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Pope Francis "without the Politics"?
I just finished another Sirico essay, "Pope Francis without the Politics," printed first in the Detroit News, and now reprinted over at the Acton blog (http://www.acton.org/pub/commentary/2014/01/08/pope-francis-without-poli...). I understand the imperative behind pieces like this, but one grows tired of the constant, clearly procrustean attempt to fit Pope Francis' critical vision into the libertarian/free-market box. Why? Here are some proximate causes:
1. There's no economics without politics. Any turn in the direction of economics (free-market/neoliberal or otherwise) is fundamentally a continuation of political discussion. Attempting to "depoliticize" any discussion can itself be a political move of the highest order.
2. Sirico's first question "What excludes the poor from the process of prosperity?" misses the point entirely. As Benedict was fond of saying, it's quite possible and perhaps even common to be materially prosperous but spiritually empty and unhappy. Indeed, critics on the right and left both have diagnosed this as part of the modern condition. What is more, the "process of prosperity" that Sirico lauds is part of this condition. For everyone, a certain amount of material abundance is necessary; what matters for the poor especially is dignity. Is Sirico suggesting that market value (and not religion) confers dignity?
3. Sirico's second question refers to the poor as "potential shapers of their own destiny." This is fine. The problem is that market processes are profoundly indifferent to this question of self-determination; for rich and poor alike, the market strips individuals and communities of autonomy just as often as it grants it. And besides, to return to my point above, the issue of self-determination is fundamentally political rather than economic. The truly and fully self-sufficient individual is nothing more than a Randian fiction, which means that issues of "destiny" in secular space, here and now, are collective. They can only be addressed as a question of community. The fullest and fairest expression of community is in democracy, which means one simple thing: letting the poor think and speak and act for themselves.
Sirico's so-called solution to the poor – for individuals and nations alike – is the fantasy of making them more like the rich. I think it's safe to say that this has nothing to do with Pope Francis' message.
About the Author
Robert Geroux is a political theorist.
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Great post, Robert. Your reflections on Sirico's facile acceptance of the contemporary meaning of "prosperity" are apt. It reminds me of John Ruskin, who distinguished between wealth and what he called illth. It's also good to remind us that "the self-sufficient individual" is a phantom, and that "the market" is not a democracy.
As for your point about there being no economics without politics, doesn't it suggest that we should revive the notion of political economy? Then we'd have to put the common good front and center, rather than hope that the "free market" will take care of it as a kind of afterthought.
Sirico is and has been an opportunist for the last 40 or so years. If anyone looks into his background you can spot it quite easily.
If next year it works in his favor to be a socialist, he will.
Sirico asks, "What would a society look like that no longer considers the poor as objects of paternalistic aid but rather as potential shapers of their own destiny?"
Well, we have some hints. There is an international movement to give mini-grants to very poor people to start their own businesses. It has largely been highly successful, especially in India where tiny grants are given to women to start their own businesses. What does this prove? That you can't start a business without some capital, which is exactly what the poor don't have and can't get from banks. By the way, Ann Dunham, mother of Barack Obama, was a pioneer in the movement.
"Anthropologist Michael Dove described the dissertation [Ann Dunham's] as "a classic, in-depth, on-the-ground anthropological study of a 1,200-year-old industry".[53] According to Dove, Dunham's dissertation challenged popular perceptions regarding economically and politically marginalized groups, and countered the notions that the roots of poverty lie with the poor themselves and that cultural differences are responsible for the gap between less-developed countries and the industrialized West.[53] According to Dove, Dunham:
found that the villagers she studied in Central Java had many of the same economic needs, beliefs and aspirations as the most capitalist of Westerners. Village craftsmen were "keenly interested in profits", she wrote, and entrepreneurship was "in plentiful supply in rural Indonesia", having been "part of the traditional culture" there for a millennium.
Based on these observations, Dr. Soetoro [Ann Dunham, Mrs. Soetoro at that time] concluded that underdevelopment in these communities resulted from a scarcity of capital, the allocation of which was a matter of politics, not culture. Antipoverty programs that ignored this reality had the potential, perversely, of exacerbating inequality because they would only reinforce the power of elites. As she wrote in her dissertation, "many government programs inadvertently foster stratification by channeling resources through village officials", who then used the money to strengthen their own status further."
(From the Wikipedia article on "Ann Dunham".)
As Ann pointed out, giving poor people monetary aid is making them shapers of their own destiny.
There are ways of making our social spending programs better, and there are some libertarian policy proposals that would improve the lives of the poor. However, the core of their plan is take away a lot of things the poor are depending on right now and hope that it will make the economy grow so fast that the poor will be better off at some point in the future (assuming the rich and the powerful don't use their disproportionately growing wealth to find new ways to steal from the poor).
I read just today that the sad state of the Republican Party is forcing some of the party members to re-consideer their policies. I don't like to admit it, but it seems that Paul Ryan is starting to come around to simply supplementing the income of poor families with cash. (I've read that even Friedman was in favor of a guaranteed income!) Some say it would also hep with the problem of young fathers who take no responsibility for their children. With some income they would be willing to stick around.
At least some Republicans are starting to see what is so patently, clearly, obviously manifest: what poor people need is money! Would such help be (gasp!) handounts? I say they wouldn't be any more than decent public school educations are handouts for the children of the middle class. So there.
Robert - you might want to peruse the on-going columns from Michael Sean Winters on NCRonline. He actually appeared in a debate a few months ago with Sirico and he has analyzed both Sirico's responses/articles and the recent book by Sirico's colleague S. Gregg.
He does an excellent job of refuting the gaps, holes, and straw men in the Acton Institute approach.
Robert - thanks for the link to Fr. Sirico's piece. For myself, I didn't find anything overly troubling about it, and in fact I don't see it as an attempt to "fit Pope Francis' critical vision into the libertarian/free-market box". But there are several things you write in this post that I don't understand. You write:
There's no economics without politics. Any turn in the direction of economics (free-market/neoliberal or otherwise) is fundamentally a continuation of political discussion.
I don't understand this. It seems self-evident that economics is separate from, and independent of, politics. To be sure, they interact (in both directions). But economic activity can and does take place in any and all political systems, among people of any and all political persuasions.
Furthermore, despite political conflict, there is actually a great deal of consensus between conservatives and liberals on the broad outlines of economic policy. I take Sirico's point of view (and apparently he believes he is following Francis on this) to be that what we should wish for is a society "where the state and society create social conditions that promote and safeguard their rights and allow them to be builders of their own destiny." I don't think that (most) Democrats or (most) Republicans would object to that goal. Naturally, there would be some disagreement as to which policies would foster such conditions and which rights should be safeguarded.
You write,
"What excludes the poor from the process of prosperity?" misses the point entirely. As Benedict was fond of saying, it's quite possible and perhaps even common to be materially prosperous but spiritually empty and unhappy."
It is true that many prosperous people are adrift or unhappy, but I don't understand which point is being entirely missed. To label a person, or a class of persons as being poor, is to make a fundamentally economic statement. To be sure, "poor" and "poverty" connotate all sorts of other problems, issues and risks that aren't properly economic themselves yet are inextricably linked to poverty. Part and parcel of addressing that complex of problems and issues is to address the core problem, which is an economic problem. If we don't understand "preferential option for the poor" as a phrase with economic meaning, I think we're misunderstanding church social teaching.
You write, "
Sirico's second question refers to the poor as "potential shapers of their own destiny." This is fine. The problem is that market processes are profoundly indifferent to this question of self-determination; for rich and poor alike, the market strips individuals and communities of autonomy just as often as it grants it."
I do understand this point, and at least partially agree with it. But in this instance at least, Sirico doesn't seem to be recommending a laissez-faire marketplace as the cure for what ails the poor; as I noted above, he states his preference for a society "where the state and society create social conditions that promote and safeguard their rights and allow them to be builders of their own destiny." That seems to leave ample room for both a government-administered social safety net, and for mediating institutions of many sorts. To be sure, a conservative would rejoin that government entitlements also are notorious for their ability to "strip individuals and communities of autonomy." But other social structures from labor unions to parent-teacher associations to churches are laboratories for the development of human dignity and autonomy, and catalysts for members of society to shape their own destinies.
Paul Krugman points out the absurdities of some of the points that "Fr." Sirico is making, albeit not specifically directing his comments at The Good Father.
Jim P. -- The separation of "economics" from politics -- or from social relationships, in general, for that matter -- is very recent. In The Great Transformation, Karl Polanyi, drawing on a lot of historical and anthropological evidence, shows that archaic, ancient, and medieval peoples never thought of production and trade as separate from social relationships. In fact, the making and exchange of things was subordinate to the maintenance of a certain network of social relationships. Aristotle, for instance, deals with oikonomia -- the care of the household -- in his Politics, where it's considered inseparable from the question of how to live in the polis. As Polanyi put it, there's a difference between "a society with a market" and a "market society" -- such as ours -- where social relationships are subordinated to something called "the economy."
No one before the marginalists, not even Adam Smith, ever heard of "economics" except as either oikonomia, care of the household, or as "political economy," where the wealth of the country was considered very much a matter of the "common good," which is what politics was supposed to be all about. It's not that pre-modern people didn't know enough to discover some separate realm called "the economy" that would then be studied by "economics." Rather, as Polanyi demonstrates, "the economy" as some sphere with its own laws is a creature of capitalism. Once you invent "the economy" with "laws," you can then argue against political "interference."
All attempts by Congress to regulate unfair business practices are greeted with yelps of "You're trying to destroy the market !!!!" by the greedy business owners. This amounts to portraying the market as a machine which cannot tolerate changing any of its parts -- to change it is to break it, they say. What has been left out of this machine model of the maket are the necessary human decisions which are part and parcel of the market system. And as soon as you recognize that dumb or immoral human decisions can deform the whole system there is no choice but to regulate those decisions when necessary to protect the system.
In my experince, whenever you hear an economist start to talk in metaphors, look out, including "the invisible hand" and "trickle down". In the end ALL metaphors fail except as highly imprecise and sometimes highly misleading teaching aids.
Let's drop the metaphors and point to the facts -- sometimes correciton of the market requires government regulation. Including jail terms if necessary..
Professor McCarraher -- there are many disciplines taught in universities today - anthropology, women's studies, psychology, statistics, a host of medical specialties - that weren't recognized as disciplines or sciences until fairly recently in human history.
Like other policy tools, economics, when it is understood and its principles are heeded, can be used by rulers and policymakers for the common good - or for other ends. Janet Yellen presumably will be Chairman of the Federal Reserve because President Obama believes that is best for the common good. The Federal Reserve deliberately was created to operate (mostly) free of government oversight and interference because its creators didn't think that the intermixture of politics and economics was wise - a view based on painful historical experience and observation.
I have a naïve question: aren't economics at the opposite of a Christian perspective on the world?
Economics perspective: balance and measure, give and take, costs and benefits, measuring the utility of each option and finding a tradeoff, market equilibria,...
Christian perspective: give without counting, boundless generosity, unconditional love, free offering, live not for ourselves, and, in everything, replace measured advice by an unreasonable embrace of love (Matthew 5 : 21-48)...
Gene makes an important and interesting point. Sirico and his fellow travellers are out of sync and step with Catholic social thought. It is not because of their ideas around economics per se, it is because they do not, it seems, see the economy as subsumed under the body politic, or the community, or ordered to the common good.
The Church's social teaching, it seems to me, is predicated on the assumption that the economy needs to be understood in precisely the classical way that Gene so eloquently stated.
In fact, we should be cautious when we hear such things as the "global economy" and imagine that it is just some sort of free floating entity completely disconnected from any political and organizing body. It just so happens that the political and organizing body of the "global economy" is unelected, non-transparent, relatively unknown, and operates as a kind of parallel state. Those kooky conspiracy folks do have a point. As the saying goes, just because you are paranoid, doesn't mean that there are not really people out to get you!!
aren't economics at the opposite of a Christian perspective on the world?
Claire - economics, at least when it is wearing its descriptive hat, describes human behavior. When humans behave according to Christian principles, economists would describe the economic aspects of that Christian behavior, using the tools of economic analysis. Scrooge, and the gentlemen who urged him to give to their fund for the poor at Christmastime, were operating from opposing principles - the latter Christian, the former unChristian. But both sets of behavior are amenable to economic analysis.
Had the rich young man heeded Jesus' advice and given all his wealth away, an economist would say that he did so because he found "utility" in doing so. That he (apparently) instead chose to cling to his wealth is amenable to the same explanation: he did so because he derives greater utility in hoarding his wealth than giving it away. Naturally, describing such behavior as "utility" doesn't really get to the heart of his motivations, or allow us to assess the moral or religious worth of such choices. Economics isn't a grand theory of everything; it only describes behavior from an economic point of view, and we need to turn to other fields to get a holistic understanding of what is going on. Still, to analyze such things in terms of utility and choices does give us some insight into human behavior.
describing such behavior as "utility" doesn't really get to the heart of his motivations
Here is what St. Basil claimed were his motivations:
Now, you [the rich young man] are obviously very far from having observed one commandment at least, and you falsely swore that you had kept it, namely, that you've loved your neighbor as yourself. For see: the Lord's commandment proves you to be utterly lacking in real love. For if what you've claimed were true, that you have kept from your youth the commandment of love, and have given to each person as much as to yourself, how has it come to you, this abundance of money? For it takes wealth to care for the needy: a little paid out for the necessity of each person you take on, and all at once everything gets parceled out, and is spent upon them. Thus, the man who loves his neighbor as himself will have acquired no more than what his neighbor has; whereas you, visibly, have acquired a lot. Where has this come from? Or is it not clear, that it comes from making your private enjoyment more important than helping other people? Therefore, however much you exceed in wealth, so much so do you fall short in love: else long since you'd have taken care to be divorced from your money, if you had loved your neighbor.
Or is it not clear, that it comes from making your private enjoyment more important than helping other people?
Here, St. Basil gives us as good an explanation of what economists call utility as any other I've seen. The entire passage is a discourse on the moral implications of the rich young man's values and choices - that is to say, the moral implications of his utility. If we really value love of neighbor more than wealth, our choices and behavior will reflect it. In a sense, it is economics that convicts the rich young man.
Sirico and his fellow travellers are out of sync and step with Catholic social thought. It is not because of their ideas around economics per se, it is because they do not, it seems, see the economy as subsumed under the body politic, or the community, or ordered to the common good.
Much political conflict consists of arguing about which economic arrangements are ordered to the common good. I don't know very much about Sirico and the Acton Institute, but I'd guess, based on what is written here, that their view is that what would be ordered to the common good is a vigorous marketplace that provides the means for humans to be responsible for their own prosperity.
It just so happens that the political and organizing body of the "global economy" is unelected, non-transparent, relatively unknown, and operates as a kind of parallel state.
There is no overall organizing body. Nobody is fully in charge. For practical purposes, management of the global economy depends on the goodwill cooperation of the governments and central banks of the nations and international federations of the developed world. Kinda scary, huh? :-)
"what would be ordered to the common good is a vigorous marketplace that provides the means for humans to be responsible for their own prosperity."
Jim, and if you ever find one, please call me, BBC, the New York Times, the Vatican and the Federal Reserve. In that order, if you don't mind.
But you won't find one because of that dad-burned human factor. The factor that allows humans to control markets for their own benefit if they have the clout, and the factor that allows their subjects to sabotage their control if the subjects have the brains and vision to stop regurgitating what their betters try to indoctrinate then with.
But when you get to the human factor, you are, ta-da!, at politics. Pretending that markets do, or ever could, exist without a heavy substratum of politics is pretending you can fly a kite without a kite. You can hypothize about it, but you can't show anyone how you did it, and you can't take a picture of it, and if you hypothize too long, people will start snickering.
"what would be ordered to the common good is a vigorous marketplace that provides the means for humans to be responsible for their own prosperity."
Jim, and if you ever find one, please call me, BBC, the New York Times, the Vatican and the Federal Reserve. In that order, if you don't mind.
But you won't find one because of that dad-burned human factor. The factor that allows humans to control markets for their own benefit if they have the clout, and the factor that allows their subjects to sabotage their control if the subjects have the brains and vision to stop regurgitating what their betters try to indoctrinate then with.
But when you get to the human factor, you are, ta-da!, at politics. Pretending that markets do, or ever could, exist without a heavy substratum of politics is pretending you can fly a kite without a kite. You can hypothize about it, but you can't show anyone how you did it, and you can't take a picture of it, and if you hypothize too long, people will start snickering.
Discussions like this militate against becoming productive if there are no specifics to point to that show how the poor and the middle class are being trampled upon in this country. The largest failure today in American business is that the profit motive is the sole concern and that only shareholders are important so that their investments are maximized above all. That goes against, for example, a more balanced company like IBM used to be where there was large concern over the welfare of employees. Nowadays the employee is in fear of losing her job if she attempts to push for a more human agenda.
For example, Microsoft and many others ship out jobs to other countries so that they can save money on wages thereby taking the job from American workers many of whom are working three jobs to survive at lower wages.Not only are these workers from other countries depriving locals from emplyment. They are giving everyone migraines to us when calling them for customer service. Why can't Microsoft, Apple and others make a few billion less so that more people can have jobs. I understand that they need to be competitive. But these companies are so cash rich at a time when so many are impoverished if they lose their unemployment benefits.
One of the ways the poor and middle class can be productive and help their cause is not to buy products from such companies who are mafia-like in pursuing profits. Unless those damaged by corporate greed take such action all discussion is quite meaningless.
Tom - sounds like a challenge for Sirico. I agree with you that in the marketplace, some people manage to jostle themselves into position next to the scale in order to put their thumb on it, and that in a sense that is poliltical (although not always governmental, not by a long shot).
Bill - I've been thinking to myself (I doubt I came up with the concept myself; I must have read it somewhere) that as an alternative or supplement to the corporate income tax, there be a Cash On Hand tax. I believe that would induce corporations to invest rather than hoard cash. As you note, the investment might not be in the US. For that, I don't have any clever policy ideas. Our wages are not competitive in a global economy.
We are not competitive, Jim, because greed permeates the landscape of American business today. I heard of hotel suites at 3500 dollars a night. Now they are going for $26,000 a night. Many customers come from foreign lands whose people mostly are immersed in poverty. Helicpter rides from NYC to the Hamptons go for $3500 one way. It is a gilded age. Banks barely wink at billion dollar penalties while they run roughshod over the middle class.
I just posted on Microsoft's facebook page some criticism in this regard. They seemed to have deleted it already. But the more people post the more they will at least know people are unhappy with their greed. You can reach more of these on facebook than other places.
Our wages are getting competitive in a global economy. If an employer can command 40 to 48 hours of an employee's time each week, out of which the employer will use 29 or 30 hours at his -- the employer's -- convenience and avoid paying benefits, said employer has a workforce that stacks up pretty well against the lately unionizing malcontents in China.
As Fr. Sirico might say, our workforce is adjusting to the demands of the market. It is inconvenient to the employee who has to stand by and takes a big risk if he tries to add a second job to his work week. It is only a small movement now, albeit one the allegedly socialist president of the United States is willing to applaud, but it more clearly the future than anything that would lead to a middle class existence for the majority of Americans.
Another place you can see what is happening is at the airport. The well-off don't go to the concourses anymore. They go to a satellite building, board their hired jet and enjoy the leg room. Since important people are not around to make important complaints, the rest of the herd faces rising prices, shrinking space, vanishing service and dirtier aircraft. Air travel is an example of our bifurcating markets -- service and convenience if you pay for it, take what we shove at you if you don't.
Well, as the libertarian economists say, nobody has to fly. (Unless, of course, he does have to, for one of many reasons including the decline of the railroads.)
" --- as an alternative or supplement to the corporate income tax, there be a Cash On Hand tax. I believe that would induce corporations to invest rather than hoard cash."
Oh, yes, I'm sure that the House and Senate would jump through hoops to make that happen! Yes, indeedy.
"there are many disciplines taught in universities today - anthropology, women's studies, psychology, statistics, a host of medical specialties - that weren't recognized as disciplines or sciences until fairly recently in human history."
Jim P. -- You're comparing apples and oranges. I don't think any anthropologist or scholar in women's studies would claim that her discipline taught a set of invariant "laws" that somehow constiuted a self-contained sphere of human life. Economists claim precisely such a thing; they talk about their "laws" about supply and demand, marginal utility, etc., as the equivalents of laws in statisitics, biology, physics, etc. I'm claiming that "economics" is not a real science because there is no such thing as "the economy" that's constituted apart from social and political relationships. In fact, what's called "the economy" is nothing but a certain set of social and political relationships whose social and political character is obscured by "economics." That's why I suggested to Robert Geroux that we should retrieve the tradition of political economy.
Jim Pauwels: Re: "Utility"
"Utility", as it is used in serious economics [tht is, economics that views itself as science, something with quantitave, predictive power] is not a "thing in itself." It is a *model* that is, in some circumstances, useful. We can imagine applying "utility" to a parable from the Gospel, but only at grave risk of anachronism. Does one suppose that if we were to speak to Jesus or even the Evangelists in these terms (supposing that we coudld find language to express our understanding), they would nod and say, "Ah, yes. Just so. A good predictor of what the Law requires?"
Mark L.
"In a sense, it is economics that convicts the rich young man."
Jim P. --
Uh-uh. If we were *all* meant to take "sell everything and give the money to the poor", then the poor would be even worse off, so Jesus probably didn't mean that literally. (He often exaggerated to make Himself clear.) Why must we reject a literal interpretation? Consider what would happen if *everyone* even *tried* to sell everything -- then nothing would be worth anything because if *everyone* was selling *everything* there would be no buyers left to buy anything. It simply cannot be done. The economy were thus wrecked except for some primitive bartering. There would be hardly anything for anyone.
Should everyone sell just *something*? That sounds more like what the Lord had in mind. Sell something and give to the poor. Or, with the same effect, give some or all of your profits to the poor. The question is: how much of it?
I suspect that the answer depends on the person. For instance, someone with great business acumen might help the poor more long-term if he/she invested his/her profits and gave more later, while the rest of us should give now.
I suspect that what the Lord meant was that we should be *willing* to give all to the poor if our neighbors were in need. But in the meantime, what 'must' we give? I suspect that, that very question violates the spirit of Jesus' command. But how to figure out what He wants from us (or should I say just 'me'?), I really don't know. And I suspect there is no formula for answring. Maybe the old notion of tithing is a start. I do suspect that the old saying "Give till it hurts" is a start.
I also think that it's unreasonable to think of giving to the poor only in terms of individual donors. When whole populations are in need only *large numbers* of people can succed in helping the large numbers in need. This means NGOs and governments. However, when an individual asks anindiviual for help, that, ISTM, must be responded to. It's wrong, in other words, to ignore those beggars at red lights when we have enough time to grab our wallets and get some money out.
Again, it all depends. But on what? Charity is a lot like justice -- the answers are not always clear.
Gene - economics is a social science. Defying the law of supply and demand - say, by paying your employees a living wage even when the market-clearing wage is a good deal lower - will not have the same repercussions as defying the law of gravity. Nevertheless, the health or even existence of the enterprise may be imperilled.
Uh-uh. If we were *all* meant to take "sell everything and give the money to the poor", then the poor would be even worse off, so Jesus probably didn't mean that literally. (He often exaggerated to make Himself clear.) Why must we reject a literal interpretation? Consider what would happen if *everyone* even *tried* to sell everything -- then nothing would be worth anything because if *everyone* was selling *everything* there would be no buyers left to buy anything.
Ann, if everyone gave all that they had to the poor it would definitely be time for Jesus to come again. That would never happen. So Jesus did mean that literally. The willingness to do so is the whole point. Based on where our treasure is there lies our heart.
Does one suppose that if we were to speak to Jesus or even the Evangelists in these terms (supposing that we coudld find language to express our understanding), they would nod and say, "Ah, yes. Just so. A good predictor of what the Law requires?"
Mark L - no, I don't suppose the term "indifference curve" had been coined back then. (Although Jesus, as the Son of God, may be a special case...) But that doesn't mean that one can't be constructed, with "salvation" on one axis and "wealth" on the other. (Ann's most recent comment is sort of trending in that direction.) Unless you believe that people behave more rationally now than they did in Jesus' day, I don't know of any reason that that particular way of thinking through a choice problem is less valid then than now, even if they didn't have fancy-schmancy terminology to frame it.
Btw, after reading your comment, I Googled "biblical indifference curve". I am pleased to report intriguing confirmation of something that I have practically concluded is itself a law: that any cockamamie idea I happen think of (like a tax on Cash on Hand) will already have been thought up by at least one other person.
I agree with Bill. Plus, St. Basil is not saying one should give everything away, but only "as much to each person as you give to yourself"... The rest of the homily is also worth reading. The way in which he rips us out (we're all among the rich) might be a bit like Ustez dealing with Adel: it's strangely enjoyable to read.
While renouncing the notion that the market alone is sufficient to meet all human needs, Francis is also prepared to denounce a "welfare mentality" that creates a dependency on the part of the poor and reduces the Church to the role of being just another bureaucratic NGO.
That's Father Sirico. Here is his boss:
The need to resolve the structural causes of poverty cannot be delayed, not only for the pragmatic reason of its urgency for the good order of society, but because society needs to be cured of a sickness which is weakening and frustrating it, and which can only lead to new crises. Welfare projects, which meet certain urgent needs, should be considered merely temporary responses. As long as the problems of the poor are not radically resolved by rejecting the absolute autonomy of markets and financial speculation and by attacking the structural causes of inequalitty no solution will be found for the world's problems or, for that matter, to any problems. Inequality is the root of social ills. Evangelii Gaudium, 202) (bold face added)
If the first quote fairly represents the second quote, Robert Geroux is an alarmist. If not, Fr. Sirico is a cheese-parer. Crackers, anyone?
Anne, Well said.
Pope Francis is not speaking out of some philosophical theory or economic model but from a felt sense of witness to the destruction of human lives by grinding poverty he encountered in Latin America. One needs to abandon abstraction and recognize that those whose greed has led to the inequitable distribution of wealth and those who defend the system resulting in such inequity are simply heartless people who lack human empathy that psychologists tell us begins development in the third year of life. Let's be real.
On Monday 20 January 2014, the Guardian published the results of a study by Oxfam. Here are some extracts: I apologize for the large bold print caused by pasting.
Oxfam: 85 richest people as wealthy as poorest half of the world. The wealth of the 1% richest people in the world amounts to $110tn (£60.88tn), or 65 times as much as the poorest half of the world.
Oxfam also argues that this is no accident either, saying growing inequality has been driven by a "power grab" by wealthy elites, who have co-opted the political process to rig the rules of the economic system in their favour.
The Oxfam report found that over the past few decades, the rich have successfully wielded political influence to skew policies in their favour on issues ranging from financial deregulation, tax havens, anti-competitive business practices to lower tax rates on high incomes and cuts in public services for the majority. Since the late 1970s, tax rates for the richest have fallen in 29 out of 30 countries for which data are available, said the report.
This "capture of opportunities" by the rich at the expense of the poor and middle classes has led to a situation where 70% of the world's population live in countries where inequality has increased since the 1980s and 1% of families own 46% of global wealth - almost £70tn.
From Oxfam:
The world's wealthiest people aren't known for travelling by bus, but if they fancied a change of scene then the richest 85 people on the globe – who between them control as much wealth as the poorest half of the global population put together – could squeeze onto a single double-decker.
More from Basil's homily. He does not mince his words against the super-rich!
2. But how do you make use of money? By dressing in expensive clothing? Won't two yards of tunic suffice you, and the covering of one coat satisfy all your need of clothes? But is it for food's sake that you have such a demand for wealth? One bread-loaf is enough to fill a belly. Why are you sad, then? What have you been deprived of? The status that comes from wealth? But if you would stop seeking earthly status, you should then find the true, resplendent kind that would conduct you into the kingdom of heaven. But what you love is simply to possess wealth, even if you derive no help from it. [...]
But it isn't for the sake of clothing or food that riches are a matter of such concern to so many people; but, by a certain wily artifice of the devil, countless pretexts of expenditure are proposed to the rich, so that they strive for superfluous, useless things as though they were necessary, and so that nothing measures up to their conception of what they should spend. For they divide up their wealth with a view to present and future uses; and they assign the one portion to themselves, and the other to their children. Next, they subdivide their expense account for various spending purposes. Hear now what sort of arrangements they make. Let some of our assets be accounted as liquid, others as fixed; and let liquid assets exceed the limits of necessity; let this much be on hand for household extravagance, let that much take care of showy visits to town. Let this tend to whoever goes on exotic voyages, and let that furnish the one who stays at home with an opulent lifestyle which will be envied by all. It amazes me, how they can pile on notions of superfluities. There are countless chariots, some for transporting goods, others for carrying themselves, covered with bronze and silver. A multitude of horses, and such as have pedigrees of well-bred fathers, as among people. And some of these carry the men about town, dissipating them; others are for hunting; others have been trained for the road. Reins, belts, collars, all of silver, all inlaid with gold. Saddles of genuine purple: they primp up the horses like brides. A plethora of asses, distinguished according to color, with men to hold the reins, some running before, some following after. An unlimited number of other servants striving to fulfill every outlandish wish: stewards, treasurers, gardeners, workers skilled in every art hitherto invented, whether for necessary purposes or for enjoyment and luxury. Butchers, bakers, winepourers, huntsmen, sculptors, painters, artisans of every pleasure. Herds of camels, some bearing burdens, others put to graze; herds of horses and of cattle, flocks of sheep, swine; the herdsmen of these; with land sufficient to feed them all, and which continually augments the wealth with additional revenue; baths in town; baths in the country; houses gleaming round with every variety of marble, in one place Phrygian stone, elsewhere tiles from Laconia or Thessaly. And of these houses, some are heated in winter, others are cooled in the summer. A floor decorated with mosaic gems, gold laid out on the roof. And however much of the walls eludes the marble tiling is adorned with choice works of pictorial art.
3. Since, then, the wealth still overflows, it gets buried underground, stashed away in secret places. For (they say), "what's to come is uncertain, we may face unexpected needs." Therefore it is equally uncertain whether you will have any use for your buried gold; it is not uncertain, however, what shall be the penalty of inveterate inhumanity. For when you failed, with your thousand notions, wholly to expend your wealth, you then concealed it in the earth. A strange madness, that, when gold lies hidden with other metals, one ransacks the earth; but after it has seen the light of day, it disappears again beneath the ground. From this, I perceive, it happens to you that in burying your money you bury also your heart. "For where your treasure is," it is said, "there will your heart be also" (Mt 6:21). [...]
5. "But I'm poor!" you say, and I'll vouch for you. For he is poor who lacks much. And much are you lacking, because of unfulfillable desire. To ten talents you seek to add another ten, and when there are twenty, you seek to add so many more; and always the addition, far from putting the urge to rest, whets the appetite. For just as with alcoholics a fresh bottle of wine becomes an excuse for drinking, so also those who are recently grown rich, and have acquired great possessions, desire more of the same, nursing the sickness with perpetual addition; and in their love they are carried to opposites. For having so much here and now fails to bring them happiness, since what they don't have they grieve over, thinking they lack it; so that their soul is forever being worn away by cares born of a struggle for superiority and excess. They ought to be happy and contented, being well-off in so much; but they bear it ill and are pained that they still fall short of one or two of the super-rich. When they catch up with this tycoon, immediately they yearn to be made equal to somebody richer; and if they outdo him, the desire is transferred to another. Just as those who climb a ladder lift their foot always one step above and do not stop till they've reached the top, in the same way these people do not cease from their drive for power, till, having risen very high, a fall from their sublimity dashes them to the ground. [...]
But what do you do? Don't you seek a thousand quarrels, in order to take what belongs to your neighbor? My neighbor's house, they say, blocks the sunlight; they make too much noise; they hold strange views; or on the grounds of some other chance accusation, you harass them, and kick them out, and drag them into court, and hound them, never ceasing till you have succeeded in turning them into vagabonds. What was it that killed Naboth the Jezreelite (cf. 1 Kgs 21)? Was it not Ahab's desire for his vineyard? He's a wicked neighbor in the country, and a wicked neighbor in town, the covetous man. The sea knows its bounds, and night doesn't overstep its ancient limits; but the covetous man has no respect for time, acknowledges no boundaries, yields not to order and succession, but mimics the force of fire: he catches hold of everything, he feeds on everything. And just as rivers, flowing out a ways from their first beginnings, little by little receive irresistible augmentation, and with violent onrush sweep away whatever stands in their course: so also those who have come into great power, taking from those already oppressed the ability to do more injustice, enslave those remaining together with those already wronged; and the profit of wickedness provides them with additional power.
The wealth of the 1% richest people in the world amounts to $110tn (£60.88tn), or 65 times as much as the poorest half of the world. Oxfam also argues that this is no accident either, saying growing inequality has been driven by a "power grab" by wealthy elites, who have co-opted the political process to rig the rules of the economic system in their favour.
George - is this report available online / can you provide a URL?
I agree that economic considerations are and probably ought to be distinguishab le from politial considerations, but I cannot see that they are separable. Political policies that ignore such economic realities as the availability of material resources or human skills arre doomed to be ineffective and likely destructive. On the other hand, to think of economic consideration being actualized apart from any network of legal permissions and prohibitions is without any historical evidence.
Having said that, let me refer to Lance Compa's very favorable review of George Tyler's book "What Went Wrong: How the 1% Hijacked the American Middle Class...and What Other Countries Got Right." I would add that there are no timelessly valid, definitive political or economic arrangements, but some arrangements show themselves over time to be without much redeeming social value. The present state of prevailing arrangements in the U. S. have very little to recommend them and very much to deplore.
Finally, let me add this observation. I can't make much sense of the notion of "maximizing utility." The word 'maximizing' is ordinarily thought to have quantitave implications. Can one define a unit of utility applicable to all the matters involved in ecomonic considerations? I doubt it. But if one can't do so, then how can one talk intelligibly about calculating utilities in any even moderately complex economic activity like a local McDonald's.
It would seem that the long Catholic chaplaincy for the world's corporate 1%ers has finally been eclipsed with the ascendency of Papa Francesco. This Sirico guy appears to be nothing more than scrambling to put a good face on a sad development - especially for his corporate patrones whose money underwrites his right-wing loving "Acton" foundation.
If Francesco's gospel-inspired economic critique really is allowed to take hold in the minds of the faithful, the plutocratic elites will be without their placating and apologist Catholic hierarchs who have helped them maintain their world view and economic strangelhold on the world's economic system. [I would say that things started to go all-wrong when Constantine co-opted the apostolic charism of the church in the fourth century - but, that is another discussion ...]
Francesco being a Jesuit from Argentina, the corporatists shills in the media were probably correct that it was indeed a dark day for them when the conclave choose some one under the influence of those "liberation theologians."
[If media reports yesterday are to be believe just 85 billionaires around the world control as much of the world's wealth as HALF of all the rest of humanity combined - the bottom 3.5 billion people. I guess Mitt Romney really was telling us the truth that as the tribune of the plutocrats he didn't worry about the 47% of us "takers" - the synergy of Mitt's 47% figures to the 50% estimate is breathtaking. Mitt must have good sources among his fellow plutocratic elites???]
Francesco is only the carnary in the coal mine. All of his life experiences have converged to inform his awareness that the world's present economic disparities and inequalities - rooted in the world's dominant unregulated corporate capitalism - between the halves and have-nots is no longer sustainable.
The population explosion alone among chiefly the bottom poorest half of humanity [that 3.5 billion of us] is poised maybe in this century - certainly in the next - to overwhelm any of the planet's capacity to even sustain human life. We're talking in terms of Dante's Inferno.
All of us, poor and rich alike will be suck down in that economic vortex. Nikita Khrushchyov's lament about nuclear war is equally apt here: "The living will envy the dead."
Catholicism can no longer be delinquent in its responsibilities to shape new social ethics that curbs human ideologies of unbridled consumption by the elite few. Nor can Catholicism abdicate its responsibility to foster a new human sexual and social ethic that sees moral value - indeed a moral imperative - in reducing the world's population.
It's way past time to give Humane Vitae a good Christian burial.
I can't make much sense of the notion of "maximizing utility." The word 'maximizing' is ordinarily thought to have quantitave implications. Can one define a unit of utility applicable to all the matters involved in ecomonic considerations? I doubt it. But if one can't do so, then how can one talk intelligibly about calculating utilities in any even moderately complex economic activity like a local McDonald's.
Bernard - utility and its maximization are microeconomic concepts, so they are applicable at the level of the individual consumer or (in the case of corporate consumption) the firm. Perhaps you as a consumer, for whatever reason, prefer Big Macs to Chicken McNuggets. Your preference may be quite strong or relatively mild. How would you quantify that preference? You're aware that you prefer one to the other, but there's not really a unit of measure that directly measures that internal, subjective preference. To the extent that your preference is reflected in economic behavior (i.e. what you spend your money on at McDonalds), money becomes the proxy measure.
What may be of interest for purposes of this blog are the reasons people may prefer one over the other. It could simply be that one tastes better, which is interesting to you but boring for the rest of us :-). It might be for health and dietary reasons, e.g. perhaps McNuggets are higher in sodium content. It might be for principled reasons, e.g. it may be that McNuggets are made from chickens who were maltreated by the corporate farms that raised the birds. This last consideration (which I completely made up; I have no idea if McDonald's beef is morally superior to McDonald's chicken) could be an example of applying Christian principles to marketplace behavior.
We got sidetracked into this discussion of utility because someone asked whether economics is opposed to Christianity and Christian behavior. My view is that economics per se doesn't oppose Christianity; but Christian behavior could have substantial economic repercussions. In other words, my view (and, Sirico-like, I'll claim Francis as my ally on this :-)), is that, if we wish to bring about Christian behavior in the marketplace, we wouldn't abolish economics (which would be like abolishing psychology - can't be done), but we would take much more seriously our responsibility - our mission - to proclaim the Good News and foster conversion. People who are thoughtful about being disciples will order their economic behavior accordingly. They'll pay their employees just wages; they'll curtail their extravagant consumption; they won't patronize merchants who engage in morally objectionable practices; they won't trade with countries that disrespect human rights; and a million and one other things. And that behavior would have measurable implications - and economists would do the measuring.
Dope that i am,, I forgot to mention above where the review of Tyler's book appears. It's in the Jan.6-13, 2014 edition of "America." Sorry.
Jim P., re your concluding sentence above " And that behaviou would have measurable implications- and economists woould do the measuring." A few remarks or questions:
1. Who determines what aspects of an economic transaction are relevant to the reasonableness of the action in question? Therer is the well known problem of "externalities."
2. Is the outcome of the economist's measuring supposed to determine what one chooses to do? If one does not follow the outcome of the measurement in question is he or she being unreasonable. If not, what's the normative force of talk about economic rationality. It's long been known that people have found economic advantage by employing slave labor. Presumably economists can measure the relative utility of using slave labor. Suppose their measurements yield the result that using slave labor is more rational than not doing so. What considerations ourght we non-economists use totedermine whether to be economically rational. To assume that this kind ofproblem won't ever show up is imp[lausible. To say that, should it ever turn up, it would be eventually solved by show economically that the justifying calculations were mistaken, is open to the retort "Yes, but in the supposed "long run" a lot of slaves will have already died. This is part of the classic ccase that moral deonotlogists have made against classical utilitarians. The attempt by utilitarians to coopt moral principles in terms of the economic "utility" of acting according to them strains credulity.
In short, ignoring the analyses and measurements that economists make is a recipe for disaster. Allowing oneself or one's society to be governed by these measurements is a recipe for injustice. It's the place of our political policies and practices to avoid these twin perils, perils that can never be definitively eliminated.
Bernard - I agree that externalities should be taken into consideration (both positive and negative externalities). Regarding slavery: I would think that an economist would note that if slavery didn't make some economic sense, it wouldn't have become as established as it did in the New World, and wouldn't continue to be practiced today. (I recall a classmate noting that, to an economist, it would be impossible to find a $20 bill blowing down the street, because an economist would reason that someone would already have picked it up). The moral repugnance that we feel about utilizing slave labor today (at least you and I would; clearly, not everyone feels that way as slavery is still a reality) could be looked at through economic eyes; e.g. that repugnance is codified in laws prohibiting slavery, and those laws would be viewed as a constraint.
It's interesting, isn't it, that whereas presumably very few business owners would utilize slave labor, many of them don't seem to have many qualms about paying sub-living wages.
Jim P. ==
In New Orleans during the slavery era it was possible for some slaves to earn wages on the week end. That was how some of them (not many) eventually bought their freedom. Why their owners though it was right not to pay some but right to pay others escapes me. One must never assume that a man is going to act like a rational animal.
About slavery today -- there really isn't much difference between the way some "employers" treat their illegal servants and slavery. And we tolerate it.
Jim P. ==
In New Orleans during the slavery era it was possible for some slaves to earn wages on the week end. That was how some of them (not many) eventually bought their freedom. Why their owners though it was right not to pay some but right to pay others escapes me. One must never assume that a man is going to act like a rational animal.
About slavery today -- there really isn't much difference between the way some "employers" treat their illegal servants and slavery. And we tolerate it.
Jim P. ==
In New Orleans during the slavery era it was possible for some slaves to earn wages on the week end. That was how some of them (not many) eventually bought their freedom. Why their owners though it was right not to pay some but right to pay others escapes me. One must never assume that a man is going to act like a rational animal.
About slavery today -- there really isn't much difference between the way some "employers" treat their illegal servants and slavery. And we tolerate it.
Sorry about the duplicate posts. I kept getting a message telling me to prove I was human and try again. I don't know what to do if it should happen again.
Mr. Pauwels--
Your idea for a Cash On Hand tax is, as you suspected, not new. It was enacted as part of the Revenue Act of 1936, passed in the midst of FDR's campaign for a second term. He wanted corporations to pay out more of their after-tax profits as dividends, so they could be taxed again on the individual shareholder's tax return--also a new provision of the 1936 Act.
One year later, Life Magazine reported that the "excess profits tax" was widely considered "Devil Tax Number 1" by the public, (at the time very few Americans owned stock) and many Democratic Congressmen were worried about their own prospects in the 1938 election. The pressure was so great that the excess profits provision (your Cash on Hand tax) was repealed. The longer version of this story (and other tax experiments that backfired) is available in "After One Hundred Years: Corporate Profits, Wealth, and American Society."
Interestingly, Robert Reich, who served as President Clinton's Secretary of Labor, recommends dismantling the entire corporate income tax. He presents his case in his book, Supercapitalism.
Mr. Jenkins--
I read the Oxfam report that you cite and it is interesting. I recommend also the annual letter from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation http://www.annualletter.gatesfoundation.org which points to the experience across many decades and countries regarding child mortality, birth rates, and population growth--and a host of other poverty issues.
Joseph J Dunn - thanks for that info re: a Cash On Hand tax. I'd think a corporation would have three basic options:
- Pay out richer dividends, which investors presumably would use to invest elsewhere
- Invest it directly in capital projects (I'd include acquiring other firms as a subcategory of this), which would create additional jobs
- Sit on their pile of cash and pay more taxes into the federal treasury
The second bullet is what I'm really after as a policy tool. The first bullet, from the point of view of generating economic growth and jobs, strikes me as somewhat-neutral-to-good. The third bullet wouldn't really align with my policy goal but would somewhat reduce the amount the federal government has to borrow, which doesn't seem like a bad thing.
(Sorry, I was going to add to this comment, but was interrupted by the Tea Party - they called, demanding their membership card back.)
Ann - even today, we also put the incarcerated to work at practically-nonexistent wages. I'd categorize this as a form of slave labor. I don't know how productive that work is, but if they're picking up trash and cutting down weeds along roadsides, that seems like work that the county or the state would otherwise have to pay some real money for.
Until the 1970s, we drafted men into the military and made them work for the country for months or years. They were paid, but were not free agents in the labor market - that seems to be sort of a quasi-slavery arrangement. I understand that the military does not want to go back to the draft, even during war-time, because men and women who are compelled to serve against their will are not nearly as productive as those who volunteer. That's an economic argument.
Ann, I at least can vouch that we've exchanged e-mails in the past and that your replies always seemed "human" to me :-)
Please feel free to use me as a reference.
Joe J.
Jim Pauwels, might it be the state could argue it is providing "room and board" in exchange for the very low wages paid to inmates? See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Room_and_board.
Joseph J - yep. And a slaveowner in the antebellum days could say the same of his slaves, and in fact I believe that was part of the whole "they're so docile and happy here because we treat them so well" fiction used to justify slaveholding. The room-and-board-having-economic-value part is true, so far as it goes - which isn't far enough to touch on the monstrous moral dimension. Economics is a tool that can used for good or exploited for bad.
About the relationship between economics and morality: Do read the great article in today's NYT about industry's belated recognition that climate change is affecting business adversely, that it's not just injuring the rest of us. The market is no more free of the consequences of its actions than the rest of us are. Thick heads do finally learn when the consequences of their own foolish actions catch up with them!
Jim P. =
ISTM that people in jail are getting food, clothing and shelter (of a sort) free, and they are somehow in dept to the community for their crimes. So I don't think there is any injustice there. Except, of course, for those wrongly incarcerated.
As to yound people drafted into the service, that does present problems in case of an unjust war, but I don't think that it is unreasonable or unfair for a community to require its members to defend itsefl. Being drafted is sort of like paying taxes -- we owe the community for all it does for us. Ideally, that is.


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- Next time I'm going to try making the tomato sauce without ground beef. While I enjoyed how hearty the sauce was, I also enjoy a smoother sauce over stuffed shells. While the flavor was good, the smoky bacon may stand out more without the overpowering ground beef. Looking forward to seeing how it comes out next time!
Begin with sauteing your ground beef in a large skillet over medium/high heat, stirring regularly:
Stuffed Shells
Makes about 30 shells (1 1/2 9x13 pans)
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 25-30 minutes
(Printable Recipe)
Tomato Sauce
1/2 pound ground beef
6 strips of bacon, roughly chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
5 cups homemade tomato sauce
Cheese Filling
1 28-ounce container of ricotta cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
4 egg yolks
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 cup spinach
3 tablespoons parsley, chopped
1 box jumbo pasta shells
1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese
chopped parsley for garnish
Begin with cooking your shells in a large pot of boiling water for 10 minutes or until just under cooked. Your pasta will continue to cook in the oven. Strain the water, drizzle with about 1 tablespoon of olive oil and mix until combined to avoid your pasta from sticking to each other.

subset: commoncrawl


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"We, the students of Barnard College, resolve to uphold the honor of the College…
We pledge to do all that is in our power to create a spirit of honesty and honor for its own sake."
-Barnard Honor Code, Est. 1912
The Honor Code is a vital part of the Barnard community because it helps to shape the character of Barnard College. The "Honor System" refers to the combination of the Honor Code, the Honor Board, and the members of the entire Barnard community who together strive toward building a community of academic integrity.
The Honor Code:
Approved by the student body in 1912, the Code states:
We, the students of Barnard College, resolve to uphold the honor of the College by refraining from every form of dishonesty in our academic life. We consider it dishonest to ask for, give, or receive help in examinations or quizzes, to use any papers or books not authorized by the instructor in examinations, or to present oral work or written work which is not entirely our own, unless otherwise approved by the instructor. We consider it dishonest to remove without authorization, alter, or deface library and other academic materials. We pledge to do all that is in our power to create a spirit of honesty and honor for its own sake.
The Honor Code
- Specifies the responsibilities of the student and serves as a protector of her rights in the academic community. This is first and foremost the role of the Honor Code.
- Clearly states Barnard's core value of "pursuing knowledge for the sake of gaining knowledge."
- Provides an environment where academic freedom and creativity may thrive.
- Can function optimally only if followed by students, alumnae, and faculty.
History of the Honor Code
The Honor Code was approved by student vote on January 9, 1912. Today, a century later, the Code continues to shape the distinctive culture of the College. Barnard students enrolled in Columbia courses are bound by the Code, as are Columbia students enrolled in Barnard courses.
Based on the recognition that academic integrity requires active commitment by all members of the community, the Honor System has evolved from focusing primarily on the responsibility of students to a system involving shared responsibility.
If you have questions or would like to connect with a Co-chair of the Honor Board, please email firstname.lastname@example.com or visit our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/HonorBarnard


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Throughout the game you interact with various objects, people, environments that trigger "dreams". I want to find them all because they're interesting and add to the story, and to satiate my rabid completionism.
Is it possible to permanently miss any of these dreams during the game, or is it possible to pick them all up late in the game when you can fast-travel anywhere?


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Our Publications
- Aspen
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Advanced Dermatology Open House
Advanced Dermatology invited guests to the official grand opening open house. Guests learned about the latest advancements in skincare technology, participated in onsite procedures and met with skincare representatives.
Photography by: Francis Son


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During and after receiving treatment for cancer, women of all ages, with early and advanced diseases, will have concerns and questions about sexuality and sexual activity. It is common for women with different types of cancer to struggle with their body image; have less desire for sexual intimacy and/or find that penetration during sexual activity has become painful. Even if your health care providers do not ask about this normal and important aspect of health, you should not hesitate to discuss your feelings or ask questions about the impact of cancer treatments on your sexual health. This article attempts to answer common questions that arise, but certainly does not address every question. As with any concern, talk with your health care providers about your particular situation.
Some women experience a loss of desire for sex, an inability to have an orgasm, experience pain during sex or just do not find sex pleasurable. Sexuality is an important factor in quality of life for many women. Know that these concerns are not uncommon and your healthcare team can provide guidance. Write down your questions and concerns so you don't forget to ask about them. If your provider cannot help, ask them to recommend someone who can.
There are a few factors that determine if sexual activity is safe during treatment.
Vaginal dryness, which can cause intercourse/penetration to be painful, is one of the most common problems during and after cancer treatment. Vaginal atrophy is an inflammation, shrinking and thinning of the vaginal tissue. These are most often caused by a lack of estrogen to the vaginal tissue. Surgery can lead to a shortened vagina. Radiation therapy that includes the vaginal area can cause fibrosis (scarring).
There are a few steps that can help alleviate the discomfort caused by vaginal changes:
You've had a period of time without sex and now feel ready to rekindle your sex life, but how do you get started? Set the mood- what sparked romance for you and your partner before cancer? Music, a romantic meal or an evening out? Relax and don't pressure yourselves to have sex the first go at it. Take your time, enjoy each other and most of all, communicate.
Sexuality encompasses much more than sex; it includes the physical, psychological, emotional and social aspects of sex. In the real world, this means how you see yourself, how does your partner view you, how do you date after cancer, how do you fulfill your need for sexual relationships after cancer and so much more.
How cancer affects your sexuality is different for every woman. Some find the support they need through their healthcare team, their partner, friends or fellow survivors. You may find the support you need to reconnect with your own sexuality through a support group or a close friend. There are a number of online groups that host discussion boards where you can "talk" about concerns with someone who has been there.
For those that find things more difficult, a mental health provider can help you cope with the physical and emotional trauma cancer brings and determine how to move forward, whether with a partner or looking for one. Look for a therapist with expertise in working with people with cancer and/or sexual and relationship issues.
OncoLink is designed for educational purposes only and is not engaged in rendering medical advice or professional services. The information provided through OncoLink should not be used for diagnosing or treating a health problem or a disease. It is not a substitute for professional care. If you have or suspect you may have a health problem or have questions or concerns about the medication that you have been prescribed, you should consult your health care provider.
Information Provided By: www.oncolink.org | © 2016 Trustees of The University of Pennsylvania


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I'm looking for a way to catch exceptions globally in my NUnit project class library. So if one of my unit tests throws an exception, I can catch it in one spot. I don't want to surround each of my tests with a try/catch block. The reason I'm doing this is to print a nice error message with an explanation of the stack trace. In ASP.NET they have a method called Application_Error in Global.asax that does this sort of thing.
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The extension object passed to Install must implement the EventListener interface:
Here is how it works:
The method Try accepts the code as a parameter and executes it in the try block. So, in the catch block you can apply any necessary formatting.
The method TestO1 is just a usual unit test without any tricks.
The TestO2 has the assertion wrapped with the method Try:
Try( () => any line of code here );
It will be the same try/catch, but now I don't need to write a lot of ugly code.


text:
I buy a lot of whole chickens for my family. I cut them up grill them etc. Whole chicken is much more economical than buying pre-cut pieces.
I learned a lot of cooking tips from my Grandma. My Grandma never wasted a single thing ever. So even the backbone from spatchcocking would go into the freezer until she had a bag filled and she would make stock. It is a great tip for saving money.
Here are my steps and 2 videos on how to cut up a whole chicken first for spatchcock then into 8 pieces :


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14 Feb 2012 8:44 PM #1
Unanswered: Need an example MVC check box selection in tree panel
I'm trying to get my head around how to do things the mvc way with extjs-4 and am not able to pull the pieces together.
I'm not sure where to put everything. I have a basic layout in app.js using a viewport container and would like to use a tree panel with check box to display come customer data. Initially I thought I would try to mock this up using static data and once that was sorted I would move to pulling the data from a database.
I cant seem to get a tree control to appear in the panel where I would like it or at all for that matter. The API examples display at http://docs.sencha.com/ext-js/4-0/#!...heck-tree.html looks like what im after but its not in MVC. Obviously I want to take advantage of all the goodness which comes with mvc but it seems the vast majority of examples in the API docs are not examples using mvc approach. or am I missing something? How do I translate the API examples into something I can cobble together for my app.
Any training pointers or examples. If its not already obvious I'm new to extjs so any help is greatly appreciated.
15 Feb 2012 6:15 AM #2
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MVC is just a means of listening to events and acting upon them. Everything else is the same as if you were doing it within classes and not using MVC. You can either have your tree as an item of your viewport or you can add it as an item.Mitchell Simoens @LikelyMitch
Sencha Inc, Senior Software Engineer
Check out my GitHub, lots of nice things for Ext JS 4 and Sencha Touch 2
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15 Feb 2012 7:21 AM #3
can you show me an example?
Thanks for the reply, but can you show me as an example? I have this in app.js
Ext.application({ name: 'NEAT', appFolder: 'app', launch: function() { Ext.create('Ext.container.Viewport', { width: 500, height: 400, title: 'Border Layout', layout: 'border', items: [ { //title: 'North Region is resizable', region: 'north', // position for region id: 'my_north', xtype: 'panel', contentEl: 'north', height: 75, autoEl: { tag: 'div', } //split: true, // enable resizing //margins: '0 5 5 5' },{ title: 'South Region is resizable', region: 'south', // position for region xtype: 'panel', height: 100, collapsible: true, // make collapsible collapsed : true, split: true, // enable resizing margins: '0 5 5 5' },{ // xtype: 'panel' implied by default title: 'Customer Details', region:'west', xtype: 'panel', margins: '5 0 0 5', width: 200, collapsible: true, // make collapsible split: true, // enable resizing id: 'west-region-container', //layout: 'fit', items: [ { //title: 'North Region is resizable', title: 'Select Customers', height:300, //store: customer, //split: true, // enable resizing //margins: '0 5 5 5' }] },{ // xtype: 'panel' implied by default title: 'east Region is collapsible', region:'east', xtype: 'panel', margins: '5 5 0 0', // t r b l width: 200, collapsible: true, // make collapsible collapsed : true, split: true, // enable resizing id: 'east-region-container', layout: 'fit' },{ //title: 'Center Region', region: 'center', // center region is required, no width/height specified title: 'Network Information', layout: 'fit', tbar : toolbar, xtype: 'panel', margins: '5 0 0 0', items: [{ //region: 'center', xtype: 'tabpanel', tabPosition: 'bottom', items: [{ title: 'Main', html: 'this is the main tab' }, { title: 'Device', html: 'this is the device tab' } }] }] }], renderTo: Ext.getBody() }) } });
Im a little confused at how to glue it all together.
20 Feb 2012 7:43 AM #4
still need help
Can anyone point me in the direction of crash course for extjs? mvc ideally?


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I am planning to build a computer in the next year. What should I know about power supplies before I buy one? I'm putting together a check-list, so nothing is too simple!
Here are a few guides to help you understand better.
Here are some reviews of power supplies available. Newegg.com is also a great place to look.
Other good points brought up by other users:
@GalacticCowboy Motherboard/PS compatibility, definantly read about a motherboard purchase to make sure this will not be an issue.
@hanleyp Weight can be a rough estimate on a quality vs lower quality power supply. More weight commonly can possibly mean better beefier components and heat distribution.
Here are the various considerations I look at when I'm building a PC:
Having a watt rating much higher than what you actually need is not desirable, because efficiency get much worse when you're operating below capacity. i.e. if you need 250W and buy a 500W unit then it may well operate at 60% efficiency even though it's declared to be 90%. And remember: more power used (or wasted) does not only mean a higher electricity bill, but also more heat, which in turn means more noise.
Most systems are never significantly upgraded, so you should buy a power unit that supplies just a bit more than your maximum need.
The main thing you need to consider when selecting a power supply is the power rating. make sure it has enough capacity to run all of the devices you plan to power with it.
If you are starting from scratch then all you need do is keep a running total of power usage for all of the components you plan to populate the system with. If you add up all of the power usage values you should arrive at your gross power usage which should always be less than the capacity of your power supply. If your total power is more than your power supply is rated for, then it would be a good idea to select a unit which has a greater maximum capacity.
There is a lot of good information here. I have one more to add: Generally the heavier of two power supplies is the better one.
Please don't fall into the trap of slapping a 1200W PSU into a machine because it "might need it". You'd be surprised what a quality (Corsair, SeaSonic, newer Antec) power supply can actually handle. Add up the TDP's of your components. They won't draw more wattage than heat they can produce.
I've gotten a Thuban X6 1100T, with an overclocked GTX 550Ti happily running on a 400W Cooler Master power supply (peak draw linpack + furmark is 395W!). All the power supply calculators online said I needed at least 650W for that machine, but the PSU is rated 100k hours MTBF @ 100% load, so why not? Reviews said it had great ripple control at full load, and it's quiet.
I've got an a 650W Antec PSU running an overclocked i7-2600K with an overclocked GTX580, with plenty of headroom left over. Hundreds of watts left over.


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Warming up to Disney on Ice
|Barbie, Ken and other 'Toy Story' favorites will be part of Disney on Ice this year. Credit: Disney
Let the magic come to you in the annual winter tradition: Disney on Ice. The tour will make two stops in Connecticut this season, first at Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport from Wednesday to Jan. 6; followed by the XL Center in Hartford from Jan. 9 to 13.
This year, the tour is titled "Worlds of Fantasy," with non-stop fun revolving around favorite Disney characters. The tour features the high-speed stunts of Lightning McQueen, Mater and the crew from the film "Cars."
Fairy fans will delight when the world of Pixie Hollow comes to life, with Tinker Bell and her Disney Fairies friends. Princess fans will adore seeing the enchanting world of "The Little Mermaid."
The toys of the "Toy Story" film come to life with Buzz Lightyear, Woody, Jessie and friends. The toys escape from the enthusiastic tots of Sunnyside Daycare to race for home.
Disney on Ice always gives a grand show to the audience with dazzling skating, special effects and beloved characters.
The tour stops at Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport from Jan. 2 to Jan. 6. Webster Bank show times are 7 p.m. Jan. 2 through Jan. 4; 11 a.m., 3 and 7 p.m. Jan. 5; and 1 and 5 p.m. Jan. 6.
Tickets are $75, $55, $30 and $25. For tickets, visit any Ticketmaster outlet, Ticketmaster.com or log on to www.websterbankarena.com
The tour stops at the XL Center in Hartford from Jan. 9 to Jan. 13. XL Center show times are at 7 p.m. Jan. 9 through Jan. 11; 11 a.m., 3 and 7 p.m. Jan. 12; and 1 and 4:30 p.m. Jan. 13. Tickets are $81, $59, $31 and $25.
Tickets are available at the box office, at Ticketmaster.com or Ticketmaster outlets, or by calling 800-745-3000.
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Certifying hardware with the Windows Hardware Certification Kit
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The Windows Hardware Certification Kit (formerly the Windows Logo Kit) has a completely new design that will shorten learning curves for new users, and make experienced users more productive. It also has, for the first time, a complete automation interface which enables partners to execute end-to-end testing via scripts. The kit has also been enhanced to be multi-function, multi-platform and multi-feature aware. This session will introduce the new user interface, object model and aspects of feature-based testing. It will also include walkthroughs of certification activities using both the direct user interface and automation interfaces.
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Spa News: PBA Launches Executive Summit for Beauty Companies
The Professional Beauty Association (PBA) will present the first PBA Executive Summit, taking place on Thursday, December 4 - Friday, December 5, 2014 in Scottsdale, Ariz. This summit will provide attendees with education and networking opportunities. The two-day event will bring together executives from top beauty companies to learn from leading business experts on how expanding technology and social connections have transformed marketing and communications in the beauty industry.
This year's theme, Consumer IQ, allows attendees to explore the trends that Gen Y & Millennials are responding to, as well as examine comprehensive industry data that can forecast upcoming trends applicable to business strategies. Moderating this inaugural summit is former CNN Anchor and NBC Correspondent Gene Randall. From the fall of the Berlin Wall to the U.S. invasion of Panama and the Exxon Valdez disaster, Randall has been front and center to chronicle global events over the course of his impressive career span.
Featured sessions:
What Gen Y & Millenials Want from Your Brand | Speaker: Jane Buckingham
Jane Buckingham will navigate through the differences and similarities between generations X and Y and discuss various marketing strategies geared towards each age group.
Where Good Ideas Come From | Speaker: Steven Berlin Johnson
Consider breakthroughs as different as Darwin's theories and the rise of YouTube, and ask: what did these moments have in common? What environments fostered these ideas? Steven Berlin Johnson answers these questions with a core set of innovative principles that have encouraged creativity and grown businesses across history.
Results from PBA's Industry Research Study | Speaker: Carrie Mellage
In collaboration with Kline & Company, Inc., PBA set off to conduct a revolutionary and comprehensive study to ultimately provide data that can be used to help identify trends, benchmark performance, and evaluate competitive beauty related sectors. The results of this study will aid in the decision-making process for businesses involved in the professional beauty industry.
[Image: pba.org]
Spa News: Arica Carpenter and Cuccio Colour Support Charities
Arica Carpenter was taught at a very early age that giving back was necessary in order to move forward. As she began her career in beauty, she was lucky enough to be mentored by an industry icon who reinforced that philosophy time and time again.
Now working as brand manager at Cuccio Colour, Carpenter remains true to her core values by remembering her mentor's teachings nearly a decade ago. She recently made charitable donations of Cuccio Colour polishes to the Alliance for Children, a non-profit that helps benefit abused children, and the Beauty Bus Foundation, a national non-profit that provides free beauty and grooming services as well as pampering products to terminally or chronically ill people and their caregivers.
"The important thing to remember about giving back is that it doesn't always have to be in a monetary form," explained Carpenter. "Donating polish to these organizations was a way for me to make a difference because at the end of the day, even the smallest selfless act can have a significant impact on those in unfortunate circumstances."
Carpenter donated polish for the Let's Play Bingo event, an annual fundraiser. The polish she donated to the Beauty Bus Foundation will be distributed in its Bags of Beauty as well as used on patient visits.
For more information, please log on to cuccio.com.
Spa News: ISPA Presents Jim Root with Dedicated Contributor Award
The International SPA Association (ISPA) recently announced that it will present Jim Root with the 2014 ISPA Dedicated Contributor Award at the 24th annual ISPA Conference & Expo at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, NV, taking place from October 13 – 15, 2014.
"Jim is the ultimate cheerleader for the spa industry. Every step of the way he has leant his supportive and motivating attitude to ISPA," says ISPA President Lynne McNees. "I can't imagine what the spa industry would have been without his dedication and commitment."
Adds Michael Tompkins, ISPA Chairman, "Jim's positive attitude is contagious. He has always been an example of positivity to me as I navigated leadership roles within the association. It is an honor to be able to present such a well deserving award to someone as dedicated as Jim Root."
Root is the Chief Executive Officer and President of Glen Ivy Hot Springs, a 154-year-old spa and hospitality management company. Between its two locations in Corona and Brea, California, Glen Ivy welcomes some 200,000 guests each year with a team of 300 employees.
With a 37-year career in spa and hospitality management, Root is a past chairman of ISPA. Within the industry, he has been acknowledged for his team building skills, stewarding organizational and operational change and crafting memorable and life-changing experiences for spa guests.
"First and foremost, I've always been a member that got engaged and who has stayed connected throughout my career. The community of ISPA is a very real connection in my life, so this recognition is especially gratifying," says Root.
The ISPA Dedicated Contributor Award is given to an active ISPA member who has contributed significantly to the growth of the association. The recipient will have demonstrated leadership and commitment to ISPA and has extensively assisted in the promotion of the association, as well as its mission and vision.
More information about the 2014 ISPA Conference & Expo can be found at www.experienceISPA.com.
Beauty Brand Balanced Guru Donates 100% of Profits to Charity Connected Warriors
Limited edition beauty products created for Connected Warriors, a non-profit organization providing free, trauma-conscious yoga therapy for service members, veterans and their families.
Balanced Guru recently announced a new extension to their Giving Back Program, an initiative that features customized, limited edition product collections designed for non-profit organizations to sell to fund their individual causes. Through their Connected Warriors Beauty Line, the Balanced Guru will be donating 100% of the profits from three special products - the Antioxidant Facial Masque, Hair Styling Oil, and Soothing Body Oil - to the charity, Connected Warriors.
Connected Warriors is a non-profit organization that aims to provide free, trauma-conscious yoga therapy for service members, veterans and their families in the United States. Founded on the principles of volunteerism and selfless giving, it is a collection of yoga teachers, business professionals and military veterans who have joined together to honor military men, women and families by making available an effective method of health and well being. The practice of yoga is used as a powerful tool helping Veterans overcome stresses, injuries and unwanted effects of military service.
Balanced Guru Connected Warriors Soothing Body Oil
Baobab, Jojoba and Avocado are rich oils that will leave your skin soft and smooth, while Sesame and Argan will balance your skin and reduce oiliness. Lavender, Orange and Geranium essential oils work together to create a nurturing scent that will linger throughout the day. $30 for 4oz via www.balancedguru.com
Balanced Guru Connected Warriors Hair Styling Oil
Balance frizzy hair without weighing it down with silicones, all while controlling fly-aways with a blend of Sesame, Grapeseed, Jojoba and Tamanu Oils. See increased shine and manageability. $25 for 1oz via www.balancedguru.com
Balanced Guru Connected Warriors Antioxidant Powder Facial Masque
Colorful berries feed your skin with antioxidants, along with clove and cinnamon to help fight free radicals. In case that wasn't enough, vitamin C will give this masque an extra boost to also help brighten your complexion. $45 for 4oz via www.balancedguru.com
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Spa News: ISPA Presents Jane Iredale with Visionary Award
The International SPA Association will present Jane Iredale with the 2014 ISPA Visionary Award at the 24th annual ISPA Conference & Expo at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nev. from October 13 – 15, 2014.
"Jane has been a supporter and leader of the spa industry since day one," said ISPA President Lynne McNees. "She has made great strides in reaching women of all ages and nationalities and working to improve their self-confidence."
Iredale is the founder, president and CEO of Iredale Mineral Cosmetics. She was the first to supply the aesthetic industry with a full-line of makeup that was good for the skin, and the first to see the potential of offering physicians a makeup that could be used to enhance their patients' experience after procedures.
"The opportunity to personally call Jane to tell her she was this year's recipient was such a special moment," said ISPA Chairman Michael Tompkins. "She is beyond deserving of this honor."
With a background in film, theatre and television, Iredale witnessed the negative effects that makeup had on models and actresses. This experience inspired her to develop a makeup line that could contribute to the lives of women by aiding the health of their skin. Since the launch in 1994, Iredale Mineral Cosmetics now exports into more than 40 international markets and through the company's growth has remained true to its original concept.
"It's hard to find the words to express how honored I am to receive this award, particularly from an organization that I have always respected so highly," said Iredale.
The ISPA Visionary Award is presented each year to someone in the spa industry who has made significant contributions to both the definition and positive movement of health and wellness over the lifetime of their career.
For more information visit experienceISPA.com.
[Image courtesy of ISPA]
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The United Way of Jefferson County's biggest fundraiser is approaching quickly, so we're reminding area residents to plan for a night of fine cuisine and delectable desserts on Tuesday.
It's time once again for the local United Way's Taste of the County event, and the 18th-annual fundraiser will begin at 5 p.m. at St. Florian Hall in Wintersville.
As usual, many restaurants, bakeries and caterers are participating. Here's a list of those scheduled to offer their finest fare for the event: A Touch of Elegance Bakery, Aubrey's, Dolce Pizzelles, Downtown Bakery, Froehlich's Classic Corner, Lancelot's, Malta's Pizza, Mama G's, Manfred's, Piergallini's Catering/St. Florian Hall, Scaffidi's, the Ville Restaurant, Zalenski's Family Eatery and Pub and Baby Boyz.
Tickets remain for the event and cost $30 per person, with $20 being tax-deductible.
The night also will feature an 18-karat gold diamond ring donated by the owners of Discovery Jewelers in Wintersville and other high-ticket items up for grabs in a treasure chest - a new attraction - as well as a gift card tree and mystery gift bags.
All of these fundraisers are a part of the "Dining and Diamonds" Taste of the County event, which most importantly aids the United Way's 18 member agencies, which in turn help area residents in need of clothing, shelter, assistance with monthly utility bills and even prescriptions. It's a great thing that all of the money raised Tuesday evening will stay here locally.
We applaud the local restaurants, bakeries and caterers who are donating their time and talents to Tuesday's event.
There is much preparation that goes into a big event such as this. As United Way campaign Chairman Anthony Mougianis said, he's proud of the local support, that it's "another example of the business people in our community, how willing they are to give back and help."
It's true, the United Way of Jefferson County's Taste of the County has become one of the premiere social events of the fall in our area. Please plan to stop by after work and enjoy the food, fun and atmosphere. You'll be helping the community in so many ways.


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expert advice MORE
Trouble with Kindergarten Teacher
Q: My second child is in kindergarten this year, and I'm unhappy with his teacher. The children are required to sit 30-40 minutes at a time while the teacher explains at length how to do centers. The centers are too rushed and not creative -- a lot of coloring, cutting, pasting, and not much else. What are they really learning? The teacher also has poor time-management/organization skills. The teacher assistant says there is not a lesson plan on Friday for the following week and the teacher isn't open to her suggestions.
I've made the principal aware of these concerns -- little has changed. I would like to be part of the solution, not the problem, and I want my son to have the kind of kindergarten experience he deserves before he launches into 12 years of gradually increasing work. Any suggestions?
A: Hopefully, you talked to the teacher before speaking to the principal. Like any other organization, schools have a specific way of handling problems. The appropriate first step is to talk to the classroom teacher -- she's the one who is running the classroom. If you haven't visited the classroom, we suggest that you do so to get a real picture of what this kindergarten is like. It was very unprofessional for the assistant to criticize the teacher.
It's good that you want to be a part of giving your child the education that he deserves. Talk to the kindergarten teacher about why certain things are being done and the outcomes that she is hoping to achieve. Then, give the teacher a chance, especially if your child is happy and not having any difficulties with the program.
This kindergarten program is obviously different from the one your other child had. Do look for the positives. Your child will definitely benefit from learning centers. They are a wonderful part of the kindergarten curriculum because they provide young children with the hands-on experiences that they need in order to truly learn. And don't knock cutting and pasting, which build the fine-motor skills necessary for handwriting.
On the other hand, 30-40 minutes of teacher-directed instruction about learning centers is excessive. Few children can listen for such long periods of time, and most will quickly become disinterested in the activity. Plus, effective teachers have solid time-management skills.
If the teacher's explanation of the kindergarten program and your observations of the classroom confirm your views that the program needs to be improved, approach the principal again. This time have other parents with similar views join you in speaking with the principal. This approach is more likely to result in change.
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Peggy Gisler and Marge Eberts are experienced teachers who have more than 60 educational publications to their credit. They began writing books together in 1979. Careers for Bookworms was a Book-of-the-Month Club paperback selection, and Pancakes, Crackers, and Pizza received recognition from the Children's Reading Roundtable. Gisler and Eberts taught in classrooms from kindergarten through graduate school. Both have been supervisors at the Butler University Reading Center.