JTW Podcast: “Are You a King?”

Okay, we know exactly what you’re thinking.  What is this Catholic monarchic conspiracy video doing on the Just Third Way blog?  Well . . . everything, actually.  You see, it turns out that what Pope Pius XI called “the Reign of Christ the King didn’t really have anything to do with establishing monarchy, and is a natural law concept, not really religious, per se.  It seems that Pius XI was countering the socialist idea of heaven here on earth with a somewhat different notion. . . .

News from the Network, Vol. 13, No. 48

Yesterday was Thanksgiving Day in the United States, and — believe it or not — there is a great deal to be thankful for.  For one thing, you’re reading this, which proves that you can read this.  Another is the publication of Economic Personalism.  Still another is that with a new administration coming in, there just might be a wiser head or two realizing politicians and academics have to start thinking outside the box instead of trying to find a different or bigger box to hide in:

Happy Thanksgiving!

 And the mega-question of today is . . . ?

Why are you fooling around on the internet when you should be spending time with your family or reading an improving book . . . like Economic Personalism?  In any event,

Hope for the Future

In the previous posting on this subject, we noted that Puerto Rico hasn’t always been an economic “basket case” by any stretch of the imagination.  A series of natural and manmade events, however, combined to put the Commonwealth in a very bad position.

A Basket Case?

 

In the previous posting on this subject, we took a brief look at the current situation of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico — and it is not good.  In social justice, however, we learn that (at least in social justice terms) “nothing is impossible.”  That doesn’t mean that something that is genuinely impossible can be done, e.g., flap your arms and fly to the Moon.  Rather, it means that by organizing using the techniques of social justice, what is impossible for one lone individual to accomplish becomes very easy (relatively speaking, anyway).

JTW Podcast: Socialism, Part 16: Where Do We Go From Here?

 

Yes, we realize that it’s so much easier to tell others what they’re doing wrong and demand that they do it right, but face it.  Do you think people really want to do things wrong?  Maybe it’s just that nobody bothered to tell them there’s a right way . . . our Just Third Way. . . .

News from the Network, Vol. 13, No. 47

 

As the political sideshow continues to consume the communications media — shades of the U.S. presidential campaign of 1876, which wasn’t decided until early March of 1877! — matters important to real people are put on a back burner or ignored entirely . . . except by us:

The Situation Today

 

As we saw in the previous posting on this subject, an idea to develop Puerto Rico in the 1970s using the Proprietary Fund for Puerto Rico went nowhere, possibly due to the influence of the eminent economist Dr. Paul Samuelson.  That does not mean, however, that something still can’t be done — despite the fact that the Commonwealth is in much worse shape today than in the 1970s.

Lollipop, Lollipop, Oh, Lolli-Lollipop

Okay, maybe it wasn’t the deepest or most meaningful song, but then it wasn’t meant to be.  The Chordettes’ version of Lollipop from 1958 (they did the second recording) hit Number 2 on Billboard.  It was pretty much the only thing they did that anyone remembers . . . well, Mister Sandman was pretty popular, too.  And a decade or so later, “the Archies” with Sugar, Sugar had another one-hit wonder.  There must be something about candy that diminishes the seriousness of the message (if any) conveyed.

The Proprietary Fund for Puerto Rico

As we hinted in the previous posting on this subject, the ideas of money, credit, banking, and finance are mere theories, but have practical applications in what we loosely term “the real world.”  One of the more interesting of these is the might-have-been of “the Proprietary Fund for Puerto Rico.”

JTW Podcast: Socialism, Part 15: “A Dialogue of the Deaf”

Back in 1984, two representatives of the Center for Economic and Social Justice (CESJ) testified before the Lay Commission on the Economy that attempted to advise the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops on the draft of their pastoral on the economy.  Remarkably, not one word of what was said made its way into the final document. . . .

News from the Network, Vol. 13, No. 46

Although the delay in announcing the official winner of the U.S. presidential race is annoying (to say the least), what is truly baffling is the behavior of the stock market, which has been soaring to new heights despite the bizarre economic and political situation.  In any event, most things seem on hold until the winner is settled and a vaccine released, but here goes:

“A Small Error in the Beginning”

In the previous posting on this subject, we looked at some fundamentals of money, credit, banking, and finance.  And we do mean “some.”  We covered key concepts, but not in any depth, primarily for informational purposes, not anything approaching a full explanation.  It was, frankly, simply a way to get into the story of how politicians and economists shackled to conventional (and wrong) notions of money and credit have managed to derail reform programs to everyone’s detriment, probably because they were afraid to look stupid or endanger their status or income . . . with the latter probably taking precedence.

A (Very) Short Treatise on Money and Banking

 

In the previous posting on this subject, we noted that a lot of the problems involving money and credit could be solved fairly simply (though not necessarily easily) by talking things out and persuading economists and policymakers to shift their thinking about such things (and, of course, do it our way. . . .).

A Framework for a Solution

Now that the dust (or whatever it is) has (sort of) settled from the election (more or less), America and the rest of the world can get back to a more immediate problem: How to make people productive so that they can take care of themselves instead of going hat-in-hand to the rich or to the State.  Nor is this an academic exercise, given that government has shown itself all-too-willing to create money backed by its own debt and throw it at the problem, thinking something has been done.

JTW Podcast: Socialism, Part 14: What Happened to Vatican II?

From the Just Third Way perspective (i.e., natural law in the Aristotelian-Thomist tradition), as a religious event, the Second Vatican Council is of no relevance.  As an application of natural law principles to counter the “new things” of socialism, modernism, and esotericism, however, it is of great importance . . . especially given the way (in our opinion) it was diverted and used to advance the very things it was intended to counter.

News from the Network, Vol. 13, No. 45

With everyone’s attention focused on the U.S. presidential election, we thought we’d provide you with a little non-election news.  We can’t say “non-political,” for in the Aristotelian-Thomist sense, economic and social justice are quintessentially political:

Something Wild and Crazy

Given that virtually the whole of the global media are focused today on the outcome of the as-of-this-writing undecided U.S. presidential election, we thought we’d do something so wild and crazy that everybody will want to read it.  And contribute their lives, fortunes, and their sacred honor to promoting the Just Third Way of Economic Personalism.

The Means of Acquiring and Possessing Private Property

“Power,” as American statesman Daniel Webster said two-hundred years ago during the Massachusetts Constitutional Convention, “naturally and necessarily property.”  Yes, the political ballot is important, but if people do not have the economic power to back up political power, what inevitably happens is that those with property seize power, or those with power, seize property.

Some Comments on the Dignity of the Human Person

 

We’ve been talking a lot about human dignity on this blog and elsewhere, so it seems like an opportune time to make a few comments . . . particularly today, when people are focused on the current election for U.S. president.

JTW Podcast: Socialism, Part 13: Economic Justice for All

As a follow-up to the previous video podcast on “the Act of Social Justice,” this week we bring you “Economic Justice for All.”  Note that although this podcast has the same title as the U.S. Bishops’ pastoral on the economy, it takes a slightly different — as well as more effective and respectful of human dignity — direction.