Saturday, November 01, 2008

Obama's Selfishness

Remember back in August when Obama and McCain were interviewed at the Saddleback Forum?

Obama declared then that America's greatest failing was its selfishness. Never mind that it's not true- what he actually meant, it seems clear now, is that they aren't taxed enough by his kind of government- one which knows best how to spent your hard earned dollars.

I think America’s greatest moral failure in my lifetime has been that we still don’t abide by that basic precept in Matthew that whatever you do for the least of my brothers, you do for me, and that notion of — that basic principle applies to poverty. It applies to racism and sexism. It applies to, you know, not having — not thinking about providing ladders of opportunity for people to get into the middle class. There’s a pervasive sense, I think, that this country, as wealthy and powerful as we are, still don’t spend enough time thinking about the least of us.

He also spoke of his own selfishness, stating-

So — but look, you know, when I — when I find myself taking the wrong step, I think a lot of times it’s because I’m trying to protect myself instead of trying to do God’s work.

An interesting revelation when you put it in light of the news on his Aunt Zeituni. There she is, an illegal immigrant- a deportation fugitive apparently too- living in poverty in Boston.

Millionaire Obama, who just happens to live in a mansion in Chicago, has done nothing to help lift her from this poverty-stricken life. Would it have been so hard for him to have moved her in some place nice, helped an old lady out of a hard life and given her some ease in her later years? Let's not even get started on his half-brother living in even worse poverty in Kenya or the poverty-stricken school named in his honour he promised he would help. Those folks didn't get a penny, so what chance does a mere aunt have?

Obama has spent months chastising America for not spreading the wealth around to help the less fortunate. It's selfish not to want to pay higher taxes, don't you know! Never mind that the Obama campaign thinks it fitting to blow $700,000 on stage settings in Germany- or that he thinks it's appropriate to waste over $5 million on a single night.

Imagine if he's come out and said this instead-

"You know, we were going to spend $5.3 million on this crazy Greek temple stage- not even bother to use the facilities we spent over $14 million on- and then I thought, no, that doesn't make any sense. I'm going to live by all the "America is selfish, you people don't do enough for the poor" crap ideals I've been flinging around all campaign season. Besides, I feel guilty that I'm a millionaire and I donate less to charity than the average American household. I'm going to give that $5 million to charity and demonstrate my commitment to all the campaign rhetoric you suckers voters have been listening to for so long."

Anyone think that his poor aunt is still living like that because he believes that helping her might harm his political career? Isn't that selfish, to put his ambition above the welfare of his elderly, beloved aunt?

4 comments:

TorryMartin said...

Good food for thought there.I like the Wonder Woman art too. (If you're on Facebook look me up and check out the pictures of my comic book office. I think you'd like it.)
Torry Martin

Anonymous said...

This seeming dichotomy stems from the difference between the collectivist view of Christianity versus the individualist view of Christianity.

In the individualist view, we assume that when Jesus said things like "when YOU do these things for least of them, you do these things for me" that He was speaking to us individually. That He was charging ME, PERSONALLY to sacrifice and care for my brethren.

In the collectivist view, Jesus was speaking to all of us as a collective society. They see it not as a charge to them personally, but as a charge to the collective (in the form, of course, of the government). Therefore, they see no hypocrisy in reciting those verses and then insisting that the giving should always be done by some "other" person or group, rather than understanding the true meaning in that we should each, individually choose to sacrifice for "the least".

Barack Obama can, without guilt, stand upon his self-righteous pulpit and proclaim "America" to be selfish, while doing nothing selfless HIMSELF, because he sees selfishness not as an individual failing, but as a societal one. Not as something that should be addressed as an individual choice

Just as he sees responsibility in terms of the collective rather than the individual.

That, very simply, goes to the heart of the difference between the collective world view and the individualist...and, also, to the heart of why collectivism never works...because it's always some unnamed "other guy" that's failing in the collective. It's never the guy looking back in the mirror.

True Christianity is not about pointing fingers and passing judgment on the actions of others.

Christianity is about every person's INDIVIDUAL walk with God and INDIVIDUAL contributions and decisions.

By charitable contributions are in no way going to buy Obama's seat at the right hand of God and as long as he continues to think they will...I'm afraid he's going to be sorely disappointed when he gets the chance to meet God face to face.

God's not going to ask him: "So, Obama, what did your society do for the poor?" He's going to ask him: "What did YOU do?"

I know what my answer will be...and I don't need a government agent forcing me to do the "right" thing at the point of a gun.

Anonymous said...

By charitable contributions are in no way going to buy Obama's seat at the right hand of God and as long as he continues to think they will...I'm afraid he's going to be sorely disappointed when he gets the chance to meet God face to face.


Sorry, that was supposed to read "MY charitable contributions..."

Why doesn't your system fix those typos for me before letting me post it? There outta be a law...

Jay.Mac said...

I think you're exactly right about his collectivist view. ties in precisely with his "McCain's going to accuse me of being a communist because I shared toys as a kid." He doesn't seem to get the difference between an individual voluntarily sharing and the state taking something under threat of violence. Which is something of great concern.

From C.S. Lewis-

"Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron's cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own conscience. They may be more likely to go to Heaven yet at the same time likelier to make a Hell of earth. This very kindness stings with intolerable insult. To be 'cured' against one's will and cured of states which we may not regard as disease is to be put on a level of those who have not yet reached the age of reason or those who never will; to be classed with infants, imbeciles, and domestic animals. But to be punished, however severely, because we have deserved it, because we 'ought to have known better,' is to be treated as a human person made in God's image."