Sunday, July 8, 2012
Aristotle and Adam Smith
Aristotle said that society would flourish if each person practiced virtue because then the common good would benefit. Adam Smith said that self interest should be our motive and that some invisible hand would make good things come of that. Well, I don't know about that invisible hand but by 2008 a lot of self interest made the economy pretty bad. Maybe Aristotle was right? Wait. What will be the impetus to practice virtue? And what is the criterion for what is virtuous activity? Without a spirituality, self interest becomes greed and virtue becomes, well, self interest. "I will decide what is virtuous," each person will say. Capitalism without God is a mess of greed. Atheistic socialism was not the answer either. In my religion we have Jesus and the cross. He loves people and will give of himself for the sake of others who cannot seem to help themselves. If I was going to practice virtue or capitalism I would make sure I am getting a daily second opinion. I would ponder the Bible. A lot of people in the bible did not pay attention and they suffered the consequences. Why repeat that history?
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