Reflections of a Political Orphan

(I started this blog post before the election in 2020 but never finished it.  After reading my initial paragraphs, I realized nothing really has changed and it would be appropriate for the 2024 election, provided I could finish it on time!)

The 2024 election season is quickly coming to a close, and just like 2016 and 2020, I again find myself without a political home.

My views on abortion, sexuality, gender, economics, guns, Harris, and the arrogance and hypocrisy of the self-righteous left prevents me from voting Democrat.

But my views on immigration, universal health care, the environment, guns, Trump, and the conspiracy-leaning, closed-minded right prevents me from voting Republican.

What's a man to do?  How do I vote when I find the major platforms of both parties (not to mention the beliefs and lifestyles of their respective candidates) to often be immoral, unethical and unbiblical. It is helpful for me, then, to reflect on who I truly am.

I am a proud citizen of the United States of America.  With all her faults, she is still the best country in the world, in my not-so-humble opinion.  But this citizenship is just temporary.  My true and permanent citizenship is in heaven, and my eternal allegiance is to Jesus Christ.  This status was not attained or decided on by me, nor is it the result of where I was born.  No, this citizenship was bought with an extreme price - the sacrifice of my God and Savior.  His brutal death, sorrowful burial, and glorious resurrection, secured my place in this eternal home that he built for me.

No civilization lasts forever, and the last three elections (not to mention our response to COVID) makes me wonder if perhaps we are witnessing the very beginning of the end of this great and fantastic experiment in self-government, brought on by the inevitable consequence of the human condition that cannot escape it's sinful bent towards self-preservation, greed, and divisiveness.  

I hope I'm wrong.  But if I'm not, it's ok.  Why?  Because we have a hope that is not rooted in how powerful the United States is, let alone who wins this election.  Our hope is in Jesus Christ.  Guys, Jesus has never lost an election!  He is the King of kings, and the Lord of lords.  And that will not change come November 6.  He is our King, he is sovereign, he is in control, and we have nothing to fear.  I assure you, God is not freaking out.  He is not worried, he is not wringing his hands.  He has put the nations and their leaders in place and they are subject to Him!

Yet I can't help but think we keep forgetting this.  I can't tell you how many Christians I have talked to or observed who exhibit a deep-seated fear of the results of this election.  Christian, this should not be!  It's as if we don't think the gospel is strong enough to stand in this world on its own, therefore we require collusion and capitulation with the political institutions of our day in order to be relevant (and gain a few tax exemptions along the way, of course). Nothing could be further from the truth.  In fact, history has shown the visible power of the gospel often grows in direct response to the persecution of its disciples, rather than its support (I know, it makes me uncomfortable too).  But that cross, the symbol and event that seems foolish to so many, is the very power of God in our life, and will sustain and keep you through any political turmoil.

I've said it before, but it bears repeating - it is not our job to make America a Christian nation.  It never was.  And our confusion on this point has led to a church in America that is weak, confused, and just one of many consumer-oriented organizations built on supporting the nation-state, hoping our influence will give us perks and punish our enemies (legally, of course).  No, our job is to build "a church that again asserts that God, not nations, rules the world, that the boundaries of God's kingdom transcend those of Caesar, and that the main political task of the church is the formation of people who see clearly the cost of discipleship and are willing to pay the price." (1)

The acknowledgment of this hope gives me confidence in my vote.  I can prayerfully cast my ballot with a clean conscience, even if it is third-party, knowing ultimately God will sanctify my decision and use the result to his glory, whatever that may be.

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(1) Stanley Hauerwas and William H. Willimon, Resident Aliens, 1989, p . 

My Favorite Computer Games of All Time

There is a thing going around Facebook right now where you post your Top 10 favorite video games, one per day.  I don't have that sort of patience, and it sounded like a fun exercise, so after much vigorous internal debate, here is my list, starting with #1.

1. Counter-Strike: Source

I've logged thousands of hours against this 16-year old game, and I still play it numerous times per week.  New multiplayer, team-based FPS games seem to come out every week, but no one has knocked the king from its perch yet.



2. Mass Effect 1

Mass Effect was the best combination of story, role-playing, graphics, and immersion that I have ever played.  Mass Effect 2 actually received more critical acclaim, but it couldn't touch ME1 in my opinion.  When the final song kicked in during the credits, it gave me chills.  (The song is M4, Pt. II by Faunts.  You can see the credits and song here.)

3. Half Life 2 

The original Half-Life was revolutionary.  And I had a hard time deciding if I wanted to put HL1 or HL2 here.  But HL2 did the impossible - supplied a story as good as HL1, while improving the graphics, providing awesome and original weapons (has any weapon ever been more fun than the gravity gun?), and left you wanting more.  Wherefore art though, HL3?

4. Skyrim 

My second most-played game after Counter-Strike.  The story was solid, the characters were great, and the setting beautiful.  And with so much additional content, side-quests, and user-created mods, the fun just kept coming for years.  Here is my ranger, Juliette, standing on a cliff over the city of Whiterun.


5. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. - Call of Pripyat 

The STALKER series is definitely the dark horse of the bunch.  All three were great, but I loved the second installment the best.  From the quirky Russian story line and characters, to the eerie and infamous setting, along with the unexpected RPG component, the game was one of the best.  This one actually had me afraid to look around the corner...

6. Dragon Age: Origins 

Another great story-based role-playing game in a unique and believable fantasy setting.  Dragon Age had story, characters, and romance!  Normally I'm not a big fan of third-person perspective, but it really works here.



7. Banner Saga 1 

I did not expect to like this game as much as I did, let alone have it become a top ten favorite.  It is not very complex, and utilizes basic graphics. But it all works, with a fantastic story, a wonderful setting, and engaging races and lore. And some tough choices lead to permanent deaths. No Hollywood endings here!


8. Deus Ex 

Deus Ex is just a great all-around game, adding stealth and adventure to the exceptional RPG components.  The player has a myriad of choices to solve a problem, with none of them being "right" except the one you choose.  And any game that quotes G.K. Chesterton is totally legit in my book.


9. Planetfall 

Infocom had a huge run in the 80's creating computer games with no graphics at all.  Just text read like a book, with the player changing the course of the game by typing basic commands. Zork is the most famous, but I loved Planetfall the best.  The game was comedic genius, right up to the moment when I suddenly found myself bawling.  And I wasn't the only one.


10. Lords of Conquest 

Oh, the hours we wasted at college on LOC!  Most games on this list are story-based, but it is bookended by two games that work best when played with another human.  LOC is a strategy game with a depth that is masked by its alluring simplicity.  Unfortunately, the most recent version we have is a crappy DOS-based version; the game is in desperate need of a modern overhaul.

So, what's on your list?

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Honorable Mentions

System Shock 2 (Windows)
Astrosmash (Intellivision)
Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 (PC)
Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis (PC)
Wing Commander III (PC)
Speedball 2: Brutal Deluxe (Amiga)
David's Midnight Magic (C64)

Is Anyone Listening?

The recent horrific events of Parkland, Florida, has thrust the topic of guns front and center, yet again.  As if we needed another thing to tear us apart.  The blood wasn't even scrubbed off the sidewalks  and we're at each other's throats, unable to even do the decent thing and keep our mouths shut while the parents and a community grieve over the unexpected and tragic loss of their children.

If there was a time to put aside differences, to come together, to be united, to shoulder each other's burdens, to listen, would this not be it?  Apparently not.  Apparently this is exactly the time to divide ourselves even further, with shrill and vociferous diatribes spewing forth to ignite the fires of anger and malice.  We'd rather talk about our rights, our views, and all the reasons we know best, despite the fact most of us have never lost a child to a violent encounter with a deranged gunman. Even our president feels this is the right time to leverage these tragic deaths and try to take the heat off his own sorry situation.  Pathetic

My wife and I were talking recently, discussing what the 2016 election and subsequent year of politics seems to have done to our national psyche.  The public square has degenerated into vindictive memes and barbed sound bites, expressing deep disdain, even hatred, for those who view the world differently.  We now even wish for our own American athletes to lose in competition with foreign nations, or worse, incur an injury, because they criticized our president.

What seems to have been missed by many, is that the shooting occurred on Wednesday, February 14th.  Ash Wednesday.  The first day of Lent, and a Christian holy day for peace.  Where are the peacemakers?  Where are the voices of reason?  Where are the soft responses that scripture tells us will turn away wrath?  I'm sorry, you wanted us to actually practice what we preach?

Christians always talk about not being part of this culture, or "counter-cultural" as they say.  But to paraphrase the words of a famous Spaniard, "I do not think those words mean what you think they mean."  Because counter-cultural means behaving in a way that is different than the culture around us.  Now, if we only had some tangible description on what that actually looked like...

Wait, we do!  The Bible is full of principles and commands on how to be a light in a culture full of darkness.  Paul's final instructions to the church at Colossae is but one example of many:

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Notice how the passage says, "Make the most of every opportunity to let everyone know it is your right to own a gun, and let your conversation be full of sarcasm and harshness toward any obnoxious liberal misguided enough to believe gun control will help solve the problem."  Oh, wait, it doesn't say that?  I could have sworn a verse like that must be in Scripture somewhere, they way we talk sometimes.  But no such verse exists, of course.  Just the opposite, in fact - repeated exhortations to love your enemy, to gather the outcast under our wings, to treat the foreigners in your borders as one of our own, to turn the other cheek, and to approach each conversation as an opportunity to expand the kingdom of heaven here on earth.

Wait, Jerry, don't you support the right to own guns?  Of course I do. I just also happen to believe the root of the problem is deeply spiritual, and therefore requires a response rooted in the spiritual wisdom that comes from the Word of God, not necessarily man's wisdom that comes from a political document.  And for me, fulfilling our God-given obligation to deliver the weak from the hand of the wicked means engaging in honest and open conversations about common-sense parameters we can put in place to reduce the carnage that is now so commonplace, we are in danger of becoming desensitized to it's horror.

And as long I'm offending people (in for a penny, in for a pound I say), I need to ask, how effective is salt when it is sitting in a container with the rest of the salt?  It's not.  Our scriptural mandate to be the salt of the earth, to be the light on a hill, can only be accomplished if we are engaged in our communities and in our schools.  Removing ourselves from the very institutions that need us the most, then pointing fingers at how godless they have become is a self-fulfilling prophecy.  When we decide to withdraw into our own little protected enclaves, then we abdicate any moral high ground we think we have on the solution, in my not-so-humble opinion.

My niece, Jenette Lauridsen, in a Facebook post full of wisdom said, "These mass shootings, that have plagued our society for decades, that have taken our children and fellow human beings in such a violent manner, have become secondary (and in some cases completely forgotten), in the bid to prove who is right."

Christian, this isn't the time to be "right".  This is the time to be the broken hands and feet of our savior, ministering to the hurting, advocating for the helpless, and suffering with those who suffer.  And doing it quietly, as to not draw attention to ourselves.

We want everyone to listen to us.  But are we talking so much, and so loud, we can't hear the voice of God as he attempts to lead his people through this wilderness?

My Journey Through the Third-Party Landscape

Ever since I declared I'm not voting for Hillary or Trump (and apparently sold my soul to the devil in the process), I've had a few people ask me, so just who are you voting for?  I will answer that question at the very end of this post, for those of you who like to jump to the end of the book to see how the story ends.

If you're like me, you probably had no idea just how expansive and fascinating the third-party landscape is in our United States.

For example, did you know outside of the Democratic and Republican parties, there are actually 29 candidates for the 2016 presidency that are on at least one state ballot?  (If you include write-in only candidates that do not have a ballot status, the number jumps to 560!)

Let's break that down further.  There are three candidates that are on 20 or more state ballots:

• Gary Johnson (Libertarian Party)
• Darrell Castle (Constitution Party)
• Dr. Jill Stein (Green Party)

And there are five candidates that are on between 5 and 20 state ballots:

• Evan McMullin (Independent)
• Gloria LaRiva (Party of Socialism and Liberation)
• Rocky de la Fuente (Reform Party USA)
• Emidio "Mimi" Soltysik (Socialist Party USA)
• Alyson Kennedy (Socialist Workers Party)

But the real fun lies with the 21 candidates that are on less than 5 state ballots.  Intriguing options abound, such as independent Joseph "Joe Exotic" Maldonado (pictured here), or good 'ol Dan Vacek, of the Legalize Marijuana Now party.  You have "Princess" Jacob-Fambro, representing the fiery Revolutionary Party.  And we can't forget independent Ryan Scott, who is running his entire campaign via the crowdfunding site Indiegogo. (So far, a grand total of 4 backers have pushed him just barely over his goal of raising $1,100.)

Pacifists can cast their precious vote for Bradford Lyttle, who may get a boost from this weekend's powerful anti-war film, Hacksaw Ridge.  You know, I wanted to poke fun at Lyttle, but after reading about his life, I'm a bit ashamed.  The man is passionate, articulate, educated, and absolutely dedicated to finding peaceful solutions to the world's problems.  He has traveled to hot spots like Moscow and Afghanistan, and written two powerful letters to Obama and Putin,  I wish our leaders were as dedicated to discussing the issues and solving problems.  You may not agree with him, but I think maybe his worldview is closer to Jesus' than we might want to admit.

The Prohibition party is alive and well.  It's two candidates, Jim Hedges (who was a professional tuba player!) and Bill Bayes, run on a platform dedicated to making illegal the production, transportation, and sale of all drugs including alcohol.  On the other hand, they are firm believers in climate change and have pledged their support to any global effort attempting to mitigate its effects. Go figure.

I was also intrigued by the American Solidarity Party.  When I saw "solidarity" I figured it must be some sort of Communist pinko liberal group or something.  Turns out I couldn't be more wrong.  The party strongly espouses a Christian worldview, though this view will differ from that of most "Christians" in the United States.  In other words, the right to life, a traditional view of marriage, and freedom of religion are strong platform values.  But so are more decidedly left-leaning views on the environment, immigration, and healthcare.

(C'mon now, we all know Jesus Christ would not want anything to do with immigrants, only gives lip service to the poor, and has a strong desire to obliterate the beautiful creation he made, right?  Who do these people think they are, trying to be consistent with Jesus' message through their whole platform.  Radicals...)

We could talk about these third parties all day.  If such things interest you, the Politics1 2016 election page is a great place to start.

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But what about me?  For this election, it comes down to two choices.

The first is Darrell Castle and Scott Bradley, of the Constitution Party.  Darrell is a born-again Christian, and the party platform reads like true conservative's dream ticket.  As one can imagine from the name, the party takes a very literal view on the Constitution.  In other words, if its not in the Constitution, the federal government shouldn't be doing it (healthcare, federal taxes, the IRS).  Conversely, if it is in there, then there is not much left to discuss (gun control, defense).

It is ironic, then, that many of the party's platforms are often viewed as "radical", such as dismantling the IRS, abandoning the federal income tax system, and returning all federally-owned public land to the states.  We are so used to living under such a massive government nanny, I'm not sure most Americans realize just how out-of-bounds our government has grown.

I like the fact that the Constitution Party has been around for a long time - since 1992. It has had time to hone it's platform and think through the issues.  The party is consistent, and has a very clear view of the values that put the United States on the map.  The strength of the party means there is a cohesive national presence, and Castle/Bradley appear on the ballots in 24 states, including Michigan.

However, I am uncomfortable with the party's total renunciation of the "perceived" threat of man-made climate change, rejection of all amnesty for any immigrants currently living in the United States illegally, and a call for a moratorium on all immigration until immigration law has been reformed.  I'm all for a common-sense approach to immigration, but this stance seems overly harsh.

In addition, I'm not sure Castle has the experience.  He has had a full and storied life.  He has been involved in politics and law for a very long time.  And he has served inside the Constitution Party for many years as well.  But he really hasn't held any public office of note, serving only in various party chairman roles, and also as the 2008 party VP candidate.  The lack of experience concerns me.

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So who's left?  Evan McMullin and Mindy Finn.  McMullin/Finn are running as independents out of Utah.  My wife pointed me to McMullin a couple weeks ago, and it has been fascinating watching his clout grow so quickly in such a short time since he announced his candidacy on August 16.

Evan is a Mormon, and has become something of a rock star in Utah.  His no-nonsense view of our political landscape, combined with an easy-going and non-divisive demeanor, make the conservative McMullin/Finn ticket very appealing indeed.  If you've not heard of McMullin before, this ABC News story is a great intro.

As independents, McMullin and Finn do not have a party platform to lean on.  However, they have developed a very comprehensive, conservative-based viewpoint on all the major issues facing our country today.  One thing I appreciate about their platform is that it encompasses what in the past has been called "compassionate conservatism".  Acknowledging that we have a responsibility to those in need, and those who desire to call this great country home.

For instance here is what McMullin said about the refugee crisis:  "So, I think there’s a lot of hysteria, unjustified hysteria around the refugee situation. And I think we need to be more careful, and thoughtful, and accurate with the way we talk about that issue, because it has implications for a variety of other interests that we have overseas."

He has a bit more experience than Castle working inside our actual government, but not by much.  As a CIA operative, he drove intelligence and counter-terrorism operations in the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia.  Evan was a senior advisor to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs (no doubt due to his extensive "boots on the ground" experience in the world's most volatile hotspots), and has also served as the chief policy director of the House Republican Conference.

After all this research, I am going to cast my vote for Evan McMullin.  Evan is only on the ballot in 11 states.  Michigan is not one of them, so the write-in route will have to do.  Note: If you are going to write-in Evan, make sure you spell his name right, or it won't count.  Not only that, but you also need to write-in "Nathan Johnson" as the vice presidential candidate.  Why not Mindy Finn?  Read this How to Vote for Evan page to understand.  Best to bring a little card into the booth with you, just to make sure.

As McMullin's website says: This election is about more than the White House. It’s about the character of our nation.

God bless.

God is freaking out!

A couple weeks ago I posted a blog entry outlining why I felt Christians should not vote for Donald Trump.  The resulting commentary was very educational.  For instance, here are a few things I learned about me:

• I am a coward
• Some people are ashamed of me
• I'm not really a pastor
• I'm very judgmental, and not forgiving
• I am gullible
• I don't care about my children
• I am responsible for helping kill America

But the most important thing I learned is that God must be freaking out.  Apparently, voting third-party is the same thing as voting for Hillary Rodham Clinton, and if she wins, the apocalypse will be upon us, and God is powerless to stop it.  So God needs me to plug my nose, ignore my conscience, and vote for Trump in order to save our future from the possibility of a liberal Supreme Court.  Or a woman president.  Or something.

And that is what I just do not understand.  This pervasive and overwhelming feeling of fear and desperation emanating from from all corners of Christianity.  Jesus said, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."  Instead of grasping this truth, we are desperate to once again feel the shallow security of a government that was in bed with the church, and completely incapable of trusting our all-powerful God when it's not.  Of course we keep saying "God is in control."  But are we acting like it?

One influential minister claims that if Hillary is elected "the church in America will be severely crippled."  Really?  Hillary Clinton has the power to cripple the church of Jesus Christ?  Think about that for a moment.   How sad to have such an incredibly low view of the church, and the power that sustains it.  And this is why I dismiss such claims from those who would so quickly sow discontent and fear amongst the believers.

Before Jesus was crucified, he was grilled by Pontius Pilate, the Roman principal governor over Judea at the time.  Pilate kept pushing Jesus, trying to pin him down.  Was he a troublemaker?  A criminal?  A king?  Jesus told him, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.”

It is not my job to save this country.  It is not my job to make America "Christian" again, or great again, or whatever.  It is my job to love God with my whole heart, and to love my neighbor as myself.  As one blogger said, "[The apostle] Paul didn’t tell the government to overcome evil with good. He told us to."

Do I love this country?  Of course I do.  Do I want to see it succumb to liberal poppycock?  Not at all.  Do I want the travesty of Roe vs. Wade to continue?  God forbid.  And I will vote accordingly.  Because I do not buy the line that a vote for Trump is the vote for life.  As one blogger stated so lucidly, "Trump is a walking-anecdote for the various cultural ideologies and trajectories that the pro-life movement opposes. Specifically, by voting for Trump, they endorse someone who in his personal life has not merely lived in, but *reveled* in the moral atmosphere and commitments that stand beneath our abortion culture."

Every single article or posting that attempts to devalue a third-party vote usually spends an inordinate amount of time first explaining why Hillary is not fit for holding office.  This is unnecessary.  We understand that HRC and her platform is antithetical to traditional Christian faith, that she is a criminal, and that she and her hypocritical followers are unable to draw the obvious connection between the treatment poor black men receive in our criminal justice system, and the disparately favorable status enjoyed by Hillary Rodham Clinton - a poster child for the powerful rich, white elite of this country.  I get it.  I really do!  :)   This is why I am not voting for her.

But it is also for the very same reason that I cannot vote for Donald Trump.  I feel in my heart I would be a hypocrite if I did.  I cannot vote for the lesser of two evils, as I am still voting for evil.  As one third-party candidate said, if we do not have a principled electorate, how can we have expect a principled president?

I've had a number of people ask me who I am voting for.  Next week I'll outline a few viable candidates, and who I am leaning toward.

God bless.

Trump is a pervert and Christians should think twice before voting for him

The end is almost complete.  Most great institutions often crumble from within, and that is exactly what we are seeing with American evangelicalism.  For so many years we evangelicals have warned about the evils pressing in from all sides.  Hollywood is eroding our Christian heritage!  Planned Parenthood is the devil incarnate!  Liberal judges will take away all our religious liberty!  But apparently, while we were all out hunting dangerous wild animals, we've let the foxes guard the hen house.

How can so many of our Christian and evangelical leaders continue to be avid and vocal supporters of Donald Trump?  I am confused by their justifications, disgusted with their excuses, and baffled by their rationalizations of supporting a man who is racist, lecherous, misogynistic, disgusting, petty, and crude.  He is a liar.  He is arrogant. He is a cheater.

But most of all, Trump is a pervert.  I can use no other word to describe a man who revels in his sexual conquests, cheats on his multiple wives, objectifies women's physical attributes, jokes about sexual assault, and frames his relationship with his own daughter in sexual terms.  I haven't listened to all the recent tapes, I only know the snippets that I have read in the news.  But that is enough.  More than enough.  You don't need to take the lid off the garbage to know it stinks inside.

But none of that seems to matter.  And that is deeply disappointing.  Oh sure, we give appropriate lip service. Robert Jeffress, pastor of First Baptist Church in Dallas and a member of Trump's Evangelical Executive Advisory Board (really?), said the comments were "lewd, offensive, and indefensible."  But of course, he's still voting for Trump.  I guess they are a little bit defensible after all, eh Mr. Jeffress?  Tell me, what happened to traditional family values?

Many of the Christian leaders who are supporting Trump were scathing critics of Bill Clinton's moral failures.  In September of 1989, James Dobson wrote, "What has alarmed me throughout this episode has been the willingness of my fellow citizens to rationalize the President’s behavior even after they suspected, and later knew, that he was lying.  That disregard for morality is profoundly disturbing to me.  What are they learning from Mr. Clinton? What have we taught our boys about respecting women? What have our little girls learned about men?"  Amazing.  The irony would be laughable, if it wasn't so pathetically sad.

Where are the men of our faith?  Where are the men who will stand up and say, this is wrong?  Excuse me, but you don't "nudge, nudge, wink, wink" sexual harassment.  You just don't.  So I have to question the integrity and sincerity of any man who continues with the facade that this is somehow OK, and Trump is the only choice for the discerning Christian.

Hugely popular evangelist Beth Moore recently tweeted:

So, do the one-in-six women who have been sexually assaulted even matter in all this?  Or are they simply necessary collateral in our hell-bent desire to keep Hillary out of the White House?

Let's be clear.  This is not about Hillary Clinton.  This is not about potential Supreme Court nominations. This is about refusal to be the gatekeepers of truth and integrity, as we are called to be. Is God not in control?  Is He not sovereign?  Do you really think he is up there pacing back and forth with a furrowed brow, wringing his hands in fear of a Hillary Clinton presidency?

Remember, Christian leader, it is not your job to keep American a "Christian" nation.  It is your job to protect the holy church.  It is your job to infuse the darkness with your light. It is your job to be an example of what it means to be a Godly man.  It is your job to provide an environment where Christian women are empowered to live out their God-given identity in Christ, not left feeling ignored, hurt, and second-class.  How dare you not take that seriously.

REI Bucks a Trend. It's About Time.

There has been much debate as of late, on the subject of capitalism.  The system itself has been getting quite a black eye not only in social media, but often in the general press as well.  The for-profit nature of capitalism often irks those leaning toward a more socialist or communist mindset.  Ben Gliniecki, a pro-Marxist who balked at a recently instituted $6 fee to visit Marx's grave site claimed, "There are no depths of irony, or bad taste, to which capitalists won't sink if they think they can make money out of it."

And I must admit, at times, I find it hard to argue with Mr. Gliniecki.  Decisions last year by most major retail outlets to open their stores not just early on Black Friday, but back into Thanksgiving evening as well, would support his position.  Corporations which already are making money hand-over-fist, force their employees, who are often working at low wages as it is, to work on a day dedicated to family and giving thanks.  Nothing seems right about that.

Many of my conservative friends place capitalism right up there with apple pie, family values and the divinity of Christ.  Don't you dare criticize, they say, else you be labelled a pinko commie, or even worse, a liberal.  I find myself hesitant to criticize the principles of capitalism too much.  As flawed as it is, I believe it is the best system around for generating a sustainable middle class, for giving citizens opportunity to succeed, and for eliminating waste.  Yet capitalism unchecked has this tendency to devolve into a rabid self-indulgence, a constant need to feed our insatiable appetite for more, better, and bigger.

So what are the checks against this hyper and destructive capitalism? There are two, I believe.

First, is simply being content with what we have.  In Philippians 4:11-13, the apostle Paul says, "I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength."

If capitalism has grown too big for its britches, then we need to starve the beast.  Keep your used car a little bit longer.  Shop at Goodwill and Salvation Army for clothes.  Trade toys with friends and neighbors.  These stores are open on Thanksgiving because we are complicit in this ugly development.  So stop shopping on Thanksgiving.

(By the way, if you struggle with contentment, check out The Global Richlist.  It always puts things into perspective for me.)

Secondly, is the aspect of simply decency.  Ethics.  A code of conduct that respects the employees that work for you.  I am blessed to work for a company that puts its money where its mouth is when it comes to employee satisfaction.  We understand that valued employees, who are compensated properly, given excellent benefits, and solid healthcare are happy employees.  And happy employees return their loyalty in spades.

But can this mindset work in the cutthroat world of retail?  Well, REI thinks it can.  Yesterday the popular outfitter store announced that not only would they be closed on Thursday, but on Black Friday as well.  And as if that wasn't enough, they are actually going to still pay their employees for working on Friday.  Amazing.  Jerry Stritzke, REI CEO said, "We think that Black Friday has gotten out of hand."

Now, the cynical among us might claim that this is just a ploy, a gimmick to increase sales overall when Black Friday sales are already down from previous years.  Maybe, but to be honest, even if true, I really don't care.  I find it hard to criticize a store that actually closes on the biggest shopping day of the year, and pays its employees instead to go out and enjoy God's creation.  Congrats, REI.  Hopefully this is part of a new trend.