thoughts on a topic that seems all too pertinent today. I have absolutely no academic credentials to make such a presentation, so I am even more grateful for your presence. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3396","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gnhuu.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3396","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gnhuu.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gnhuu.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gnhuu.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gnhuu.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3396"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.gnhuu.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3396\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3400,"href":"https:\/\/www.gnhuu.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3396\/revisions\/3400"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gnhuu.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3396"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gnhuu.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3396"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gnhuu.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3396"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}