The 7 Modern Sins:· Politics without Principles,
· Pleasure without Conscience,
· Wealth without Work,
· Knowledge without Character,
· Industry without Morality,
· Science without Humanity,
· Worship without Sacrifice.
~Canon Frederic Donaldson
Politics without Principles -- plenty of those types about - a sad testimony to the decline of democracy and the rise of demogogues. We have never been short of people who will do anything for a buck. Lobbyists found that out early on. In Canada, the left wing political party, NDP, sits in support of the right wing Conservative Party minority government, because the offer is sweeter, the money is better. Not because their politics are a match or their practises are consistent. Shame on the NDP.
And this is not just about democracy's shortcomings. Even where democracy is not practised, principled political dictatorships are in short supply. Assassinations, kidnappings, isolating the citizens from the world by cutting off contact with all media, censoring the media that tries to tell the truth - these are just some of the actions that go on beyond North America. Dedication to principled, fair, open markets for information and political exchange of ideas should be a top priority in any discussion at the highest levels.
Pleasure without Conscience -- seeking the high without the payment, who looks for that edgy moment through drugs, sex, rock and roll, free fall, S&M, B&D or other even more unmemtionable pursuits, illegal, unconscionable, extreme, psychological, pathological, sociopathic? It seems that with the speed of life, the unconscious decisions people make that drive knives into other people's lives make this sort of thing happen every day. It's a good day when 30,000 people lose their jobs to save a big company money by shipping that work overseas, and the shareholders get to make money that year. It's a good day when the CEO walks home with a 40 million dollar bonus for such work, while the 30,000 families scrounge for social assistance. Corporate Social Responsibility? nah... Pleasure - payoffs - take care of the big people first - board members who have shares in the company so that they can get as much pleasure as possible from their money. Conscience has no place at work.
Wealth without Work -- in some businesses and in some families there is no need for getting your hands dirty, or even for thinking. Investments can do wonders if you get in at the right time and get out at the right time. BreX, Enron, WorldCom, the people who were on the inside and knew enough to get out in time, made a killing. People who had stock in Microsoft, Dell, HP in the early days are sitting pretty without much to do but sit back and eat, sleep and be merry. And with no mission or mandate other than that. Paper billionaires are pathetic. Bill Gates earned his money and now he is investing in the world and guiding his investments for the long term. The other paper billionaires, those we do not know - the hundreds of thousands who live quiet lives of desparation or are hiding on tropical islands unable to return to the native land because of pending charges of tax evasion, fraud or something even more serious... well, get a life.
Knowledge without Character -- its one thing to know a lot, quite another to know what to do and how to behave with what you know. Arrogance is not becoming. Charm is smarmy and can be off-putting. You can be a whiz at Trivial Pursuit and yet not know the capitals of all the countries in the world - because the geography is changing so quickly. Character comes from life experience and time, maturity and courage. Reflection and the wisdom ought to bring most to a place of humility by how little you really do know. Without this realization or forgetting this, is a stumble and fall. And so, we fall seven time only to get up eight. But how many times have we met the "know it all"?
Industry without Morality -- both big and small industry, personal industriousness and the industry the size of Hollywood or Automanufacturing or textile manufacturing. In any work done with hands and eyes and humanity, morality must play a part - where humans are used for their bodies, hearts and minds, we must behave with them and to them as moral beings, treating them with loving kindness, fairness, as honourable people which they are, which we are too or we can be, when we choose. An equal exchange of value, their work for the goods they provide. This should occur no matter where we turn for workers to create goods - in North America or Asia or when we ask something of ourselves.
But do we? When we close factories and move jobs overseas, are we treating people with morality? Are we asking the new employee overseas to work longer hours, for less money in poorer conditions than the employee we previously had contracted with? Or are they working the same hours, for the same wages in similar conditions, but they work closer to the market where the product will be sold? Now if that's the case - I am all for the work transfer. If not, then I wonder.
Science without Humanity -- I was listening to the re-broadcast of the Massey lectures - the Ethical Imagination, with Margaret Somerville - and heard her expound on techno sapiens, the new species we could become if we allow ourselves to go too fast and merge our genetic material with machine, with vegetable, mineral and fish before thinking through the real consequences of becoming a genetically modified organism. What awaits the children and the seventh generation? Who do they become? Certainly not 'themselves" but someone "other". Science is galloping along and our humanity is walking as our morality and ethics is unable to keep pace. We must work out slowly through conversation, imagination, science fiction, time, what might occur IF. And follow the Precautionary Principle until we are completely satisfied that we will remain and our children remain with at least the choice of being - themselves - in the future of their choice. Science as only be a tool - not the godhead.
Worship without Sacrifice -- to believe in something - to follow with hope and love in the heart, blind to all others is faith; to worship before the temple hoping for the cure, for the justice, for vengence, for honour, for life, for what is deserved... that is futile and laughable. To run after that celebrity hoping for the style, the new look, the colour, the shade, the touch of the shadow of the thread on the jeans, the wax from the ear, the crumb from the lips - that is inane and insane.
Sacrifice yourself to gain your own respect. Worship yourself to honour your achievements in life. Fight for your rights against the unfairness in the world and others will honour you. And by then, worship will likely not be what is sought, but will be shunned, as you move forward seeking the next strengthening task, the next hurdle to put behind you, as you sacrifice one more strained muscle on the run for your life, for the health of your heart and the love of your friends and family.
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