Haiti Speaks to All of Us

The cries of Haitians are heard around the world and generous private and public aid is making its difficult way to the people.

Apart from the foolish diatribes of Hugo Chavez and some stupid words from the religious and secular Right, all people of conscience, regardless of faith or politics, are moved by the plight of the nation.

Haiti speaks to all of us. She is the poorest nation in the hemisphere and neither the totalitarian regimes of the Duvaliers nor the populism of Aristide nor the present government have been able to to change the factors that make Haiti's plight perennial and not just occasional.

Haiti speaks to all of us. Haiti demonstrates the long-term consequences of the trifecta of structural poverty, governmental oppression and ignorance that yield bitter fruit for the people.

Haiti speaks to all of us. The twin legacies of colonialism and militarism haunt the land. The lack of any sustained history of economic opportunity and political freedom cripple her future.

Haiti speaks to all of us. What can be done, once people are fed and rebuilding begins? Massive educational efforts must unite with real empowering economic opportunities if Haiti is to have a future different from her past. Freedom of conscience, press and religion must become pillars of the future.

Right now Haiti needs emergency help of all kinds, from water to medical care to counselors. The earthquake is a natural disaster and a national tragedy. Helping people rebuild includes helping them see a future that is different. That future includes freedom - freedom from anything that keeps justice and opportunity away. The future does not need one more dictator or neocolonial control by the USA. The future must not include the failed experiments of Cuba and Venezuela.

Haitians need the tools - both ideas and material goods - to build a unique Haitian future. But she cannot do this alone. Perhaps for a moment, the world can unite and care for the plight of millions left bereft. Perhaps for a moment ideology can give way to compassion. Perhaps for a moment some fresh water can revive the bodies and spirits of the beautiful people of Haiti.

Haiti speaks to all of us. Will we hear the cries and help? Will we hear the cries and learn?

Two Mistakes, Two Opportunities

As we look at the year ahead, The political rhetoric will heat up as we move toward the November midterm elections. Democrats will continue to blame the previous administration and try to force their way forward in Congress. Republicans will proclaim themselves the alternative to big, inefficient government and call on the voters to oust the "Beltway insiders" in Washington, D.C.

The script is so predictable and it solves nothing. If the economy is improving, The Democrats may keep their majority, though it will be reduced. If there are serious economic or foreign crises, the Republicans may roar back into some power, just like 1994. Neither of these scenarios bode well for the American people.

There are two mistakes all politicians are making. These mistakes also present two opportunities for leaders to rise above the partisanship that everyone decries but no one can seem to avoid.

Mistake Number One: Politicians forget that the money they spend is not "theirs" or "the government's". It comes from real people producing products and services and paying taxes. Democrats want to deliver resources to the poor and working class. That is noble, but endless deficit spending and inflationary policies will dry up those resources and bankrupt the future. Republicans talk a good game about balancing the budget, but no Republican administration in the last 40 years has succeeded in curbing spending and increasing efficiency.

Opportunity Number One: 2010 leaders need to speak about private-public partnerships, local, regional and state solutions to many challenges instead of one more program form Washington D.C. Health care is a moral obligation - let's deliver it creatively and personally instead of through a massive set of regulations that our lawmakers have not read. I would be more sanguine about current bills if the Senators themselves will live under their regulations!

Mistake Number Two: Conservatives complain about the incipient socialism of the current administration. I share the same concerns; however, protesting bad policy is not the same as proposing workable solutions to real problems. Conservatives forget that there are millions who need work and in the meantime need help. We can reduce our military expenditures and invest at home without sacrificing our security. A few less troops in EU countries will not inflame Muslim militants. We must rebuild public infrastructure and fund education more intelligently. We need to graduate women and men from college without debt instead of artificially propping up over-bloated administrations with loan money.

Opportunity Number Two: 2010 leaders need to communicate the outcomes, strategies and costs of what they propose. We can solve our problems with the money we have and we can start reversing the deficits and arrest the control of hostile forces over our economy. This means NO earmarks, NO unnecessary pork from Washington, D.C. to the local district. This also means no fat for the military contractors and fewer grants for marginal research. It means that some artists will have to fund their own work and that more money stay in local and state coffers.

Life is not a zero-sum game with one pizza for seven billion people to share. We have the ingenuity and resources to create prosperous and sustainable conditions for all, if we will unleash creativity instead of giving in to fear. We need to help people create wealth instead of taxing it to death. Conversely, we need to accept our ethical obligation to help the poor and improve our public life. We need statesmanship and strategic vision, not governmental ownership.

The opportunities are present. I hope we find the courage to chart a different course.

Top Ten for 2010

Today's snow has hushed the land outside my window, creating just the right moment to reflect on the year ahead.

Every blog, column, magazine and newspaper has just finished with their ten best/worst of 2009 and their trendy predictions for everything form the economy to fashion for 2010.

2010 will be an interesting year, with elections looming, global crises ever-present and most folks hoping that their families will be well and that they can take some positive steps forward.

I am eschewing predictions, prognostications and resolutions in favor of "The Top Ten Ways to be Content Regardless of Economies, Egos and Elections."

Democrat, Green, Libertarian or Republican, Emerging or Liturgical Church Member, Believer or Skeptic, if you believe that the pieces of our lives need to cohere and that Love is still possible, take a look:

1. Enjoy God. Whatever your tradition, make sure it is more than ceremonial or cursory. Take your faith seriously. Learn more. Ask more questions. Pray with faith and expect God to answer. If you are a skeptic, ask yourself whether your agnosticism or atheism is born of rational reflection or emotional reaction and start a dialogue with a person of intelligent faith. If you are a believer in God, start conversing with someone outside your world-view and allow your mind to be tested. Everyone benefits when serious conversations ensue without personal rancor or ad hominem attacks.

2. Enjoy Life and Spend Less. Let's teach our politicians that we can live well within our means. Let's teach those mindless Infomercial schemers that the keys to weight-loss remain good diet and moderate exercise, without the frozen meals, miracle machines or magic pills.

3. Enjoy Your Marriage and Family. If you are married, "Love the One You're With" as the song goes and stop comparing her or him to anyone else online, on TV or in the office. If we all had eight hours a day to workout and an unlimited budget, our bodies might look like the latest star - or not!. If you love your kids, love your spouse. If improvements are needed, start with yourself and see the impact of a selfless life.

4. Enjoy Unplugging. Once a week, take a Sabbath from all media and experience life without the cacophony of input that our Internet Age foists upon us. Yes, we need to stay informed, but we also need to reflect instead of react and that is not possible if our blood pressure rises every 30 minutes with the latest data blast. There is a big difference between information and insight. By the way, my students are still prohibited from using wikipedia as a source for research. There are better places to go for accurate information and analysis.

5. Enjoy Community. Worship with others. Volunteer to help kids and families, feed the poor or rescue abused animals. Have fun with others who share a passion for the outdoors or your sports of choice. Make 2010 even better by actually talking to these folks and getting to know them beyond their nicknames or usefulness.

6. Enjoy Work. Not all our labor is "fun." But we can enjoy work more if we bring daily gratitude and curiosity to the factory, office or store. Gratitude fosters humility and also makes us less vulnerable to petty insults and politics. Curiosity helps us find better ways of doing things, perhaps even investing new devices, services or systems that enrich everyone, from shareholders to end users.

7. Enjoy the World. Walk in the park more. Get off the computer and on a horse. Breath the scents of a botanical garden and feast your eyes on the masterpieces of the local museum and your child's classroom.

8. Enjoy Adding Value. Wake up each day with an aim to help someone move forward in their life. With such a disposition, your simple acts of kindness make you the answer to the prayers of others!

9. Enjoy Politics. Yes it is possible, IF we stay informed, stay honest with ourselves and hold all officials to the same standard, not just our "enemies." Get involved locally, helping a real person bring real good to a real region.

10. Enjoy Being You. Take some time for self-assessment. Let's make sure we are developing our strengths instead of complaining about our weaknesses. I will never be an operatic tenor; however, I can improve my writing. My future NBA career ended when I was still 5'6" tall and 135 pound as a sophomore in high school. But I can enjoy the gym and still beat most folks at ping pong!

Please notice that all of these points begin with "Enjoy." Our joy is the by-product of our choices to place first things first and live passionate and principled lives. Our feelings of happiness will vary with daily events. I am not suggesting a life that denies pain, loss and suffering - just the opposite. If we experience the wellspring of deep inner joy that comes from faith, hope and love aligned well, we will be able to have compassion and empathy for the hurting as well as the humility to ask for help when we need it most.

Let's enjoy 2010!

Invictus: Lessons from Mandela

I enjoyed the new movie Invictus. Morgan Freeman did a stellar job of portraying the early years of Nelson Mandela's leadership in post-apartheid South Africa. Mandela's willingness to forgive the past and embrace a rugby team that had been a symbol of the oppression for so many is inspiring.

Mandea's leadership provides some clues to a better future for our nation. I am not a fan of our current president, but I do pray for him to have wisdom and to be a man of integrity. When I hear echoes of the street fighter from Chicago ("You lost. Get over it.") and the leftist organizer (the recent apology tour in the presence of foreign monarchs), I become alarmed. This is not the politics of inclusion and embrace, of forging a way past partisanship. Recent arm-twisting and payola in the Senate only confirms that nothing has changed.

Mandela risked his safety and alienated the Communist elements of the ANC when he chose the pathways of forgiveness and reconciliation, of accountability and integrity (contra Mugabe in Zimbabwe to the north). He lost his marriage, upset those who wanted payback for suffering and chose the long-term course of systemic change instead of the immediate gratifications of newly-held power.

My Christmas prayer for President Obama is that he would rise above the radical imprinting of his college years and the reactionary policies of current leaders, especially his Chief of Staff. His Nobel speech was decent, but it still contained too many inflammatory implications of global governance to reassure conservatives. Mandela understood that wealth had to be created privately even while better services were delivered to the long-neglected Black public. Mandela understood that a budget still mattered and the opinions of his opponents were heard. President Obama, will you listen - not to the shrill personalities - but to the concerned citizens and leaders who represent the people who actually create wealth, contribute a higher percentage of income to charity and pay most of the taxes?

Two groups have profited from the terrible spending policies of the last 40 years: those at the top of the ladder and those connected with the government. This includes some of the academic and entertainment elites who support certain policies and the lobbyists who represent global interests. Two groups have lost ground: the middle class and the working poor.

The answer is not to overtax the productive, but create space for new business, decentralize the delivery of social services and apply the genius of the 21st century "Imagination Age" to corrupt, outmoded government systems. Where is the Steve Jobs for our government agencies?

When our elected officials get the same medical and pension benefits of private citizens, when government unions are compelled to be reasonable and business leaders held to the highest ethics, there is hope.

Mandela stood against his radical party members, reminding them that he was the leader of all South Africans.

My prayer is that President Obama will find the courage to do the same. We can do better on health care and balance a budget. We can bring our troops home and secure our safety. We can have real borders and have compassion for those working hard. The key is to not be the servant of any one interest, but the interests of all.

Peacemaking in an Age of Anger

I recently had the honor of spending some time with Dr. Peter Kusmic, one of the world's ecumenical leaders, a scholar and a man known for his peacemaking efforts in the Balkans. Peter is the brother-in-law of Dr. Miroslav Volf, a professor who anchors the Center for Religion and Culture at Yale. Both of these men take the words of Jesus seriously, "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God."

As we spoke about ethics, politics, missions, business and other current world issues, we found much common ground, even while we approached issues a bit differently. It is hard for Americans to comprehend the ethnic hatreds and suffering in the Balkans, in the Sudan, in Zimbabwe and other regions. Peter is a Pentecostal Christian in a region torn by strife between Serbian Orthodox and Croatian Muslim, with other traditions on both sides of the ethnic divide!

Out of these conversations, I want to propose some ways forward on highly divisive issues. These thoughts will not please the hard-core Left or Right, but perhaps they can be a starting point for forging consensus that leads to practical help for the broken and vulnerable among us.

International cooperation is not an option. We live in an interconnected world and cannot retreat from reality. But international coercion and a one-world governing elite would be a disaster for freedom. My conservative friends, the UN does have a place - a place for debate and discussion, for moral outrage, humanitarian help, and for peacemaking. My liberal friends, surrender of national sovereignty is antithetical to democracy and economic development. The 20th century is proof that central planning does not engender liberty.

Climate change, global warming, a coming ice age, limited resources and a burgeoning population - what do we believe and what do we do?

My conservative friends, shouting, "free markets and less regulation!" is not enough. Ethical constraints and environmental limits on capitalism are vital if we are going to prosper and have a planet for our grandchildren to enjoy. My colleagues on the Left, your foundation dollars and government salaries have to come from somewhere - it is called for-profit business! We do not need to "de-develop" the USA - we need to foster wealth creation within reasonable environmental limits, with as little government control as possible.

Government regulation is NOT the same as government administration, control and even ownership. I urge all socialists to take a look at the environmental consequences of 70 years of Soviet planning in Eastern Europe and the USSR. At the same time, the rapacious policies of several multinationals in Latin America continue to keep that vibrant continent from real prosperity.

Will we permit real, open public debate on the climate? What do we have to fear? At the same time, will all climate-change advocates who have been raking in millions in grants and profits please stand up and be counted and allow their lifestyles to be examined? Meanwhile, global corporations must be held to account for how they treat the environment. Such accountability can take place without an one-world government, if nations will negotiate in good faith.

My business friends, we must think about sustainable enterprises that bring reward for risk and return good to the world.

For over 40 years both political parties have failed to restrain spending. My Republican friends, I join you in opposing much of the new spending proposed by the current administration. However, conservatives must be willing to have every part of government spending scrutinized - including the military and the subcontracting of security to private firms. I have family members and friends that were and are part of the defense industry and all of them, in honest moments, admit that there is much waste. George Will years ago said that conservatives like to rail about less government while taking full advantage of all her benefits. Let's get honest and understand that smarter thinking and streamlined processes will not be easy.

I challenge all elected, appointed and career federal officials to get off their special gravy trains and be part of the same medical and retirement programs the rest of us have. While scores of my friends look for work, the federal salaries are rising and the bureaucracy is growing - not a good sign.

We must be honest about history. FDR's policies did create temporary jobs and build infrastructure. But the real turnaround came as private and public agencies geared for war and the new technologies it spawned fueled the prosperity of the post-WWII generation. So we may need some government help to stimulate some sectors - but not permanent control of large portions of the economy.

Let's decide to balance the budget over the next three to five years. "It is not that simple," many say. Why not? Where is the courage to take on ALL the special interests, from arts to education to subsidies for agriculture, to military programs and pet projects in particular districts. (I read that the recent spending proposed in Congress has over 5000 earmarks. We are waiting for your pencil, Mr. President!)

Wall Street avarice created the current crisis. But government policies encouraged "flexible" lending practices and the people we entrust our hard-earned tax dollars to refuse to change their habits. Several governors are leading the way in budgeting - let's learn from them.

Peacemaking is our theme. Howard Dean, capitalism is not the enemy and socialism is no solution. Sean Hannity, repeating conservative mantras will not move us forward either. Wealth creation moderated by sound ethics and governmental policies is the way forward. Private initiative must be primary - in business and charity, with governmental help when needed.

Now to the two social issues that raise voices before anyone is heard.

Abortion ends the life of a human being, whether she is defined as actual or potential, a fetus or a baby. Let's stop the verbal nonsense and once and for all expose the real issue: many folks do not want to live with the consequences of their decisions. If the sexual intimacy was consensual, then the unborn child deserves our protection. "A woman's right to choose" includes the choice to have consensual sex with her partner. My liberal friends are already screaming, "it is not that simple. Some impoverished women really do not have choices and some scared teenager deserves her life back. You are so insensitive!" My conservative friends are already angry because i used the word consensual as a qualifier.

Apart form rape or incest - and we need to create a climate where these can be exposed while protecting the victims - abortion is rarely a medical necessity, physically or psychologically. The small percentage of cases where a mother's life is in danger deserve compassion and perhaps the permission of a tragic moral choice; however, this is not a large number of the more than 40 million dead since Roe v. Wade. The victims of non-consensual sex who courageously carry to term and either raise the child or release to adoptive parents deserve all our support. For those who have had abortions, compassion, forgiveness and reconciliation is the order of the day.

Even if my position is not the majority opinion culturally or legally, doctors and nurses who refuse to perform elective abortions should not be ostracized or penalized. This is intolerance from the other side of the debate.

I recently heard one male point of view in a coffee shop: "Abortion is OK. If I want to have a one-night stand I should not have to pay for it the rest of my life, and oh, yeah, neither should she." What a sad window into the hedonism of our day.

Gay marriage is the other hot potato. Most world religions affirm the sanctity of monogamous heterosexual marriage. The Judeo-Christian marriage ethic has been the core of our Western Culture for centuries. In the last 40 years gay activists have been crying our for full equality. How do we reconcile these two very divergent perspectives?

A little anthropology, biology, history, psychology and sociology helps. Clans and communities, nations and empires throughout history have honored heterosexual marriage as a social contract, a religious sacrament and an essential foundation for the future. My GLBT friends, your call for civility and tolerance of your private adult sexual activity is one thing, overthrowing the sacred traditions of world faiths is another. In fact, the GLBT agenda continues to morph from toleration of private activity in the 1970s to benefits for domestic partners in the 1980s and 1990s to the strident call to redefine marriage in the 2000s.

Here is a way forward: Other forms of domestic partnership can have legal status without the title marriage. Adult partners can still have benefits, create ceremonies and legally bind themselves to each other; however, marriage is reserved for monogamous heterosexual unions that have proven to be the key to health and stability and remain the ideal for billions all over the world.

There is no place for intolerance or violence toward any person, regardless of orientation. But toleration does not mean a person must agree with another person's choices. Clergy must never be forced to marry or unite people against their faith. If a particular group dissents from the rest of their particular religion or sect, they are free to create their own community - but they should not hijack or subvert the faith of others in the process.

Traditionalists must live at peace with non-traditionalists without being forced to agree with them. This is the genius of our Constitution and Bill of Rights. My neighbors live together as an unmarried couple. I would love them to marry and come to faith; however, they are great folks and I am happy to know them. We help each other and have fun discussing all types of topics. They are smart enough to know we disagree about the (what we view as) incomplete nature of their union; we know that they are made in God's image and bring good to the world and deserve our love and respect.

Defending traditional marriage will be on better ground if those who claim faith and fidelity practice it. Hypocrisy and scandal are grist for the subversive mill.

Public education must not replace one form of perceived intolerance with another. Religious children should not be forced to listen to "education" that is a mask for moral relativism, promiscuity and sexual experimentation outside of an adult relationship. At the same time, no student should be afraid if they are "different." Wherever possible, Christians should be the best friends they can be with the people they disagree with most.

Emperor Julian (called "the Apostate" in the 360s because he sought to revive paganism against the growing influence of Christianity) lamented that the Christians far surpassed their pagan neighbors in sacrificial service to poor, whether Christian or not. If only this was the testimony of the non-religious today.

Peacemaking is arduous, halting and takes time. It cannot fit a 20 second sound bite and it will rarely be understood in its early stages. But it is worth the effort. We can have Zimbabwe or South Africa; we can have the Balkans or Ireland. In the USA we can shout, "Foul" to all the ideas of our opponents, or start with the values we share and build from there.

As we honor the Prince of Peace, let's resolve to be people of peace.

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