"Money Is The Root Of All Evil".....

[global1]

I put this old adage out there for discussion as it seems apropos in light of the economic issues surrounding many of the problems that we face here in the U.S. and around the world.

I guess I'd like to hear what others think about this. Have at it folks!!!!!

[jeepers]

1. All evil?

Doesn't really work when you say most evil. I don't think it is money per se but the power that wealth, among other things, provides

We are a species who live inn fear of eachother because we know that we are capable of great indifference

[Agnosticsherbet]

2. Love of money is the root of all evil.

Money is just a symbol that facilitates an exchange of goods without the necessity to barter.

[jonno99]

5. +1 Money is not the issue - it is the LOVE of it (and loving the power that it brings) which is

the problem. This "misnomer" is akin to the "judge not lest you be judged" misunderstanding...

[malthaussen]

13. Leave it to an agnostic to get the adage right n/t

[Agnosticsherbet]

16. Well, I would think Malthusian know that adage

even if that doesn't fit precisely into that philosophy.

[DirkGently]

15. A critical distinction.

The more I hear from conservatives I disagree with, whether they be Republicans "Libertarians," or conservatives within our own party, the more I see they are united in a reverence for wealth, and the idea that it is rightfully the measure of power, that runs through all of their thinking.

Republicans try their best to restrict voting to the most comfortable, most mainstream. No students, please. No minority groups. If they could establish landowning men as the only voters, they would do so. Occasionally, they actually opine that someone with more money should get more votes.

"The Tom Perkins system is: You don't get to vote unless you pay a dollar of taxes," Perkins said.
"But what I really think is, it should be like a corporation. You pay a million dollars in taxes, you get a million votes. How's that?"

http://money.cnn.com/2014/02/14/investing/tom-perkins-vote/

Libertarians (American style) say government should basically just protect wealth. Police, contract enforcement; nothing else.

The recent unfortunate Supreme Court configuration believes corporations and Super PACs have "free speech" rights that include denying people basic health care or overtly trying to purchase elections.

And I keep seeing this odd take on the legitimacy of opinion in general, where efforts on behalf of the common good -- unions, activists, etc. -- are suspect, while the paid shills and lobbyists are somehow absolutely legitimate.

I saw this in a local effort to guarantee earned sick leave for all workers. Local Chamber of Commerce shills and Tea Partiers showed up to county commission meetings armed with "charts" tying the ballot initiative to unions and liberal activist groups (duh?) and essentially argued that cooperation among groups trying to better the lives of workers was inherently a dark, sinister Communist conspiracy. The fact that groups like Disney were paying lawyers and lobbyists out of pure greed was fine, of course.

Money, they think, is the only thing we should ever trust in, protect, or believe. People and principles are distant afterthoughts.

[Agnosticsherbet]

17. Individualism, and the ideology of individual success plays into the whole reverence of wealth

as being the ultimate measure of success.

[FLPanhandle]

3. Let's test that theory.

1) We get a DU consensus on how evil I am right now (say a score from 0-100)

2) You give me all your money and possessions.

3) DU will re-measure my evilness score to see if it has increased.


How about it?

[GummyBearz]

6. haha

Funny thought experiment. I would not take you up on the offer. I will say after I got a sizable promotion and could afford to buy a house, I found I was having internal conflicts with what I previously wanted in regards to economic policy. It would suck personally if I had to pay higher taxes and then couldn't afford the house I just bought...

[MADem]

4. Not money--the LOVE of money. Greed. Avarice. There's where your problem lies.

You can do a lot of good with money.

[pinboy3niner]

7. Can't Buy Me Love :)

[Throd]

11. Gimme Some Money

&list=RDI-BYzaDwNoE#t=0

[malthaussen]

14. I'll see your "Can't Buy Me Love" and raise you "Money"

I prefer the adage "Money can't buy love, but it can sure-enough rent a fair piece of it."

-- Mal

[The2ndWheel]

8. Civilization is a resource concentration mechanism

[Throd]

9. The LOVE of money is the root of all evil.

By the way, there are lots of other types of evil that have nothing to do with money.

[Gidney N Cloyd]

10. I thought evil was the root of all money.

Guess I've been doing it wrong.

[whathehell]

12. I've heard that the lack of money -- poverty -- is the root of all evil

[Shandris]

20. No. I'd say that it is more like a crucible.

It will shape your outcome and force you, hard, one direction. Either good...or not so good (read: evil). Some it does burn out, too...far too many. But those of us who do make it out make it out pretty strong, one way or the other.

However, given the choice between the two right now, as in, with everything I know, I would not choose money over my lived experience. Obviously, given the choice back before I had accumulated some experience, I would have taken money.

[haele]

18. Just as the original sin was not "Sex", but the Fear of being exposed in public...

It's the love of money - both as the infection of greed in a society and the destructive symptoms of greed through abuse of the power structure or in an increasing economic segregation based on "an ownership society" where basically the ability to purchase one's own status is considered of greater societal worth than any actual ability the person might bring to society.

There is a direct link between the love of money and the original sin. People desire the accumulation of money to be able to build and strengthen the illusions around them to hide that within them from everyone else around them. Fearful people will throw money around to hide how small and weak they really are. They buy their strength and power. And people who are generally comfortable enough with what they have will let themselves be bought and sold because 1) they don't understand the fear of being seen small or weak and 2) a little more comfort and security of access to resources is always nice.

(According to the original sin story, after eating of the fruit of Knowledge of Good and Evil, the first thing Adam did was put a fig leaf on "his weakness" and tell Eve to cover up the parts of her body that "made him weak" - then he hid from his Creator in shame...)

Haele

[cpwm17]

19. Selfishness is the root of all evil – which includes greed and bigotry.

Money is often involved.