With the signing of Pope Leo XIV’s first encyclical scheduled for today, there is the potential for the dawning of a new day for economic and social justice — and we intend to do what we can. CESJ is not a Catholic or even a religious organization, and the Just Third Way is not a religious movement, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t take full advantage of the efforts of a global leader to bring some sanity and commonsense to the world . . . and (eventually) result in the adoption of the Economic Democracy Act:
• Spanish Translation of Economic Personalism. The big news this week is the signing today of Pope Leo XIV’s first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas — a follow-up to Pope Leo XIII’s landmark document Rerum Novarum from 1891 — to be released later this month. This ties in with the publication of CESJ’s Personalismo Económico: Propiedad, Poder y Justicia para Cada Persona, the Spanish translation of Economic Personalism (2020). Not by coincidence, Economic Personalism, whether in English or the new translation in Spanish, serves as an excellent “orientation book” to “Catholic social teaching.” Why do we put “Catholic social teaching” in quotes? Because the documents known as “the social encyclicals” are only nominally religious documents and are based on human reason, not divine (or papal) fiat. Although the encyclicals are drenched in religious language, not a single argument is based on anything God, however you construe your deity, purportedly said or didn’t say. Instead, you can cut out all the religious talk and not change the basic arguments. Similarly, Economic Personalism, while there is a lot of “religious” language and citing of the social encyclicals in it — and the book was originally requested by some Vatican officials as an orientation book for the Just Third Way of Economic Personalism, does not rely on them or any specific concept or revelation of God to make sense. The entire argument is based on natural law discerned by reason, and thus the “Catholic” book — which even has an “imprimatur” or official notice that it contains nothing contrary to Catholic faith and morals (as does an algebra or chemistry book) — can be read with profit by anyone of any faith or philosophy without danger that he or she will imbibe Catholic religious or faith-based doctrine. Interestingly, Economic Personalism in English, Spanish, or any other language, could serve as an orientation book for a new “Task Force” on “Project Economic Justice” . . . and the pope’s new encyclical just might be the trigger for such an initiative which could be for people of all faiths and philosophies. Ultimately, of course, the idea is for every country in the world to adopt the Economic Democracy Act (EDA) . . . but maybe we’ll get an encyclical on economic justice, too, as suggested in Economic Personalism.
• Hallelujah I’m a Bum. Many years ago, when people had trouble finding work, there were actually individuals who didn’t want to work even if they could have found a job — or at least satirically pretended they didn’t. Their unofficial anthem was “Hallelujah, I’m a Bum,” which even got published in the IWW (“Wobblies”) songbook of 1908 (and we bet you didn’t know the Wobblies even had a songbook; neither did we; now you know), satirizing look at poverty and unemployment. One of the lines from the song is, “How the hell can I work when there's no work to do?” Good question — but according to Elon Musk and his ultra-wealthy friends cited in an article in Business Insider, a world without work will be characterized by “universal high income”!!!! And where does this money come from? As near as we can tell, the cash falls from the skies, because the government doesn’t create it and can’t tax that much, and even the ultra-wealthy don’t have enough money to fund the program for more than a day or two: global consumer spending is estimated at around $70 trillion. Unfortunately for Musk’s idea, the aggregate wealth of the upper 1% — or about 95% of the total global wealth — is estimated at $52 trillion. Assuming a generous ROI of 10%, the wealth of the upper 1% should generate $5.2 trillion per year. Assuming again that income is taxed at the average global rate of 34.8%, total tax revenue would equal $1.81 trillion . . . which doesn’t cover the global cost of government at an estimated $16.3 trillion per year, leaving a shortfall met by monetizing government deficits and leaving nothing for redistribution. What’s incredible is that Musk’s fantasy could become (in a way) reality if every country would adopt the Economic Democracy Act (EDA).
• Are You, as They Say, Delulu? It sounds a bit surreal if you have any appreciation of the real world, but — at least according to those who have more money than may be good for them — the present administration’s war on Iran hasn’t had any bad effect on “the market.” Things, in fact, are pretty good. Of course, we don’t mean the supermarket or anything like that where real people actually buy presumably useful goods and services. No, we’re talking what really matters: the stock market. As reported in Yahoo! Finance, “The global economy is “bending, not breaking” as the war in Iran nears its fourth month, though growth risks haven’t disappeared entirely, according to Goldman Sachs chief economist Jan Hatzius. . . . Hatzius cited three reasons why the months-long closure of the Strait of Hormuz hasn’t yet derailed the economy and, by extension, markets: 1. Oil hasn’t rallied as much as expected, with the global market supported by unusually high inventories heading into the war. 2. Regional shortages of products such as jet fuel have been met with “relatively painless” forms of demand destruction, such as reduced schedules on less valuable and less critical flight routes. 3. The artificial intelligence boom and supportive fiscal policy have helped the stock market largely maintain its rally, even after a slower start to the year.” Of course, there is always a need for caution. As the article goes on, “Goldman Sachs’s 12-month recession outlook still remains 5% above prewar levels, and the bank’s economists see a slowdown in consumer spending on the horizon as tax refund cash flow runs dry, gas prices continue to rise, and wage growth slows.” In other words, things are great in the world of the rich who own, but not so good in the world of the non-rich where the rest of us live. Of course, one way to bring the world back to reality is to adopt the Economic Democracy Act (EDA) so that more people own income-generating assets and don’t have to wait around for the somewhat chancy largesse of the wealthy.
• Inflation Highest in Three Years. According to President Trump, there is absolutely nothing to worry about. As noted in an article in GMA, “‘I don't think about Americans' financial situation,’ President Donald Trump told reporters Tuesday as he was departing for a high-stakes trip to China, when asked to what extent Americans’ financial situations were motivating him to make a deal with Iran. ‘The most important thing, by far, is Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon,’ the president further said, adding, ‘Every American understands.’” We agree. More and more Americans, along with many other people in the world, understand very well. Prices are going up everywhere as a direct result of Trump’s war. Consequently, according to AI, “As of May 2026, Americans are feeling ‘furious’ and significantly stressed by high inflation, with 76% citing the cost of living as a top family challenge.” As for the war in Iran, AI declares, “As of May 2026, the U.S. military action against Iran is highly unpopular among Americans, with 61% viewing it as a mistake.” So, it’s evident that every American understands something . . . it just might not be what President Trump thinks they understand. We’re not sure what effect adopting the Economic Democracy Act (EDA) would have on stopping the war in Iran or bringing down inflation resulting from the war, but it would generate more income for people and thus insulate them to some extent against the effects of the war. Perhaps when Trump gets back from China, somebody might want to raise the subject with him. . . .
• Using the Don’t Think System. In the musical, The Music Man, the con-artist calling himself “Professor Harold Hill” tells the parents and children to whom he sold musical instruments and band uniforms that they don’t have to practice. Instead, they can use “the think system,” a sort of mystic imaging that will turn them into musicians by the power of thought. Yeah, it worked about as well as you think it did. That is why President Trump’s statement that he doesn’t think about Americans’ financial situation in light of rising inflation and the surging cost of living is a little troubling. Professor Harold Hill seems actually to have believed in his “think system,” but if you don’t even use that, what have you got? As reported in Yahoo! News, contradicting his claim to be focusing on “affordability,” “Ten weeks into the Iran war, new government data shows that inflation is now rising at the fastest rate since 2023. But when President Trump was asked Tuesday if America's financial situation was motivating him to secure a peace deal, he dismissed the idea. ‘Not even a little bit,’ Trump said. ‘I don’t think about Americans’ financial situation. I don’t think about anybody. I think about one thing: We cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon. That’s all. That’s the only thing that motivates me.’” Meanwhile, as reported by NBC News, “After weeks of warnings that the Iran war would drive up U.S. food prices, the numbers are finally in: According to data released Tuesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the category it calls “food at home,” otherwise known as your grocery store bill, rose 0.7% in April. That increase marked the biggest one-month jump in grocery prices in nearly four years.” The solution seems obvious: stop the war and adopt the Economic Democracy Act (EDA) as soon as possible.
• Battered by the Benzene. Yes, we know benzene is rarely used as a fuel alone, but as an additive, but the word “benzina” and variations thereon are used as the word for “gasoline” in other languages, and the alliteration sounds better than simply saying that gas prices are causing a lot of trouble, especially for lower income people. In any event, as reported in Yahoo! Finance, “Sustained high energy prices are starting to hammer lower-income consumers, calling into question how much longer the US economy can continue to shrug off the effects of the Iran conflict. The surge in gas prices has meant rapidly deteriorating spending power for lower-income consumers, Citi analyst Jon Tower warned in a note on Wednesday. Tower’s data shows aggregate purchasing power (netting wages and job growth against inflation) dipped negative for all sub-$50,000 (annual income) consumers in April. Compared to last year, middle-income consumers ($50,000-$70,000) are paying over $90 per month more for essentials, and more than $75 of that increase has happened in the past two months. ‘Growth in spending power is slowing across the board,’ warned Tower.” This should be worrying people who are exulting about the surge in stock prices and all the other alleged signs of a strong economy. As economists have claimed to know for generations, consumer demand is what drives an economy. If ordinary people don’t consume, the rich aren’t going to continue making money; as Adam Smith pointed out as the first principle of economics 250 years ago in The Wealth of Nations, “Consumption is the sole end and purpose of all production.” And, since (as Say’s Law of Markets somewhat oversimplifies the case, “Production equals income, therefore supply generates its own demand, and demand its own supply.” In other words, if you can arrange matters so that ordinary people can become productive either through their labor or their capital — or both — consumers will again have the “gas” they need to support the purchasing power that supports the economy. And that can be done by adopting the Economic Democracy Act (EDA).
• Profits Soar, Workers Lose Jobs. Despite the constant reassurance that AI won’t cost anyone a job and that it will actually create jobs (for AI?), Cisco has announced that as their share value is shooting up and profits are soaring, they are cutting 4,000 jobs in an “AI focused restructuring.” As reported by Reuters, “Cisco said on Wednesday it would cut nearly 4,000 jobs, as part of a restructuring aimed at shifting investment toward artificial intelligence and related growth areas, and raised its annual revenue forecast after a surge in hyperscaler orders. Shares of the San Jose, California-based networking equipment maker rose more than 17% in premarket trading on Thursday. ‘The companies that will win in the AI era will be those with focus, urgency, and the discipline to continuously shift investment toward the areas where demand and long-term value creation are strongest,’ CEO Chuck Robbins said in a post on Cisco's website.” That’s a little hard on 4,000 workers unless they have something with which to replace the lost jobs . . . like ownership of the AI that is replacing them, as Louis Kelso recommended. And that can be done by adopting the Economic Democracy Act (EDA).
• Greater Reset “Book Trailers”. We have produced two ninety-second “Book Trailers” for distribution (by whoever wants to distribute them), essentially minute-and-a-half commercials for The Greater Reset. There are two versions of the videos, one for “general audiences” and the other for “Catholic audiences”. Take your pick.
• The Greater Reset. CESJ’s book by members of CESJ’s core group, The Greater Reset: Reclaiming Personal Sovereignty Under Natural Law is, of course, available from the publisher, TAN Books, an imprint of Saint Benedict Press, and has already gotten a top review on that website. It can also be obtained from Barnes and Noble, as well as Amazon, or by special order from your local “bricks and mortar” bookstore. The Greater Reset is the only book of which we’re aware on “the Great Reset” that presents an alternative instead of simply warning of the dangers inherent in a proposal that is contrary to natural law. It describes reality, rather than a Keynesian fantasy world. Please note that The Greater Reset is NOT a CESJ publication as such, and enquiries about quantity discounts and wholesale orders for resale must be sent to the publisher, Saint Benedict Press, NOT to CESJ.
• Economic Personalism Landing Page. A landing page for CESJ’s latest publication (now with an imprimatur), Economic Personalism: Property, Power and Justice for Every Person, has been created and can be accessed by clicking on this link. Everyone is encouraged to visit the page and send the link out to their networks.
• Economic Personalism. When you purchase a copy of Economic Personalism: Property, Power and Justice for Every Person, be sure you post a review after you’ve read it. It is available on both Amazon and Barnes and Noble at the cover price of $10 per copy. You can also download the free copy in .pdf available from the CESJ website. If you’d like to order in bulk (i.e., 52 or more copies) at the wholesale price, send an email to info@cesj.org for details. CESJ members get a $2 rebate per copy on submission of proof of purchase. Wholesale case lots of 52 copies are available at $350, plus shipping (whole case lots ONLY). Prices are in U.S. dollars.
• Sensus Fidelium Videos, Update. CESJ’s series of videos for Sensus Fidelium are doing very well, with over 155,000 total views. The latest Sensus Fidelium video is “The Five Levers of Change.” The video is part of the series on the book, Economic Personalism. The latest completed series on “the Great Reset” can be found on the “Playlist” for the series. The previous series of sixteen videos on socialism is available by clicking on the link: “Socialism, Modernism, and the New Age,” along with some book reviews and other selected topics. For “interfaith” presentations to a Catholic audience they’ve proved to be popular, edging up to 150,000 views to date. They aren’t really “Just Third Way videos,” but they do incorporate a Just Third Way perspective. You can access the playlist for the entire series. The point of the videos is to explain how socialism and socialist assumptions got such a stranglehold on the understanding of the role of the State and thus the interpretation of Catholic social teaching, and even the way non-Catholics and even non-Christians understand the roles of Church, State, and Family, and the human persons place in society.
Those are the happenings for this week, at least those that we know about. If you have an accomplishment that you think should be listed, send us a note about it at mgreaney [at] cesj [dot] org, and well see that it gets into the next “issue.” Due to imprudent and intemperate language on the part of some commentators, we removed temptation and disabled comments.
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