The Occupy Wall Street Movement
November 17, 2011
CNN reported the following today… “What started as the Occupy Wall Street movement in New York in September has spread across major cities worldwide as a call to action against unequal distribution of wealth. Thursday marked two months since the movement began.”
So what are we to make of the Occupy Wall Street movement?
This morning I had the privilege and pleasure of playing basketball with a young man who is among the “very disgruntled”. He was one of the millions of young people (18-30 demographic, called “Millenials”) who voted for Barack Obama but have become very disillusioned with Washington and the political process in the years since. My young friend (who is 27) feels that Barack Obama has bowed to the “capitalist forces in New York, Washington, Boston, etc. who control the banks, businesses, political parties, and just about everything else.” Here’s what I can draw about these “forces”. First of all, these forces are very greedy. Their greed is at the root of all our current troubles. They are very rich and have gotten rich at the expense of all the rest of us. It’s the 1% vs. the 99%.
Now here’s my take on the Occupy Wall Street movement. They have an axe to grind that is not fabricated from nothing. They have an important point. How have the corporations like Enron and Worldcom (etc.), capitalists like Bernie Madoff, the interest rate debacle, etc. ever happen?!?!? Without getting into the breakdowns of regulatory agencies and free market checks and balances, the answer is human greed, plain and simple.
Proverbs 28:25 says, “The greedy stir up conflict, but those who trust in the Lord will prosper.” Ain’t that the truth? I think we have some conflict on our hands!
But what is the solution? Is it to shut down cities and traffic, keep people from work and kids from school, engage police with sticks and get pepper sprayed? Come on. We can do better than that!
I believe we should seek a healthy and vibrant economy where the maximum number of people can be working hard and making money—in a word, “prospering”. Ever since I worked as an entrepreneur I have been enamored with the free market. I started a beach volleyball camp for kids in Redondo Beach called the “Dave Goss Beach Volleyball Camps” (please excuse the self-aggrandizement). I ran it for five years, made decent money, and led 34 kids to Christ. I am so glad that I live in a country where I could do that!
When the Israelites are about to go into captivity in Babylon for the tremendous accumulation of their sins and idolatry, the prophet Jeremiah gives this instruction: “Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” (Jeremiah 29:7)
Let’s take these words to heart and pray for our country, then fully seek both its peace and prosperity. Amen.
