I’ve been thinking a lot about Virginia Eubank’s statement that a more just society requires that we begin treating difference as a resource. This is a more succinct rephrasing of something I’ve been saying for some time – diversity is not just a nicety, it’s a necessity. This past week I finished Aldo Leopold’s “A… Continue reading Difference as a Resource
This past week during one of my workouts I listened to a teaching by Rob Bell at Mars Hill Church in Grand Rapids, MI. He taught about Acts 2: 42-47 (see http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=acts%202:42-47&version=CEV for the Bible verses and http://marshill.org/teaching/2011/10/09/how-it-works-in-our-house-acts-2v42-47/ for the sermon). In his teaching, Bell made mention of the Social and Health Index that uses… Continue reading Inequality and Health
The myth goes that someone who is “down on their luck” but with enough determination and proper choices can “pull themselves up by their own bootstraps”. We each have a unique genealogy that we have inherited. Our bloodline determines our genetic makeup that subsequently influences our physical and mental strengths and weaknesses. So, for instance,… Continue reading The Bootstrap Myth
A May 2010 report by the Institute on Assets and Social Policy at Brandeis University indicates that the wealth disparity between whites and blacks continue to grow. Especially noteworthy is that the growth cannot be explained by income alone, as high-income blacks have seen steady or declining wealth, while both middle- and especially upper-income whites… Continue reading Racial Wealth Gap Increases Four-Fold
Whirlpools exist in many areas of our lives. Some come because of disease, for instance addictions to drugs or gambling. Some come because of choices, for instance lies we tell that take on a life of their own. When our lives get caught in such whirlpools, they can suck us in and keep us from… Continue reading The Whirlpool of Racism
