Economic Revelation to the Roots of Creation

Analyst David Ricardo said rising output and population but with fixed land prices would mean land prices would suddenly skyrocket, but agricultural productivity and need proved him otherwise.

Reverend Thomas Malthus feared overpopulation would drive down wages and create political upheaval, so he recommended governments cutting off assistance to poor and limiting their reproduction! And he was a reverend! 

Now, French superstar economist, the radical Thomas Piketty, fears "The relentless growth in the proportion of national income consumed by the state, spent on universal services, pensions and benefits is an irreversible feature of modern capitalism. Redistribution has become a question of "rights to" things – healthcare and pensions – rather than simply a problem of taxation rates." And I agree with Piketty in saying that this problem is because we live spoiled in America. I doubt there is much we can do to reverse that unlike Ricardo and Malthus.  

Going into Piketty's arguments, Paul Mason, writer for "theguardian" award-winning magazine, quotes, "He illustrate(s) how, by the early 19th century, it was logical to disdain work in favor of marrying into wealth. That it has become so again busts the central myth of, and moral justification for, capitalism: that wealth is generated by effort, ingenuity, work, wise investment, risk taking etc. Mason simplifies Piketty's argument saying, "The implications for capitalism are utterly negative: we face a low-growth capitalism, combined with high levels of inequality and low levels of social mobility. If you are not born into wealth to start with, life, for even for the best educated, will be like Jane Eyre without Mr Rochester. "

It's all about distribution a.k.a. inequality. (Here's my favorite part)

A slide from Piketty's TED presentation

According to The Economist magazine, Piketty says, "Levels of inequality represent the result of political choices rather than deterministic technological or economic outcomes (a point reinforced by IMF research)." And economies do not naturally evolve toward more equal distributions of resources as they mature. And pulling from Mason's article once more, "Piketty accepts that the fruits of economic maturity – skills, training and education of the workforce – do promote greater equality. But they can be offset by a more fundamental tendency towards inequality, which is unleashed wherever demographics or low taxation or weak labor organisation allows it.... 21st-century capitalism is on a one-way journey towards inequality – unless we do something." 

In a very small nutshell, it is our choice on how much wealth we have. According to Mason, "His solution is a specific, progressive tax on private wealth: an exceptional tax on capital, possibly combined with the overt use of inflation." Now most people I'd imagine wouldn't be too comfortable with full wealth transparency, higher taxes, or rolling up to the gas station one day and screaming, "Why is gas $50 more than yesterday?!" And I'd be a little bit angry as well if I was forced to give away my inheritance from my parents to total strangers under a government's control. Perhaps this is why Piketty is a "hit-or-miss" man for some, but no one can deny that unless we take a little "inequality medicine" in our private capitalist lives every now and then, there would be no reason to improve anything whilst basking in a thousand acre land of milk and honey, similarly to how those who desire the prize of heaven must face the difficult, and in many times "unfair", tests of faith to God in order to make us stronger.

Another Drop in the Bucket

     Navinder Sarao may have jeopardized billions of dollars in market value and the precious time of thousands of investigators and big time companies, but what is most shocking is how one man singlehandedly wrought so much damage to the lives of not only the latter employees, but also for thousands of company investors around the world. Now, no one has the drive or sanity to invest in any companies over the internet in the future. Oftentimes, new emerging companies rely solely on investors and not their own fortunes to keep their businesses afloat. Therefore, I'd say that the "Flash Crash" was perfectly named.

     Since 2009, Sarao had been effecting the American economic system stealing an estimated 40 million dollars in profits through buying and trading stocks worth billions. In one instance recorded by NBC News, Sarao supposedly caused the Dow Jones company to drop 1,000 points in less than a second. Fortunately, "The drop erased hundreds of billions in market value before the Dow inexplicably recovered minutes later", according to USA Today. Saying that there are some flaws in the online stock trading arena would be a dangerous understatement.

     On April 22, Sarao was finally arrested in his low/mid class U.K. neighborhood, however, he did not consent to extradition to America. And I believe, at least for the sake of those affected, that unless he receives some harsh punishment and a no-bail jail option inside of the directly affected country, no security will ever truly be felt by the "shell-shocked" investors. In addition, according to Albert Moeler, it's not that we need a stronger, better-enforced online trade market per se, it's that we need proper justice for the eaters of the forbidden fruit. He states, "It’s the Christian worldview that affirms that it’s morality that makes economics possible – it’s not the other way around." And to place the balance of morality back into place, we must not allow wrongdoing to escape and continue poisoning the system (a.k.a. the Holocaust syndrome). Right now, we need the essence of trust to remain unaltered by Sarao's selfish antics. 

     As a side note, perhaps what Sarao ought to be doing is provide counseling services to the online stock trading authorities by explaining possible scenarios on how people like him may cheat the system, so security and maintenance might improve and prevent a future scandal. Yes I definitely feel sorry for the Flash Crash victims, but Sarao's issue, when taken to the moral level of the heart, is really nothing more than another drop in the bucket- one out of many problems of the world. There's no use complaining, only improving.

Dislike or Disengage

Ever since America distributed its first portable computers and cellphones and saw the usefulness and productivity that stemmed from them, thousands of students have anxiously awaited the glorious day when they could be free to type out e-notes, search for quick information on the Internet, and store precious family photos and records etc. or...browse Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and other miscellaneous junk that cause major distractions to the whole classroom learning experience.

Nearly every action has an ulterior motive. In this case, a student may have the desire to use a laptop or phone to take notes, but is always self-reminded of their other functions. It's not that hard to close out your Microsoft Word, move your mouse, and click your social media shortcut. Another problem an article off of the LA Times brings up is that "Students who type too often try to transcribe lectures verbatim, which is 'detrimental to learning,' while students re-frame and distill ideas when they write notes by hand, said the study, titled "The Pen Is Mightier Than the Keyboard."" USC professor Geoffrey Cowan, the former dean of the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, said that students "think they can multi-task but they are losing the train of thought and not engaging in the conversation going on." And a USC sophomore, Sarah Collins, applauded Cowan's efforts on banning technology in the classroom stating, "It was just nice to have everyone in the present, and it led to more participation."

Five hundred High School entrance exams received by Michigan State University were reviewed by an introductory psychology class which found, "regardless of intellectual ability", that, " the more they (students) used the Internet for nonacademic purposes such as reading Facebook during class, the lower their test scores in that course were."

We already have our regular enemies named "daydream" and "gossip." If not for the desire to learn, then perhaps you will use your technology to receive good grades. Your virtual, far-away buddies can wait. School is an environment for learning and engagement. Grandpa's old stories may appear boring and pointless, but they might just hold a few of the most important life lessons you will ever hear. Grandpa will not be around forever and you will not be in school forever. Get out of the bubble and realize what truly matters. There is a time and place for everything. 

-Teachers are important.
Proverbs 11:14 "Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety."

-Self discernment is important.
Proverbs 12:15 "The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice."

Giving is Taking

This quote above by Arthur Herman has made me realize something. Why would the government, since 1966 (nearly half a century) pay 20 trillion dollars to fight a poverty war for people other than themselves? Surely someone must have noticed fifty years gone by with -$20,000,000,000,000 missing from the bank. Well of course the government would not wish to allow distress for the majority of its citizens, but couldn't they use this money to spend elsewhere where the people may be happy? 

It's a fleshly fact that money makes the world go round. In a sense, money is the currency to purchase life. And if you have placed your life in the hands of the ones with the money, the government, your life and loyalty essentially belong to them in the hopes of creating a better, more fulfilling life through their rule. I believe the government uses the war on poverty as a strategy to earn the loyalty of its followers and not  to wholly defeat poverty. Because it's taken fifty years and we still haven't won! 

Back on the above quote, the rise of decreasing marriage rates due to replacement by Uncle Sam is only creating more and more people who are dependent on the government to take care of them and make all of their decisions for them as well. This system certainly changes the quote, "money can't buy love." Well it's clear that it can't buy wisdom either, because of the rising levels of dependency. Soon, the political party with the most money promised will be the eternal victor similar to the manner in which president Clinton was voted into office with a promise to focus on domestic affairs and improvement of American economy as his greatest advertisement bait.   

What are we to do? Prove those "fighting the war" wrong! Don't be the dumb fish that only sees the appealing bait but is blind to the hook or Eve who saw the beautiful fruit but did not recognize the lies of the serpent. It may be difficult to let go of your money, but with and only with unselfishness can one marry another and dig out of the hole that is dug deeply by selfish desires. Your gain is a salvation of the lives of your children and the right to be independent free-thinkers outside of the bondage of the false, manipulative influences of others.

Corked Killing

ISIS is a definite threat in two ways. One, because the organization is murdering hundreds of innocent people. And two, America is in complete denial of its religious zeal-their sole purpose for exsiting! "They are not religious leaders. They're terrorists," Obama said about ISIL and al Qaeda's efforts to position themselves as warriors for the Muslim faith. When the enemy can hide its 1.4 billion members and get away with murder and virtually no opposition, the world is in some deep trouble. ISIS is a group made up of genuine Muslims who live by and adhere to their teachings taught by Muhammad. They're nothing special, just especially devoted. This is the exact same scenario between the hot, "on fire" for Jesus Christians and cold to lukewarm Christians, who still adhere to the instructions in the word of God, but do not obey. When enough magma has accumulated below the earth's crust, the volcano erupts violently. Muslims are the magma to the volcano, or in this case the creation of the treacherous, murderous ISIS group. 


Many arguments have been made concerning dealings with Muslims: "Leave the peaceful ones alone, they aren't doing anything!" "Exterminate the radicals!" "Just kill them all!" etc. Joel Olsteen, the senior pastor of the mega-church Lakewood in Houston, Texas, admitted in an interview with Larry King in which he basically claimed that all religions will eventually be accepted by God and everyone will enter into heaven. (Well not without Jesus you ain't!) Perhaps this widespread belief is why no one wants to take a stand by punishing "God's people" of any religion including ISIS. Now I still hold the belief that God wishes that no one should perish, but I do not believe that we are to allow number six of the ten commandments go freely undisciplined. Let's not venture into the new holocaust syndrome era.

Nations should be responsible for their own nation, especially in this case since Muslims and potential ISIS members occupy a portion of virtually every country in the world. And if one needs assistance from another fully capable of protection, but is unwilling to offer it, then that person commits a sin- a crime against God, according to James 4:17  which says, "Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it." Maybe ISIS will bring the real end of the world and Jesus' second coming! Who knows. But if you're still not convinced about rallying together and stepping up to defeat the enemies of God and humanity, hear these great words of Paul in Romans 6:1-4: "What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life."

The true measure of a Christian is how much faith and obedience he or she has, so let us be the a volcano erupting His decrees fearlessly revealing the word of the gospel to everyone, Muslims included. "'Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.'", so says Isaiah 4:10. Religious power is made weak in that if its believers are robbed of their hope and faith, they will not act; it is a blessing and the key to those willing to prevent ISIS terrorism and a curse to those who are not.  

Marriage: The Cure for Selfishness

Declining marriage rates might spell disaster for the happy lives of couples and their children if they have any, but it might just work with Obama's new budget plan for 2016. According to The Economist, "Leftish Democrats, meanwhile, think that marriage has been undermined by rising inequality, and especially the low wages of unskilled men, which make them less attractive as mates", and since Obama is pursuing free community college for everyone, perhaps the low-wage "unskilled men" will be remedied by a college education causing marriage rates to rise. This is the mindset of the future. 

During the 1960's when marriage rates were at America's all time high (72% then vs 50% now), the functions of society operated differently. Women received lower wages and rights than men, because their job was "simply" to raise kids, cook, and clean while the husbands worked hard all day to provide for the more important financial success of the family. There was a definitive line between the sexes. Today, with more and more rights and opportunities opening up to women, the need for men to fill their roles naturally increases and the need for women to marry and achieve greater financial security naturally decreases. "There are relatively few relationships that are more fully documented than those between economic well-being and marriage,” said Ron Haskins, a marriage philosopher and a senior fellow of Brookings Institution of Washington.

So are we as a nation capable or willing to revert to the past to transform the way in which we view equality in order to trade off certain comforts for the happiness of strong enduring marriages? Personally, I don't see this idea taking off too soon as long as the government is controlled by future-oriented Democrats who retain their desire to rewrite history by giving equality to everyone-even the LGBTs, pot heads, and other greedy sinners- yet not administering the laws of justice they deserve. Mr. Ulmer, a banker for the First National Bank of Alaska retells the words of his economics professor after three years of experience in marriage saying, "The two most important things in a person’s life are their money and their family — in that order." If a person puts all faith in the desire to be gay, smoke freely, or in themselves along with their educational skills to make money for the whole family, then that person has no business in marriage. The point of marriage is to respect and trust your spouse and let go of serving yourself. There is no room for selfishness. And forced creation through free college placement of attractive mates will increase money gained as statistics show, but it will not alter the twenty first mindset of "it's all about me." It may appear contradictory, but quoting Mr. Ulmer once more,  “two incomes are obviously better than one and they help pay for more" and perhaps in more ways than one. “Married men are more likely to work, make more money and not engage in dangerous behaviors like drunken driving and committing crimes,” said Ron Haskins. Thus, I call marriage the cure for selfishness.

Free Education for Empty Classes

Is President Obama setting his hopes too high? We all know that he is promoting a singular middle-class society, "no-nonsense" low or high classes, just one. This idea is classified as socialism, which is also known as communism. Is Obama's communist vision for America bad? For one thing, he's a liar when the majority of America voted him for his democratic principles when what he is doing is increasing our tax dollars in the new 2016 budget in an anti-Republican manner. The definition of a democrat is a person who believes in the political or social equality of all people, according to Dictionary.com. Republicans desire no tax increases, no funding for immigration or education facilities, a balanced budget to extinguish the deficit, and reduce our national debt through modification of Medicare and Social Security, according to the Congressional Budget Office, The White House, and the Center on Budget, and Policy Priorities. Well he sure isn't backing up his democratic label very well by treating, unequally, the Republican party, since so many of these wants are currently being refused along with the promise he made in his speech January 20, 2015 in which said, "And I commit to every Republican here tonight that I will not only seek out your ideas, I will seek to work with you to make this country stronger." Why is this opposition to the Republicans, at least half of our nation, necessary? Maybe it's not. Could the Republicans be oblivious to the best master plan in American history? I doubt it, but let's look at the situation economically and see if there is hope for our president's plan. 

One, Obama plans to make community colleges free to the public. Alright, not bad... if you're a student. I love the idea that people don't have to worry about the high costs of college that supposedly encourages more people to attend, but I believe that there's too much of a gap between those who attend and those who do not. Not everyone will go to college, so less people will want to pay for it. This is just one of many sectors of tax dollar funding in which America should not be supporting at this moment (not the best move financially). The fact is that there are many decent jobs that do not require college degrees to work such as a dental hygienist, an online advertising manager, and web developer just to name a few. (See CareerCast) It takes all kinds to run this world properly, especially our militia.

Second, Medicare is a good idea, because everyone deserves a chance to live a healthy life. But this is where the major problem begins. When everyone is healthy and gets what they need, there is no drive to work. People who don't need a doctor etc. simply leech off of the rich companies, which are forced under Obama-care to give their money to them. What good do they do? What good will they ever do if everything continues to be provided for them? This is why when a child becomes a full-grown adult, his or her parents must support them in getting their own job and going to college to support their own self. I have no experience in parenting, but what a burden these disheveled, worthless "leeches", capable of self-sustenance, must be to the hard-working citizens of America. 

In conclusion, I believe that in order to raise or issue new taxes, one must create a system where people are motivated to work and give their own money. Obama may know how to get more votes, but no one will want to go to college when free healthcare is provided to take the time to learn how to become the next middle-class drone to support the next generation of average people working or not. No one will ever get ahead.  Provisions do not make providers. Rewards do. Your input of work and effort should match your output of rewards. This is how the hungry become the farmers, how the homeless become constructors, and how the needy will work on their own to support this nation no government intervention required. Respect the leader, and he should respect you.

Marijuana Meals: A Major Mistake

Mainstreaming marijuana is one of the worst ideas ever. Although it provides a large market for large profits, supporting the legality of a nationwide "high" just for kicks and bypassing government laws to do so is just morally wrong. Today, we are seeing testy chefs around the world try to pursue this cause through the creation of recipes consisting of the marijuana plant. Because they recognize its inherently repulsive taste, they say they desire to "improve" their cooking skills by trying to mask, not enhance the flavor of the weed. Sounds like they are trying to mask their sin instead. Boiled, sauteed, grilled, or smoked, sin is still sin.

I feel that creation and consumption of mind bending substances is equal to abandoning reliance on God. We have drugs, doctors, and even ear buds that give us so many instant reliefs, distractions, and pleasures that the average human really doesn't need God in order to survive or is too starry-eyed to see his or her need for Him and his son Jesus' redeeming love. In fact, anything can be a distraction/idol when we value it over God, and that is wrong to ignore the King of kings.

What I see here with the open creation of marijuana meals is also utter defiance to the law. Nebraska and Oklahoma teamed up to sue the marijuana-legal state of Colorado for its high sales of weed to tourists, who then bring it back to their marijuana-illegal home states only to be paid a "visit" and a costly fine under the drug control federation regulations. Pathetically, they basically pay money to lose their weed. These underhanded marijuana-legal countries are forcing the drug control federation and other law enforcement agencies to expend valuable time and money where it could be spent elsewhere. One main issue to draw out from all of this is that no one is responsible enough. Colorado is just one example where a group sees a get rich quick scheme and doesn't care about its effects as long as they receive the cash. And if one could be trusted, it's only a matter of time before a brother tempts him or her to smoke and get addicted. Romans 4:21- It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.

I'm afraid there is no middle ground for marijuana in terms of morality, either it stays or it goes. Although I would have this overly-abused drug go, I would allow it to stay. I hate seeing so many people waste their selfish lives just trying to get a bit of weed. Whether they want to consume it and get high or sell it for green, if they want it so badly I would give it to them as God has handed the people over to their sins. Proverbs 26:11 states this timeless truth of addictions, "As a dog returns to its vomit, so fools repeat their folly." There is no use fighting this battle to win in total victory, but to protect and prevent our country's generations of irresponsible fools. This result, in my opinion, is the best trade-off in exchange for its maintenance cost. 

Sticks and Stones Hurt. Words Don't.

Last Thursday, three known, well-trained terrorists flawlessly attacked and killed one police officer and eleven employees of the Charlie Hebdo comic headquarters in Paris, France. To top it all off, they calmly drove away and hijacked a car with only but one currently verified witness. That has to be one of the most successful terrorist attacks that I have ever heard of. But enough praise for needless murder. These three men killed to avenge the founder of the Muslim faith, Muhammad, who was mocked by a series of satirical images of Charlie Hebdo. If someone were to mock God with comics going out across the world (but viewed by few), then I would get a bit mad too, but certainly not enough to murder people! Murder of innocent people is wrong no matter which way you look at it. Murderers need to receive extra punishment, not extra protection of religion under the law. They don’t have special privileges to go against the law, which allows by the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and the U.N. Universal Declaration of Rights for the harmless freedom of speech. No one does, especially because of something as insignificant as a comic strip. 

Freedom of Speech
Not as bad as you think

The omission of freedom of speech will soon catch up to bite hard in the end. Without freedom of speech, endeared by many, I predict war for the deprivation of this certain quality. For example, if we took away the freedom of speech of the LGBT community, you can bet that either unofficial/unlawful secret relationships will transpire or the people will riot near numerous government buildings until their rights are returned. We've seen the latter occur already, but what would it look like if every LGBT took up the cause? Scary. Freedom of speech is necessary so that awareness of hot topics or danger such as terrorists become known and people will know how to handle these situations in the most economically effective ways possible.

After the massacre, various news sites such as ABC and MSNBC reporting the attack have censored the Charlie Hebdo comics to avoid stirring up additional terrorist rage and future attacks. But terrorists will kill at any time for any reason. Censorship is a form of apology, and this may only slow down the attacks but never abolish them. In fact, this backing down will give strength to terrorist organizations. When a strong front or confident self-image is put up, the enemy will be less likely to attack. The entire world must never turn a blind eye to what others including pro-LGBTs, pro-abortionists, and most importantly gospel-proclaiming Christians etc. have to say and never quit stepping in and expending its resources such as money and soldiers in exchange for the protection of the world from all universal enemies that murder innocent people or violate the God-given rights of mankind. 

Statistically-minded Oil Price Dispersion Theory

From late 2014 through early 2015, the United States has been experiencing a price drop in oil and crude petroleum not seen since 2009 when one gallon of gas was around two dollars. This kind of thing makes many Americans happy. More money stays in the pocket. Unfortunately this means more money is also leaving the pockets of those who help recover the products from mining and fracking plants. Too bad virtually every course of action that is taken demands an opportunity cost, in this case money and peace. 

At first, the US rose to the number one position in the world for producing the largest yearly yield of natural gas, even outdoing Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern countries famous for producing vast amounts of gas etc. We in the US had plenty of this foreign gas, but due to the failing economy, bills to pay, and much needed jobs to fill, we turned primarily to our own land in North Dakota and Texas for home-fracked shale oil. Now there is an overabundance, the Middle East decreases its prices to keep its business dealing with the largest oil consuming nation in the world (us), the US along with Canada continue to produce an ample supply of oil, and no one can find a solid average gas price to keep producers from simply breaking even and/or gaining nothing.

If the western hemisphere can "fend for itself" and keep its oil supply eternally strong, then it should cut off its foreign imports from the eastern hemisphere to restore and preserve its strong economy. "U.S. oil output will surge to 13.1 million barrels a day in 2019 and plateau thereafter," according to the IEA, a Paris-based adviser to 29 nations. (Read here http://goo.gl/tMjUBJ) And it's somewhat of a relief to hear that we only consume 8.8 million barrels a day. It's nice to know that a renowned expert at oil predictions says that we could still end up with four million extra barrels a day. So why are we still doing this business with Middle Eastern oil companies? We don't need them. Shaving off extra oil bought with much-needed US money from another country means that prices should stabilize quite nicely for both local US producers as well as its consumers.

Ignoring the notions that Middle-Eastern based terrorists such as ISIS etc. might benefit from oil we do not purchase and that purchasing oil from these other countries helps us retain more peaceful relationships with their often mis-managed governments, I think that the current American economy could greatly benefit by consuming its own resources of which there is currently an over-abundance and not spending its money on oil that it does not need.