Scientists have discovered - evolution explains our origins, gravity explains why apples drop, solubility explains salt water and so on. Yet, scientists can't explain why particles exist. Science tells us about the Higgs boson, which some people call the "God particle," but why does there need to be this particle? There are answers to that question, but what about this one: why is there existence in the first place? Science can often tell us about the cosmos, and science may even say, "There is a cosmos because there is a Higgs boson," but why does the cosmos require the Higgs boson? The faithful say; it was G-d, yet under scrutiny the answers of science, religion, and history are full of empty answers. For instance, the faithful can't tell us why is there Gd in the first place. In all disciplines, one "why?" leads to another "why?" ad infinitum until we are forced to contemplate the absurdities of this world, such as why Hashem gave the Jews Torah, or why Allah gave Muslims a Qu'ran, etc.
Showing posts with label Hashem. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hashem. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 9, 2014
Friday, November 21, 2014
Wal-Mart and Getting Beyond Money in Economics
I don't wish to trade numbers on Wal-Mart. In my head, I believe Wal-Mart has too much money, and it is also in my head that it is important to redistribute that money. What we have here is an issue of money plumbing. The pipe leading from Wal-Mart executives out to the real world is clogged. It is time to get the plumber. Believing that money isn’t always in the right hands should be no more difficult than the unfortunate occurrence of a drain clogging.
The issue of unclogging the money drain is to make the economy fit reality. In reality, Wal-Mart has more than its fair share of money, and consequently Wal-Mart executives are not permitted to spend their money by Hashem. Sure they can admire their bank accounts, but Hashem forbids that they spend.
Some suggest that the reason executives don’t spend is due to confidence. They suggest that nervousness or uncertainty is the monkey wrench in the economic machine – imagine that billionaires more uncertain that folks making minimum wage - but their ability to spend has very little to do with confidence, especially in comparison to karma. If Wal-Mart had better karma, then they would be able to spend more of their money.
We need to take the money out of Wal-Mart's hands and do something constructive with it rather than waiting the rest of our lives for Wal-Mart to get some "confidence." Perhaps, the most important thing that we could do with this money is tackle the debt and deficit. We could also use the money to build infrastructure. Therefore, I do not suggest just handing it out to the poor at random though there should likely be some of that too.
Economics and money are 2 separate things. I looked it up in my Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary and found that money was nowhere to be found in the definition of economics.
To believe that one will die without money is a popular lie. It is true that some people may die without money, but it is important to know that money isn’t life sustaining in the way that Gd creates this universe to be sustaining. You could live a wonderful life and have no money because money isn’t always the way of acquiring more stuff. It is only true that if money is demanded by you, then your experience will reciprocate that. If you demand money from others, especially those deserving and who do not have money, then money will be demanded of you at a time when you don’t have the benefit of money.
Belief that money is the solution, and that money is more important than hard work, is as the snake in the Garden of Eden telling us that if we only believe provision comes from money (and not Gd), then we will surly die for lack of money. The snake tries to trick us into selling our labor at a cost. However, I suggest working hard, and hoping in Hashem that everything will take care of itself and goodness will arise from this hard work.
I am not saying that all money is a bad thing. Money may certainly be a powerful and useful tool for good, especially in trade. However, I don't equate increasing money to increasing gain. For instance, I do believe wellness and hard work go together. I don't believe hard work, or even any work results in increased cash flow or that money equates to personal wellness. For me it is all about being well.
Historically, since capitalism has become prominent, the state of the world has drastically improved. This has led many to attribute capitalism to wellness. However, it is not just money that has improved. The world is radically different now from how it used to be, and that may be attributed to various forms of technology as well. However, money is as the training wheels of a bicycle. Sooner or later, the training wheels should come off. And then, once they do it is my hope that it doesn’t result in poverty or increased laziness. On the contrary my goal is that people work hard because working hard is rewarding.
The issue of unclogging the money drain is to make the economy fit reality. In reality, Wal-Mart has more than its fair share of money, and consequently Wal-Mart executives are not permitted to spend their money by Hashem. Sure they can admire their bank accounts, but Hashem forbids that they spend.
Some suggest that the reason executives don’t spend is due to confidence. They suggest that nervousness or uncertainty is the monkey wrench in the economic machine – imagine that billionaires more uncertain that folks making minimum wage - but their ability to spend has very little to do with confidence, especially in comparison to karma. If Wal-Mart had better karma, then they would be able to spend more of their money.
We need to take the money out of Wal-Mart's hands and do something constructive with it rather than waiting the rest of our lives for Wal-Mart to get some "confidence." Perhaps, the most important thing that we could do with this money is tackle the debt and deficit. We could also use the money to build infrastructure. Therefore, I do not suggest just handing it out to the poor at random though there should likely be some of that too.
Economics and money are 2 separate things. I looked it up in my Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary and found that money was nowhere to be found in the definition of economics.
To believe that one will die without money is a popular lie. It is true that some people may die without money, but it is important to know that money isn’t life sustaining in the way that Gd creates this universe to be sustaining. You could live a wonderful life and have no money because money isn’t always the way of acquiring more stuff. It is only true that if money is demanded by you, then your experience will reciprocate that. If you demand money from others, especially those deserving and who do not have money, then money will be demanded of you at a time when you don’t have the benefit of money.
Belief that money is the solution, and that money is more important than hard work, is as the snake in the Garden of Eden telling us that if we only believe provision comes from money (and not Gd), then we will surly die for lack of money. The snake tries to trick us into selling our labor at a cost. However, I suggest working hard, and hoping in Hashem that everything will take care of itself and goodness will arise from this hard work.
I am not saying that all money is a bad thing. Money may certainly be a powerful and useful tool for good, especially in trade. However, I don't equate increasing money to increasing gain. For instance, I do believe wellness and hard work go together. I don't believe hard work, or even any work results in increased cash flow or that money equates to personal wellness. For me it is all about being well.
Historically, since capitalism has become prominent, the state of the world has drastically improved. This has led many to attribute capitalism to wellness. However, it is not just money that has improved. The world is radically different now from how it used to be, and that may be attributed to various forms of technology as well. However, money is as the training wheels of a bicycle. Sooner or later, the training wheels should come off. And then, once they do it is my hope that it doesn’t result in poverty or increased laziness. On the contrary my goal is that people work hard because working hard is rewarding.
Tuesday, October 21, 2014
Faith in Hashem's Providence
I am really liking Pandora. Today is my first day trying it because we now have internet. This stuff is so inspirational for me to practice while it is playing in the background. It has occurred to me that all this guitar practice may one day lead to a paying job. However, if I have one student who is successful, - even if it is learning only patterns that help with memory, not necessarily a gig - and has no money, I would take that over several students that were not serious, but padded my bank account. Gd is not money. Work with what you have, money or not, and I have a firm belief that anything is possible with faith.
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