Really? Water...

So I have been doing some research on political parties for an upcoming lesson I'm doing. As I was browsing the internet, I came across a political ideals survey. Naturally, I wanted to take it to prove just how liberal I was. I find quizzes like this to be very flawed. Like personality tests and Cosmo quizzes, this test was very easy to manipulate. I knew what I wanted it to say at the end. And so I answered each question with the answer I thought would lead me to my desired ending.

I am happy to say that I was rewarded for my manipulation by being hailed a liberal on the economic side of the spectrum and a libertarian on the social side of the spectrum. Both of these (though slightly oxymoronical), I was happy to be labeled as. Since this morning, I have had my head full of political thought, what is right about the Democrats and what is wrong about the Republicans. After all between my little online quiz and the midterm elections coming up, it was only natural. The pressure has just been building up inside of me.

The final straw came just a few minutes ago when I saw the cover of Newsweek. The cover story was about how the world's water supplies are now being gobbled up by investor to be traded as a commodity. This infuriates me. And since I can't speak out in my current school setting, I am forced to the internet to vent my frustrations. How is it possible that we as human beings have become so greedy as to buy up water supplies for profit. Water is a necessity for survival. It is not like other natural resources such as oil. People can live without oil. they cannot live without water.

It is a sad, sad reflection on mankind that we put the desire to make a dollar above the good of others. It has long been one of my main arguments for why capitalism and Christianity cannot peacefully coincide. Capitalism runs on greed. The idea of making a profit off of water proves that. You cannot survive in a capitalist society without having profit as your motive. My economics textbooks say this. Thus, I would argue, that since greed is condemned in the Bible, would it not be a continuation of this thought to condemn capitalism as well? At least for a "Christian" nation. (I won't get into my views on America as a "Christian" nation now, but look for a future post on this topic.) And to take this point further, communism is laid out more as a viable option in the New Testament than capitalism is.

I will take an opportunity now to say that I an NOT in any was a communist. Communism (as an economic system for an entire nation) has failed. People are naturally inclined to want to elevate themselves above others. I would never push for communist policies anywhere. Furthermore, I think that capitalism and democracy fit very nicely together. Both of these philosophies are founded on the idea of freedom. It would be very difficult to have a capitalist economy in a non-democratic country. It would also be very had to have a democratic country run by a non-capitalist economic system. So clearly I do not have a problem with the politics of capitalism.

Instead, I have a problem with the morality of capitalism. I think it is very strange how people can profess a love for Christ in one minute and in the next argue that water should be sold to the highest bidder. There is an unsettling dichotomy to this. How can we love one another with the love of Christ if we are comfortable with the idea of withhold a needed resource from them? Christian should be on the front lines of the fight against making water a financial asset. We should be crying out against this. Instead, too many of us are too busy fight to be first in line to buy this new commodity. Their excuse being that they will give part of what they make back to the needy.

I wish I could say I have the solution to this problem. I wish I could offer some new economic theory that could rectify this divide between capitalism and Christianity all while maintaining freedom. I am not that smart. And though I wrestle constantly with these thoughts I am not any closer to discovering a solution. One day, maybe all of this will be worked out. Someone much smarter than me will come along and purpose a simple solution that will change everything. Until then, Christians are stuck struggling between how live as Christ would and staying financially relevant in a society that puts greed above all other virtues.

Why I"m doing this...

I work with teenagers. Actually to be more accurate, I teach teenagers. I teach them about the government. We discuss all kinds of current and historic issues that our country has faced. In an attempt not to force them to think on their own, I never give my students my opinion on anything. I don't want them to be swayed by what their amazingly brilliant teacher thinks. Actually, it is more like I don't want to deal with parents complaining that I am teaching their children the wrong politics.

You see, I work in a private Christian school. I stand for much of what the school stands for. I believe in God. I believe that America is a wonderful country. The problem is that I don't believe that the two should mix. And to take this opinion further, I don't believe that the government should be used to do the work of God. I don't believe that Christians should push for their agenda in government. These beliefs (and a few others) led me to align myself with a political party that most of my student's parents would not approve of.

Don't get me wrong. I am not at all afraid to rock the boat, at least in most settings. I am a firm believer in the idea that everyone should form their own opinions. If you cannot defend what you believe, then it is not a belief worth having. I want my students to learn this lesson above all others. I don't want them to believe (or vote) like their parents just because that was the way they were taught. I want them to believe (and vote) based on their own thoughts. If I were to try and use my position as a teacher to influence them, I would be doing exactly what I get upset at parents for doing.

With all of this said, I spend a lot of time in class holding in my true feelings. I have so many times want to shout out how ill-formed or uninformed a student's argument has been. I hold it in though. And because of this, I spend a lot of time venting to myself on the way home from school. I decided to write this blog to allow myself the chance to speak out on what I believe. Though I serious doubt that anyone will ever read this, it makes me feel better to think they could.

So I hope you enjoy what you read, but if you don't, oh well. I am writing this for me anyways...