It's the Economy, Stupid

I am not sure how many of you have been following the presidential election, but it is winding down to the last few weeks before voting takes place for the new president of the United States. Whatever one's political views, I believe this election is one of the most important in the history of our nation, and I think the future health of our nation and our place in the world will largely hinge on the values and decisions of the upcoming leader of the free world.

There are, of course, various issues at stake, none of which are small or insignificant: the ongoing war in Iraq and Afghanistan, the mounting tensions with Iran and North Korea, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the genocide that continues to spread in Africa (as well as the pestilence of AIDS), the need for stunting the spread of global warming, the pandemic of abortions in America, the ever-growing national debt we have to other nations, and the list goes on and on.

One of the presidential slogans from a few years ago that found resonance with many voters was the catch phrase, "It's the Economy, Stupid", and this common ground brought the presidency to Bill Clinton. While there are many things to debate about, this seems to be at least one of the most important in this upcoming election. I am no economist, for sure, but it seems that we are in terrible financial shape as a nation. Republicans seem very reluctant to admit this, so that this will not seem to reflect anything that they are responsible for, but come on. Is it not obvious with the current mortgage crisis, gas prices being historically high, job loss being tremendous, the collapse of Wall Street, and again the list goes on and on.

As I have followed this election, I have come to believe more and more that something has gone awry with the American Dream and something seems to be disoriented in this smooth running machine called the free market. There is as large of a gap between the rich and the poor as there has ever been in our country, as well, and this doesn't seem to fit much of what Christ is for. As I was pondering this morning the bail-out on Wall Street, I ran across this video on the Sojourners site, and I strongly recommend it to anyone who has suspicions about our current financial morass being tied to moral issues, rather than just political ones. I would love to hear your feedback on this. The link is http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/blog/2008/09/jim-wallis-financial-crisis-ha.html