John Perkins Quotes

The United States spends over $87 billion conducting a war in Iraq while the United Nations estimates that for less than half that amount we could provide clean water, adequate diets, sanitations services and basic education to every person on the planet. And we wonder why terrorists attack us.

I am glad my case is not serious! But these nervous troubles are dreadfully depressing. John does not know how much I really suffer. He knows there is no reason to suffer, and that satisfies him.

John laughs at me, of course, but one expects that in marriage.

The choices we make within the boundaries of the twists of fate determines who we are

I've never met anyone who wanted to be a terrorist. They are desperate people.

John doesn't know how much I really suffer. He knows there is no reason to suffer, and that satisfies him. It is getting to be a great effort for me to think straight. Just this nervous weakness I suppose.

John does not know how much I really suffer. He knows there is no reason to suffer, and that satisfies him.

It is so hard to talk with John about my case, because he is so wise, and because he loves me so.

I have come to understand that life is composed of a series of coincidences. How we react to these - how we exercise what some refer to as free will - is everything; the choices we make within the boundaries of the twists of fate determine who we are.

No matter how many toys we amass we leave them behind when we die, just as we leave a broken environment, an economy that only benefits the richest, and a legacy of empowering greed over goodness. It is now time to commit to following a new path.

Love Is The Final Fight

لم تُخترع بعد الآلة التي تستطيع قتل الأهداف النبيلة

Stop being so greedy, and so selfish. Realize that there is more to the world than your big houses and fancy stores. People are starving and you worry about oil for your cars. Babies are dying of thirst and you search the fashion pages for the latest styles. Nations like ours are drowing in poverty, but your people don't even hear our cries for help. You shut your ears to the voices of those who try to tell you these things. You label them radicals or Communists. You must open your hearts to the poor and downtrodden, instead of driving them further into poverty and servitude. There's not much time left. If you don't change, you're doomed.

...life is composed of a series of coincidences. How we react to these - how we exercise what some refer to as free will - is everything; the choices we make within the boundaries of the twists of fate determine who we are.

This book was written so that we may take heed and remold our story. I am certain that when enough of us become aware of how we are being exploited by the economic engine that creates an insatiable appetite for the world's resources, and results in systems that foster slavery, we will no longer tolerate it. We will reassess our role in a world where a few swim in riches and the majority drown in poverty, pollution, and violence . We will commit ourselves to navigating a course toward compassion, democracy, and social justice for all.

John is a physician, and perhaps--(I would not say it to a living soul, of course, but this is dead paper and a great relief to my mind)--perhaps that is one reason I do not get well faster

Fear and debt drive this system. We are hammered with messages that terrify us into believing that we must pay any price, assume any debt, to stop the enemies who, we are told, lurk at our doorsteps.

Yielding to God's will can be hard. And sometimes, it really hurts. But it always brings peace.

I cry at nothing, and cry most of the time. Of course I don't when John is here, or anybody else, but when I am alone.

It isn’t about changing the mechanics of economics. It is about changing the ideas, the dogmas that have driven economics for centuries: debt and fear, insufficiency, divide and conquer.

Who can see twenty-five years into the future?” she had asked. “Your guess is as good as theirs. Confidence is everything.

لخص روبرت بير (وهو مسئول ادارة العمليات فى السى آى ايه لمدة عشرين عام ومتخصص فى شئون الشرق الاوسك )الامر بقوله " فى بداية سبعينات القرن العشرين حين بدأ تدفق اموال البترول بدأ اصحاب المشروعات اللبنانيون بتهريب العاهرات للمملكة من أجل الامراء ...ولان افراد الاسرة المالكة لا يعرفون كيف يرصدون أرقام الوارد والمنصرف من حساباتهم البنكية فقد أدى ذلك الى ثراء اللبنانيين ثراءا فاحشا

In my opinion, the difference between the crusaders and us was a matter of degree. Europe's medieval Catholics claimed their goal was to save Muslims from purgatory; we claimed that we wanted to help the Saudis modernize.

justice is something for which every generation has to strive.

I don’t know why I should write this. I don’t want to. I don’t feel able. And I know John would think it absurd. But I MUST say what I feel and think in some way - it is such a relief.

John Perkins was not accustomed to analyzing his emotions. But as he sat in his Katy-bereft 10×12 parlor he hit unerringly upon the keynote of his discomfort. He knew now that Katy was necessary to his happiness. His feeling for her, lulled into unconsciousness by the dull round of domesticity, had been sharply stirred by the loss of her presence. Has it not been dinned into us by proverb and sermon and fable that we never prize the music till the sweet-voiced bird has flown — or in other no less florid and true utterances?

لا اصدق ان الاباء المؤسسين لبلادنا افراد المؤتمر الدستورى الامريكى لعام 1787- قد تصوروا ان حق الحياة والحرية والسعادة وجد فقط من اجل الامريكيين ,ولماذا ننفذ الان استراتيجيات تروج للقيم الامبريالة التى كنا نحاربها

لم يكن واضحا تماما فى ذهنى أن تلك الشعوب فى البلاد الاخرى تريد بالفعل ان تحيا مثلنا ,فالاحصائيات المعتمدة لدينا عن العنف والبطالة والايذاء الجسدى المترتب على تعاطى المخدرات والطلاق والجريمة كل هذا يشير الى انه رغم ان مجتمعنا من اغنى المجتمعات فى التاريخ الا ان هذا لا ينفى ابدا انه من أقل المجتمعات احساسا بالسعادة فلماذا نريد من الاخرين ان يحاكونا

I had begun to understand that although most Americans have no idea that lifestyles are built on exploitation, millions of people in other countries are aware of it.

How, I asked myself, do you convince men and women who live comfortably to change a system that provides their comforts--even when they know about EHMs and jackals, when they understand that attached to their comforts are terrible price tags? Where do you find words to empower them to stand up to a force like the corporatocracy? How do you inspire them to take actions that will bend the corporations to the will of the people?

When men and women are rewarded for greed, greed becomes a corrupting motivator. When we equate the gluttonous consumption of the earth's resources with a status approaching sainthood, when we teach our children to emulate people who live unbalanced lives, and when we define huge sections of the population as subservient to an elite minority, we ask for trouble. And we get it.

I am all for churches being a part of the nonviolent marches and protests that have happened in the wake of violent killings, but these protests happen only after a tragic event has taken place. I want the church to be what prevents these acts from ever happening. I want the church to be the community that is so dedicated to loving our neighbors, to caring for the poor and neglected, and to living out true reconciliation that these killings do not even take place.

In America, education and quality of life are directly related. Lacking a good education means lacking, among other things, access to the very doorway that leads to a wholesome life-style. Education is not a luxury in modern American society—it is essential for survival.

You have to be a bit of a dreamer to imagine a world where love trumps hate--but I don't think being a dreamer is all that bad. Joel prophesied that God would "pour out [His] Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions" (Joel 2:28). I'm an old man, and this is one of my dreams: that my descendants will one day live in a land where people are quick to confess their wrongdoing and forgive the wrongdoing of others and are eager to build something beautiful together.

God has always wanted the vulnerable in society to be cared for. He never intended for them to languish in poverty, abuse, slavery, homelessness, or other types of devastation. When we care for individuals who are trapped in these ways, when we show them love and help them move toward freedom and wholeness, we participate in bringing a little part of God's Kingdom back into alignment with His greater plan. We do justice and God smiles.

I don’t know why I should write this. I don’t want to. I don’t feel able. And I know John would think it absurd. But I must say what I feel and think in some way—it is such a relief! But the effort is getting to be greater than the relief.

For too long, many in the Church have argued that unity in the body of Christ across ethnic and class lines is a separate issue from the gospel. There has been the suggestion that we can be reconciled to God without being reconciled to our brothers and sisters in Christ. Scripture doesn’t bear that out. We only need to examine what happened when the Church was birthed to see exactly how God intends for this issue of reconciliation within the body of Christ to fall out (p. 33).

من خلال ما مر من احداث وما خبرته من عملى مع شركة مين وجدت نفسى اسال الاسئلة نفسها مجددا : كم من القرارات -بما فيها القرارات التاريخية التى اثرت على ملايين البشر - اتخذها رجال او نساء دفعتهم مصالحهم الشخصية وليست الرغبة فى تحرى الحقيقة ؟ وكم من المسئولين رفيعى المستوى فى حكومتنا ساقهم الجشع الشخصى بدلا من ان يهديهم الولاء للوطن ؟ وكم من حروب اشتعلت ,فقط لان الرئيس يريد تحسين صورته السيئة امام ناخبيه ؟

Our own statistics about violence, depression, drug abuse, divorce, and crime indicated that although ours was one of the wealthiest societies in history, it may also be one of the least happy societies. Why would we want others to emulate us?

ساذكرك بما قاله لى افراد قبيلة الشوار فى عام 1990 ان العالم يمكن ان يكون كما تحلم به واننا يمكننا ان نستبدل بكابوس الصناعات الملوثة للبيئة والطرق السريعة المغلقة والمدن المفرطة الازدحام -حلما جديدا مبنيا على المحافظة على البيئة ومبادئ المسئولية الاجتماعية المعنية بالمساواة فى استطاعنتنا ان نغير انفسنا ونغير المسلمات المطروحة

In response to my question about how we might rein in the empire, he said, "That's why I'm meeting with you. Only you in the United States can change it. Your government created this problem and your people must solve it. You've got to insist that Washington honor its commitment to democracy, even when deomcratically elected leaders nationalize your corrupting corporations. You must take control of your corporations and your government. The people of the United States have a great deal of power. You need to come to grips with this. There's no alternative. We in Brazil have our hands tied. So do the Venezeulans. And the Nigerians. It's up to you.

It is driven not by a small band of men but by a concept that has become accepted as gospel: the idea that all economic growth benefits humankind and that the greater the growth, the more widespread the benefits. This belief also has a corollary: that those people who excel at stoking the fires of economic growth should be exalted and rewarded, while those born at the fringes are available for exploitation.

Stop being so greedy," she said, "and so selfish. Realize that there is more to the world than your big houses and fancy stores. People are starving and you worry about oil for your cars. Babies are dying of thirst and you search the fashion magazines for the latest styles. Nations like ours are drowning in poverty, but your people don't even hear our cries for help. You shut your ears to the voices of those who try to tell you these things. You label them radicals or Communists. You must open your hearts to the poor and downtrodden, instead of driving them further into poverty and servitude. There's not much time left. If you don't change, you're doomed.

ان القصة الحقيقية للامبراطورية المعاصرة قصة الكوربوقراطية المستغلة للبشر اليائسين والتى مارست اسوأ ما شهده التاريخ من وحشية وانانية وتدمير للبشر والموارد -لاعلاقة لها كثيرا بما كشفت عنه الصحف ذلك الصباح وان كان يمكنها ان تهز الثوابت داخلنا ولعل ذلك هو ما يفسر صعوبة سماع القصة الحقيقية اذ اننا نفضل تصديق تلك الاساطير التى يخدعوننا بها من انه بعد تجربة آلاف السنين من التطور الاجتماعى البشرى نجحنا فى تطبيق النظام الاقتصادى المثالى بدلا من ان نواجه حقيقة انهم باعوا لنا مفهوما زائفا وقبلناه كحقيقة مسلمة

Jangan menjadi pengikut Buddha. Dunia tidak butuh pengikut Buddha lebih banyak lagi. Tapi sebarkanlah kasih sayang. Dunia membutuhkan banyak kasih sayang. -Dalai Lama

But these nervous troubles are dreadfully depressing. John does not know how much I really suffer. He knows that there is no reason to suffer, and that satisfies him.

Mr. Perkins adviseth, in the reading of the Scriptures, to begin with the Gospel of John, and this Epistle to the Romans, as being the keys of the New Testament.

Love. No matter where I start, I always end up here.

Fear and debt. The two most powerful tools of empire.” He

If you bomb a city, then rebuild it, the data shows a huge spike in economic activity.

True Christian change works more like an old oak tree in the spring, when the new life inside pushes off the old dead leaves that still hang on.

وكما يلاحظ جيمس جاريسون رئيس المنتدى الاقتصادى العالمى :"اذا أخذنا التسلسل المنطقى للامور فان اندماج العالم فى وحدة واحدة تحكمها شروط العولمة الاقتصادية والسمات الزائفة ل-حرية السوق - انما يمثل فى واقع الامر -حالة استعمارية-مفضوحة اذ ليس هناك امة على الارض قادرة على مقاومة الاستقطاب القسرى للعولمة .فقليلون هم اولئك الذين نجوا من -الاصلاحات الهيكلية - وافلتوا من -الشروط- التى فرضها البنك الدولى وصندوق النقد الدولى او تطلبتها منظمة التجارة العالمية والمؤسسات المالية الدولية التى مازالت رغم عدم جدواها تحدد مفهوم العولمة الاقتصادية وتصيغ القوانين والقواعد وتعين المكافآت لمن خضع وذل وترفع عصا العقاب لمن مرق وتمرد وهذه هى سطوة العولمة التى من المحتمل ان نكون شهود عيان على دمجها كافة الاقتصاديات القومية فى نظام اقتصادى واحد مبنى على حرية السوق

...pointed out that the corporation enjoys the same rights as a living person under the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution. This concept was upheld in 1886 by the Supreme Court in 'Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad Company' and has been a fact of law ever since. I emphasized to those executives that the corporation should also be required to accept the same responsibilities as those expected of a person; it too should be a good citizen, an honorable, ethical member of the community. In the case of international corporations, that community has to be defined as the world.

اسأ نفسك هذه الاسئلة ما الذى تحتاج الاعتراف به ؟ كيف خدعت نفسك والاخرين ؟ وما المواقف التى استسلمت فيها واذعنت ؟ لماذا تركت نفسك يستنزفها نظام تعرف انه ظالم ؟ ماذا ستفعل لتتأكد ان اطفالك وكل الاطفال يمكنهم ان يحققوا حلم الاباء المؤسسين للمثل والقيم حلم الحياة والحرية وبلوغ السعادة ؟ اى طريق ستسير فيه لتتوقف مجاعات لا مبرر لها ولتتأكد انه لن يتكرر ابدا يوم مثل الحادى عشر من سبتمبر ؟ كيف تستطيع مساعدة اطفالك كى يفهموا ان الناس الذين يعيشون حياة مترفة وغير متوازنة يجب ان نرثى لحالهم ولا نتمنى تقليدهم باى حال حتى اذا كان هؤلاء الناس يقدمون انفسهم من خلال وسائل الاعلام التى يملكونها على انهم ايقونات ثقافية محاولين اقناعنا ان المساكن الفخمة واليخوت تجلب السعادة ؟ ما التغيرات التى سالتزم بها لتعديل ما اتخذه من مواقف وما اعتقده من مفاهيم ؟ ما الاشكال التى ساستخدمها لتنوير الاخرين واكتساب المزيد من المعرفة ؟

Fear and debt drive this system. We are hammered with messages that terrify us into believing that we must pay any price, assume any debt, to stop the enemies who, we are told, lurk at our doorsteps. The

We've been looking in all of the wrong places for help in fighting this battle for reconciliation. We've sought help from social service agencies and government programs. But this is something that requires divine power.

تطلعت حولى بعيدا عن موقع انهيار البرجين فى جراوند زيرو توجهت ببصرى الى شوارع نيويورك البعيدة عن موقع الانفجار والتى عادت الان الى حياتها الطبيعية تساءلت عما ان كان الناس الذين يسيرون فى هذه الشوارع يفكرون فى كل هذا ليس فقط فى تدمير البرجين لكن ايضا فى مزارع الرمان التى دمرت وفى الاربعة وعشرين الفا الذين يموتون جوعا كل يوم تساءلت اذا كانوا قد فكروا فى هذه الامور يوما ما واذا كان بوسعهم ان يصرفوا تفكيرهم بعيدا عن وظائفهم وسياراتهم النهمة للوقود ومكافآت اعمالهم ولو لفترة تكفى لان يتدبروا ماذا سيتركون للعالم الذى يعيشون فيه ويورثونه لاطفالهم .تساءلت ما الذى يعرفونه عنافغانستان ليست افغانستان التى يرونها على شاشة التلفزيون بل افغانستان المغطاة بثكنات الجيش الامريكى ودباباته افغانستان الرجل العجوز .تساءلت عما كان يفكر فيه اولئك الاربعة وعشرين الفا الذين يموتون كل يوم ثم رايت نفسى مرة اخرى اجلس امام جهاز كمبيوتر بشاشة مظلمة

Justice is a process, and change takes time, but I believe we ought to dream big dreams and make big statements as we pursue those dreams. Amos didn't tell the people that God wants justice to trickle through their society. The New Living Translation uses the phrase "mighty flood of justice" (Amos 5:24) to describe what God wants to see. One thing we learned in Mendenhall is that once flood waters start rushing through a place, there's no turning them back with human strength.

لقد اقنعنا انفسنا ان كافة اشكال النمو الاقتصادى نافعة للانسانية وانه كلما ازداد ذلك النمو عم الرخاء فى النهاية اقتنعنا بان متلازمة هذا المفهموم فعالة وعادلة اخلاقيا فمن الواجب تمجيد ومكافأة اولئك البارعين فى اذكاء شرارة النمو الاقتصادى اما اولئك الذين يولدون على الهوامش والاطراف فلا مفر من استغلالهم استخدم هذه المفهوم ومتلازمته لتبرير كل طرق القرصنة فمُنحت الرخص لاغتصاب وسلب ونهب الابرياء فى ايران وبنما وكولومبيا والعراق وفى غيرها من الدول .وانتعش سوق قراصنة الاقتصاد والثعالب والجيوش بقدر قدرتهم على اظهار كفايتهم فى ممارسة انشطة تخلق نموا اقتصاديا ولم تكن تنقصهم ابدا القدرة على اظهار تلك الكفاية وبفضل تلك التقديرات والقياسات الاقتصادية والاحصاءات ذات الصبغة العلمية المحايدة !فاننا اذا ما قصفنا مدينة ثم اعدنا بناءها فستظهر لنا تلك البيانات اننا حققنا نموا اقتصاديا هائلا

The difference between relocation and gentrification is motive, plain and simple. When we decide to move into an inner-city neighborhood we should always ask ourselves the question, Is this good for my new neighbors? Moving into inner-city neighborhoods for merely selfish reasons with no regard as to how it will affect the community residents will probably eventually do harm to your neighbors.

EHMs provide favors. These take the form of loans to develop infrastructure—electric generating plants, highways, ports, airports, or industrial parks. A condition of such loans is that engineering and construction companies from our own country must build all these projects. In essence, most of the money never leaves the United States; it is simply transferred from banking offices in Washington to engineering offices in New York, Houston, or San Francisco. Despite the fact that the money is returned almost immediately to corporations that are members of the corporatocracy (the creditor), the recipient country is required to pay it all back, principal plus interest.

إن الدهاء الذي تتسم به هذه الإمبراطورية الحديثة يتجاوز كل ما صنعه فرسان الرومان والغزاة الأسبان وقوى الإستعمار الأوروبي في القرنين الثامن عشر والتاسع عشر. فنحن قراصنة الإقتصاد على درجة عالية من الإحتراف، إذ اننا وعينا دروس التاريخ. نحن اليوم لا نحمل سيوفا ولا نرتدي دروعا او ملابس تعزلنا عن غيرنا. ففي بلاد مثل الإكوادور ونيجيريا وإندونسيا نرتدي ملابس كالتي يرتديها المدرسون المحليون وأصحاب المحال التجارية. وفي واشنطن وباريس نبدو كموظفي الحكومة والبنوك متواضعين وعاديين، نزور مواقع المشروعات ونتسكع داخل القرى الفقيرة، نتظاهر بإنكار الذات ونحدث الصحف المحلية عن الأعمال الإنسانية العظيمة التي نؤديها. نغطي طاولات مؤتمرات اللجان الحكومية بأوراقنا ومشاريعنا المالية، ونحاضر في كلية إدارة الأعمال في هارفارد عن عجائب المشروعات الإقتصادية الكبرى. حققنا مكانة مرموقة في الحياة العامة أو هكذا رسمنا صورة لأنفسنا وتقبلنا أنفسنا، بهذه الطريقة ينجح النظام. ونادرا ما نلجأ للخروج عن القانون. فالنظام نفسه مبني على خدعة والنظام بشكل محدد يوصف بأنه قانوني.

William Pannell said in one of his sermons that the ugliest four-letter word in the English vocabulary is "them". It's a word that separates and divides. It's important that we know their names. It's really hard to dislike someone you pray for regularly. One of the most important things we can do to move the cause of reconciliation forward is to pray for the brothers and sisters who we have been separate from.

هل ثمة شخص برئ فى الولايات المتحدة الامريكية ؟ رغم ان اولئك المتربعين على قمة الهرم الاقتصادى يحصلون على معظم الاموال فان الملايين منا يعتمدون فى معيشتهم -بشكل مباشر او غير مباشر - على استغلال شعوب البلاد النامية .فالموارد الطبيعية والعمالة الرخيصة التى تزود كل انشطتنا ومشروعاتنا التجارية تقريبا تاتى من اماكن مثل اندونيسيا واهل اندونيسيا انفسهم لا يجنون منها الا عائدا بائسا للغاية تضمن القروض التى تمنحها المساعدات الاجنبية بقاء اطفال اليوم واحفادهم رهينة لاحتياجات ومطالب اصحاب القروض وسيكون عليهم السماح لشركاتنا العملاقة بان تخرب وتدمر ثرواتهم الطبيعية وان يشقوا طريقهم فى التعليم والصحة وغير ذلك من الخدمات الاجتماعية فقط ليتمكنوا من سداد تلك القروض . الحقيقة ان شركاتنا قد حصلت بالفعل على معظم هذه الاموال لتبنى بها مجمعات صناعية ومطارات ومحطات توليد كهرباء لم تتغير هذه المعادلة كثيرا . هل التحجج بعدم معرفة الامريكيين بهذه الامور يبرئ ذمتهم ؟ هل هم مضللون؟نعم,لكنهم ليسوا ابرياء

لعشر سنوات كنت خلفا لهؤلاء السلف الذين سحبوا العبيد من غابات افريقيا الى السفن المنتظرة على الشاطئ لكننى كنت النموذج الاحدث فى هذا الدرب والاكثر مراوغة لم ار فى حياتى جثث الموتى ولم اشم رائحة اللحم المتعفن ولم اسمع صرخات الالم لكن كل ما فعلته هو نفس الشر ذلك لاننى كان بامكانى ان انتزع نفسى منه ولاننى استطعت ان اقطع كل الاواصر التى تربطنى بآلام الانسانية وعذابات الاجساد وصرخات الالم التى اصممت اذنى عنها ربما فى التحليل النهائى ارى نفسى اكثر اجراما وشرا

If an EHM is completely successful, the loans are so large that the debtor is forced to default on its payments after a few years. When this happens, then like the Mafia we demand our pound of flesh. This often includes one or more of the following: control over United Nations votes, the installation of military bases, or access to precious resources such as oil or the Panama Canal. Of course, the debtor still owes us the money—and another country is added to our global empire.

Jesus intentionally brought together disciples who were very different - fishermen, tax collectors - not people who would naturally love one another. But he did this to show us what love looks like in practice. We have the privilege of putting this same kind of love on display as we love those in the body of Christ who don't look like us.

Jika para pemberi suara tidak tahu alat terpenting yang dimanfaatkan pemimpin mereka, bisakah bangsa tersebut mengklaim sebagai bangsa yang demokratis?

I hear people arguing about everything from church pews to worship songs to old cultural traditions but we need to start getting beyond this stuff.

Injustice is an evil in society that must be fought.

We work out the idea of redemption with redemptive living.

Admitting to a problem is the first step toward finding a solution. Confessing a sin is the beginning of redemption.

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government; instead, they would draw their salaries from the private sector. As a result, their dirty work, if exposed, would be chalked up to corporate greed rather than to government policy.

He looks up. Our eyes lock,and he breaks into a slow smile. My heart beats faster and faster. Almost there.He sets down his book and stands.And then this-the moment he calls my name-is the real moment everything changes. He is no longer St. Clair, everyone's pal, everyone's friend. He is Etienne. Etienne,like the night we met. He is Etienne,he is my friend. He is so much more. Etienne.My feet trip in three syllables. E-ti-enne. E-ti-enne, E-ti-enne. His name coats my tongue like melting chocolate. He is so beautiful, so perfect. My throat catches as he opens his arms and wraps me in a hug.My heart pounds furiously,and I'm embarrassed,because I know he feels it. We break apart, and I stagger backward. He catches me before I fall down the stairs. "Whoa," he says. But I don't think he means me falling. I blush and blame it on clumsiness. "Yeesh,that could've been bad." Phew.A steady voice. He looks dazed. "Are you all right?" I realize his hands are still on my shoulders,and my entire body stiffens underneath his touch. "Yeah.Great. Super!" "Hey,Anna. How was your break?" John.I forget he was here.Etienne lets go of me carefully as I acknowledge Josh,but the whole time we're chatting, I wish he'd return to drawing and leave us alone. After a minute, he glances behind me-to where Etienne is standing-and gets a funny expression on hs face. His speech trails off,and he buries his nose in his sketchbook. I look back, but Etienne's own face has been wiped blank. We sit on the steps together. I haven't been this nervous around him since the first week of school. My mind is tangled, my tongue tied,my stomach in knots. "Well," he says, after an excruciating minute. "Did we use up all our conversation over the holiday?" The pressure inside me eases enough to speak. "Guess I'll go back to the dorm." I pretend to stand, and he laughs. "I have something for you." He pulls me back down by my sleeve. "A late Christmas present." "For me? But I didn't get you anything!" He reaches into a coat pocket and brings out his hand in a fist, closed around something very small. "It's not much,so don't get excited." "Ooo,what is it?" "I saw it when I was out with Mum, and it made me think of you-" "Etienne! Come on!" He blinks at hearing his first name. My face turns red, and I'm filled with the overwhelming sensation that he knows exactly what I'm thinking. His expression turns to amazement as he says, "Close your eyes and hold out your hand." Still blushing,I hold one out. His fingers brush against my palm, and my hand jerks back as if he were electrified. Something goes flying and lands with a faith dink behind us. I open my eyes. He's staring at me, equally stunned. "Whoops," I say. He tilts his head at me. "I think...I think it landed back here." I scramble to my feet, but I don't even know what I'm looking for. I never felt what he placed in my hands. I only felt him. "I don't see anything! Just pebbles and pigeon droppings," I add,trying to act normal. Where is it? What is it? "Here." He plucks something tiny and yellow from the steps above him. I fumble back and hold out my hand again, bracing myself for the contact. Etienne pauses and then drops it from a few inches above my hand.As if he's avoiding me,too. It's a glass bead.A banana. He clears his throat. "I know you said Bridgette was the only one who could call you "Banana," but Mum was feeling better last weekend,so I took her to her favorite bead shop. I saw that and thought of you.I hope you don't mind someone else adding to your collection. Especially since you and Bridgette...you know..." I close my hand around the bead. "Thank you." "Mum wondered why I wanted it." "What did you tell her?" "That it was for you,of course." He says this like, duh. I beam.The bead is so lightweight I hardly feel it, except for the teeny cold patch it leaves in my palm.

If the church took up the responsibility of caring for the poor, of living incarnationally, of participating in the unspeakable gift of giving, our world would look much different from the way it does today. Justice is a stewardship issue, caring for the poor is a stewardship issue, loving our neighbor as we love ourselves is a stewardship issue. We have the resources, but our priorities aren’t there yet.

Some would blame our current problems on an organized conspiracy. I wish it were so simple. Members of a conspiracy can be rooted out and brought to justice. This system, however, is fueled by something far more dangerous than conspiracy. It is driven not by a small band of men but by a concept that has become accepted as gospel: the idea that all economic growth benefits humankind and that the greater the growth, the more widespread the benefits. This belief also has a corollary: that those people who excel at stoking the fires of economic growth should be exalted and rewarded, while those born at the fringes are available for exploitation.

Perhaps the strongest indictment against us as the Church is that we have settled for an Americanized version of the Church that mirrors whatever culture says, and there is no collective sense of loss, no sense of remorse. We have sinned deeply. The problem is that we haven’t got a taste of the sinfulness of racism... We don’t see the wickedness of profiling God’s people that He has created to be one and that He has created in His image (p. 75).

The first question we must address deals with optimism, the possibility of achieving our goal. Are we in a position where we can actually hope to effect change? Assuming we become convinced that there are reasons for optimism, we move to the next question. Are we cetain that we want change? The stories about EHMs, jackals, and suffering around the globe strike raw nerves, but now we demand absolute proof that our grievances justify the efforts change will demand. Third: Is there a unifying principle that will validate our efforts? We look to ascertain that we are not merely seeking to impose our moral, religious, or philosophical values on others but instead are intent on creating something of true and lasting universal benefit. And finally: What can we each do? You and I personally need to evaluate our talents and passions. What are our individual options and desires? How do they fit into the bigger picture?

Throughout Scripture we read about God's concern for people who are vulnerable or suffering - the poor, the widows and orphans, the foreigners in the land, and so on. All Christians should feel a sense of calling to where there is pain in our society.

When you live a lie it destroys everyone involved. For the slave master, his conscience was seared as the love of money, and economic gain overruled his concern for his fellow man. And for the slave, his sense of dignity and personhood was assaulted without recourse.

The surviving human beings there could do nothing but wait for the end to come. They chose different ways to live out their final days. That was the plot.** It was a dark movie offering no hope of salvation. (Though, watching it, Aomame reconfirmed her belief that everyone, deep in their hearts, is waiting for the end of the world to come.) ** On the Beach, the 1959 movie, director: Stanley Kramer, writer: John Paxton, starring: Gregory Peck, Ava Gardner, Fred Astaire & Anthony Perkins. On the Beach, the 1957 novel, writer: Nevil Shute.

Right before Jesus went to the cross, He prayed that all believers, past, present, and future "may be one, as You, Father are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me" (John 17:21 NKJV). This was Jesus's prayer for us all, yet more often than not, I fear we have not lived up to it. Instead, we fight for our own way, for our selfish desires, for our right to be superior. We build churches centered on our own cultural ideas of God, rather than on seeking to bring us back to Him. And then we fight with other churches and religions about who is serving their personal culture god the best. Come dream with me. Dream of a fight for something bigger, something more important and worthwhile. We need to fight for justice and peace, for the walls between us to come crashing down.

فالكوبوقراطية هى نحن ونحن صنعناها انها نتيجة عجز كل واحد منا عن الوقوف والاعتراض وعلينا فى ذات الوقت الانتباه لاولئك المتآمرين المختبئين فى الظلال فاغلبنا يعمل فى هذه البنوك او الشركات او الحكومات او يعتمد عليها بدرجة او اخرى مستهلكا بضائعها او مستفيدا بخدماتها هل يمكننا ان نعض يد السيد الذى يطعمنا هذا هو الموقف الذى كنت اتامله وانا جالس احملق فى العناوين الرئيسية على شاشة الكومبيوتر مستحضرا عددا من الاسئلة .هل يمكنك ان تقف ضد نظام يظهر انه يمنحك البيت والسيارة والطعام والملابس والكهرباء والرعاية الصحية ؟ حتى اذا كنت تعرف ان ذلك النظام هو نفسه الذى يخلق عالما يموت فيه جوعا اربعة وعشرون الف شخص يوميا ويزداد يوميا عدد الملايين من البشر التى تكرهك بسببه او على الاقل يكرهون السياسات التى صنعها رجال انت انتخبتهم ؟ كيف تستجمع شجاعتك لتتجاوز الخطوطوتتحدى مفاهيم طالما قبلتها انت وجيرانك كحقائق مسلمة حتى حين تشك فى ان هذا النظام مستعد لتدمير نفسه ؟

تساءلت عن الحافز الذى دفع الامريكيين لمقاومة الاستعمار البريطانى وعن ارادة تجاوزت الحدود لقد كان كثير من زعماء الثورة على ثراء كبير فما الذى دفعهم للمخاطرة باعمالهم وتجارتهم وعض الايدى التى تطعمهم ؟ والمخاطرة بحياتهم ؟ لاشك كان لدى كل منهم اسبابه الخاصة لكن لابد وان قوة جماعية وقفت وراءهم وقدر من الطاقة والحافز وشرارة اذكت الطاقات الفردية فى تلك اللحظة الفريدة من التاريخ ثم ادركت كنه تلك المحفزات : انها الكلمات اشعل تلك الشرارة سرد القصة الحقيقية للامبراطورية ونظامها التجارى الانانى والمدمر لذاته فى نهاية المطاف واشعل فضح المعنى الخفى عبر كلمات رجال مثل توم بين وتوماس جيفرسون خيال المواطنين وفتح قلوبهم وعقولهم وبدأ سكان المستعمرات البريطانية فى امريكا فى التساؤل عن السبب وحين فعلوا ذلك اكتشفوا حقيقة جديدة قطعت الطريق على اساليب الخداع والكذب لقد ادركوا الحقيقة الكامنة وراء المظهر الخارجى وفهموا طريقة الامبراطورية البريطانية فى استغلالهم وخداعهم واستعبادهم ادركوا ان سادتهم الانجليز شكلوا نظاما ثم تمكنوا من اقناع معظم الناس كذبا بان ذلك افضل نظام يمكن للبشرية ان تصل اليه وان بلوغ عالم افضل مرهون بوضع كافة الموارد تحت تصرف ملك انجلترا وان منهج الامبراطورية فى التجارة والسياسة هو الاكثر فعالية وهو الاسلوب الانسانى لمساعدة الاغلبية الكاسحة من البشر بينما كانت الحقيقة تكمن فى ان ذلك النظام لايثرى سوى الاقلية على حساب الاغلبية لقد صمدت هذه الكذبة وما نجم عنها من استغلال وامتدت عقودا من الزمن حتى بدأت ثلة من الفلاسفة ورجال الاعمال والفلاحين والصيادين والمرابطين على الحدود والكتاب والوعاظ يتحدثون عن الحقيقة .

Kendi otomobilini üretemeyen ülkeye borç verip otobanlar yaptırırız. Sonra onlara arabalarımızı satarız. Sonra bankalarını satın alırız. O bankalardan halka ucuz krediler verip daha çok araba almalarını sağlarız. Böylece verdiğimiz o krediyi arabamızı satarak geri alırız, hem de faiziyle. O ülkeye dünya bankası ya da kardeş kurumlardan kredi ayarlarız. Ayarlanan kredi "ASLA" o ülkenin hazinesine gitmez. O ülkede ‘proje‘ yapan bizim şirketlerimizin kasasına girer. Enerji santralleri, sanayi alanları, limanlar, dev havaalanları yapılır. Aslında insanların işine yaramayan bir yığın beton. Bizim şirketlerimiz kazanır o ülkedeki birileri de nemalandırılır. Toplum bu düzenekten hiçbirşey kazanmaz. Ama ülke büyük bir borcun altına sokulmuş olur. Bu o kadar büyük bir borçtur ki ödenmesi imkansızdır. Plan böyle işler. Sonunda ekonomik danışmanlar/tetikçiler olarak gider onlara deriz ki; "Bize büyük borcunuz var ödeyemiyorsunuz. O zaman petrolünüzü satın, doğal gazınızı bize verin, askeri üslerimize yer gösterin, askerlerinizi birliklerimize destek olmaları için savaştığımız bölgelere gönderin, Birleşmiş Millletler de bizim için oy verin! Elektrik su kanalizasyon sistemlerinizi özelleştirin! Onları Amerikan şirketlerine ya da diğer çok uluslu şirketlere satın..." Sosyal hizmetleri, teknik sistemleri, eğitim kurumlarını, sağlık kurumlarını hatta adli sistemleri ele geçiririz. Bu, ikili, üçlü, dörtlü bir darbeler serisidir.

For me, the lessons were irrefutable. Iran illustrated beyond any doubt that the United States was a nation laboring to deny the truth of its role in the world. It seemed incomprehensible that we could have been so misinformed about the shah and the tide of hatred that had surged against him.

Perfect moments, what did they even mean? They were blind luck, that was all. Coincidences. Statistical anomalies. I did some Googling and it turned out somebody had actually bothered to do the math on this, a real actual Cambridge University mathematician named John Littlewood (1885-1977; thank you, Wikipedia). He proposed that if you define a miracle as something with a probability of one in a million, and if you’re paying close attention to the world around you eight hours a day, every day, and little things happen around you at a rate of one per second, then you’d observe about thirty thousand things every day, which means about a million things a month. So, on average, you should witness one miracle every month (or every thirty-three-and-one-third days, if we’re being strictly accurate). It’s called Littlewood’s law. So, there you have it, a miracle a month. They’re not even that special.

Justice is any act of reconciliation that restores any part of God's creation back to its original intent, purpose or image. When I think about justice that way, it doesn't surprise me at all that God loves it. It includes both the acts of social justice and the restorative justice found on the cross.

Is anyone in the U.S. innocent? Although those at the very pinnacle of the economic pyramid gain the most, millions of us depend—either directly or indirectly—on the exploitation of the LDCs for our livelihoods. The resources and cheap labor that feed nearly all our businesses come from places like Indonesia, and very little ever makes its way back. The loans of foreign aid ensure that today's children and their grandchildren will be held hostage. They will have to allow our corporations to ravage their natural resources and will have to forego education, health, and other social services merely to pay us back. The fact that our own companies already received most of this money to build the power plants, airports, and industrial parks does not factor into this formula. Does the excuse that most Americans are unaware of this constitute innocence? Uninformed and intentionally misinformed, yes—but innocent?

MURRAY (with a cynical laugh). Interesting? On a small town rag? A month of it, perhaps, when you're a kid and new to the game. But ten years. Think of it! With only a raise of a couple of dollars every blue moon or so, and a weekly spree on Saturday night to vary the monotony. (He laughs again.) Interesting, eh? Getting the dope on the Social of the Queen Esther Circle in the basement of the Methodist Episcopal Church, unable to sleep through a meeting of the Common Council on account of the noisy oratory caused by John Smith's application for a permit to build a house; making a note that a tugboat towed two barges loaded with coal up the river, that Mrs. Perkins spent a week-end with relatives in Hickville, that John Jones Oh help! Why go on? Ten years of it! I'm a broken man. God, how I used to pray that our Congressman would commit suicide, or the Mayor murder his wife just to be able to write a real story!

I thought about the core tools we EHMs used in my day: false economics that included distorted financial analyses, inflated projections, and rigged accounting books; secrecy, deception, threats, bribes, and extortion; false promises that we never intended to honor; and enslavement through debt and fear. These same tools are used today. Now, as then, many elements are present in each “hit,” although that likely is evident only to someone willing to delve deeply into the story behind the story. Now, as then, the glue that holds all of this together is the belief that any means are justified to achieve the desired ends. A

If we have been silent and have chosen to ignore the mistreatment of others in the past, we should begin to speak up and challenge injustices. If we were racist and bigoted in our speech and actions, there should be a radical change that is observable. If we have been angry and spiteful toward the other, there should be a radical change that is observable. And, yes, if we have an abundance of wealth and we have the opportunity to use this blessing to encourage those we have previously been prejudiced against, we should open our hands in Christian love and brotherhood. We should tear down the walls that have separated us for so long.

And it requires that we make some uncomfortable confessions. G.K. Chesterton said, "It isn't that they can't see the solution. It is that they can't see the problem." I believe this statement can be applied to the lack of reconciliation within the Church today. We've not been able to arrive at the solution because we haven't seen or acknowledged the problem. The problem is that there is a gaping hole in our gospel. We have preached a gospel that leaves us believing that we can be reconciled to God but not reconciled to our Christian brothers and sisters who don't look like us - brothers and sisters with whom we are, in fact, one blood.

¿Se puede ser inocente en Estados Unidos? Es verdad que quienes ocupan la cúspide de la pirámide económica cosechan grandes ganancias, pero millones de nosotros, los demás, dependemos directa o indirectamente de la explotación de los países menos desarrollados. Los recursos y la mano de obra barata que utilizan casi todas nuestras empresas provienen de lugares como Indonesia, que apenas reciben nada a cambio. Los créditos de la ayuda exterior son la garantía de que sus hijos y nietos seguirán siendo rehenes nuestros. Tendrán que permitir el saqueo de sus recursos naturales por nuestras empresas y seguirán privándose de educación, sanidad y demás servicios sociales, simplemente para pagarnos la deuda. En esa fórmula no interviene el hecho de que nuestras compañías hayan recibido ya la mayor parte del pago por la construcción de esas centrales generadoras, esos aeropuertos y esos complejos industriales. Que la mayoría de los estadounidenses desconozcan estas realidades, ¿es excusa suficiente? Desinformados y mal informados adrede, sí, pero… ¿inocentes?

I believe in the inherent dignity of all human beings. The Bible states clearly that God created men and women in His image from the very beginning. (see Genesis 1:27) No matter how damaged people become, they still bear that image. No matter how much people have been oppressed or how much they have oppressed others, the part of them made in His image is worth rescuing and restoring.

The reason we haven’t solved the race problem in America after hundreds of years is that people apart from God are trying to create unity, while people under God who already have unity are not living out the unity we possess. The result of both of these conditions is disastrous for America. Our failure to find cultural unity as a nation is directly related to the church’s failure to preserve our spiritual unity. The church has already been given unity because we’ve been made part of the same family. An interesting point to note about family is that you don’t have to get family to be family. A family already is a family. But sometimes you do have to get family to act like family. In the family of God, this is done through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. A perfect example of spiritual unity came on the Day of Pentecost when God’s people spoke with other tongues (Acts 2:4). When the Holy Spirit showed up, people spoke in languages they didn’t know so that people from a variety of backgrounds could unite under the cross of Jesus Christ. The people who heard the apostles speak on the Day of Pentecost were from all over the world, representing at least sixteen different geographical areas, racial categories, or ethnic groups (Acts 2:8–11). But in spite of the great diversity, they found true oneness in the presence of the Holy Spirit. Spiritual oneness always and only comes to those who are under God’s authority because in that reality He enables them with the power of His Spirit.

1 and 2. The United States represents less than 5 percent of the world’s population; it consumes more than 25 percent of the world’s resources. This is accomplished to a large degree through the exploitation of other countries, primarily in the developing world. Point 3. The United States maintains the largest and most sophisticated military in the world. Although this empire has been built primarily through economics—by EHMs—world leaders understand that whenever other measures fail, the military will step in, as it did in Iraq. Point 4. The English language and American culture dominate the world. Points 5 and 6. Although the United States does not tax countries directly, and the dollar has not replaced other currencies in local markets, the corporatocracy does impose a subtle global tax and the dollar is in fact the standard currency for world commerce. This process began at the end of World War II when the gold standard was modified; dollars could no longer be converted by individuals, only by governments. During the 1950s and 1960s, credit purchases were made abroad to finance America’s growing consumerism, the Korean and Vietnam Wars, and Lyndon B. Johnson’s Great Society. When foreign businessmen tried to buy goods and ser vices back from the United States, they found that inflation had reduced the value of their dollars—in effect, they paid an indirect tax. Their governments demanded debt settlements in gold. On August 15, 1971, the Nixon administration refused and dropped the gold standard altogether.   Washington

We need to get beyond our ignorance of the other. We need to move beyond the thinking that white privilege means that all whites live a privileged life. This perspective ignores the reality of class in this country. The plight of poor whites was largely ignored until the last presidential election. According to the 2013 data from the US Department of Agriculture, 40.2 percent of food stamp recipients were white; 25.7 percent, black.4 What’s Their Story? We would do well to hear and learn from the stories of whites, especially those who share the common struggle of poverty and marginalization. In Hillbilly Elegy, J. D. Vance shares his story of growing up poor: “To these folks, poverty is the family tradition—their ancestors were day laborers in the Southern slave economy, sharecroppers after that, coal miners after that, and machinists and millworkers during more recent times. Americans call them hillbillies, rednecks, or white trash. I call them neighbors, friends, and family.”5 When we understand the details of the other’s story we realize that we have much more in common than we ever imagined.

Hoy esos hombres y mujeres van a Tailandia, a Filipinas, a Botswana, a Bolivia y a cualquier parte donde esperan encontrar gentes que necesitan con desesperación un trabajo. Van a esos países con la intención deliberada de explotar a los desdichados, a seres que tienen hijos desnutridos o famélicos, que viven en barrios de chabolas y que han perdido toda esperanza de una vida mejor; que incluso han dejado de soñar en un futuro. Esos hombres y mujeres salen de sus fastuosos despachos de Manhattan, de San Francisco o de Chicago, se desplazan entre los continentes y los océanos en lujosos jets, se alojan en hoteles de primera categoría y se agasajan en los mejores restaurantes que esos países puedan ofrecer. Luego salen a buscar gente desesperada. Son los negreros de nuestra época. Pero ya no tienen necesidad de aventurarse en las selvas de África en busca de ejemplares robustos para venderlos al mejor postor en las subastas de Charleston, Cartagena o La Habana. Simplemente reclutan a esos desesperados y construyen una fábrica que confeccione las cazadoras, los pantalones vaqueros, las zapatillas deportivas, las piezas de automoción, los componentes para ordenadores y los demás miles de artículos que aquéllos saben colocar en los mercados de su elección. O tal vez prefieren no ser los dueños de esas fábricas, sino que se limitan a contratar con los negociantes locales, que harán el trabajo sucio por ellos. Esos hombres y mujeres se consideran gente honrada. Regresan a sus países con fotografías de lugares pintorescos y de antiguas ruinas, para enseñárselas a sus hijos. Asisten a seminarios en donde se dan mutuas palmadas en las espaldas e intercambian consejos sobre cómo burlar las arbitrariedades aduaneras de aquellos exóticos países. Sus jefes contratan abogados que les aseguran la perfecta legalidad de lo que ellos y ellas están haciendo. Y tienen a su disposición un cuadro de psicoterapeutas y otros expertos en recursos humanos, para que les ayuden a persuadirse de que, en realidad, están ayudando a esas gentes desesperadas. El esclavista a la antigua usanza se decía a sí mismo que su comercio trataba con una especie no del todo humana, a cuyos individuos ofrecía la oportunidad de convertirse al cristianismo. Al mismo tiempo, entendía que los esclavos eran indispensables para la supervivencia de su propia sociedad, de cuya economía constituían el fundamento. El esclavista moderno se convence a sí mismo (o a sí misma) de que es mejor para los desesperados ganar un dólar al día que no ganar absolutamente nada. Y además se les ofrece la oportunidad de integrarse en la más amplia comunidad global. Él o ella también comprenden que esos desesperados son esenciales para la supervivencia de sus compañías, y que son los fundamentos del nivel de vida que sus explotadores disfrutan. Nunca se detienen a reflexionar sobre las consecuencias más amplias de lo que ellos y ellas, su nivel de vida y el sistema económico en que todo eso se asienta están haciéndole al planeta, ni sobre cómo, finalmente, todo eso repercutirá en el porvenir de sus propios hijos.