We need a change or I am going to vomit in the hands of uncle sam

Lately I have been thinking a lot about the dysfunction of our society. There is so much happening lately that has actually been giving me hope, but it seems that there has also been so much to make me loose faith in humanity. There have been death threats coming to the people who voted for the healthcare bill. The reason this bill was proposed was to give people with less a chance to be healthy and get help when they need it. There are so many people that have conditions that go untreated because they simply couldn’t afford to get treated. So how does it make sense that these people who voted for the bill are getting harassed? There was one man who is a democrat that was going to vote against it because he is pro-life and the bill supports pro-choice, but he changed his vote because he realized that this bill is meant to help the living and breathing people. The old and the young that can’t afford to receive treatment. He is now getting threatened because he stood up for those who seriously needed help. I have come to the conclusion that what is really wrong with this world and our country is the dysfunction of greed, gluttony, pride and envy. These are only four of the seven deadly sins, but they are the ones that seem to be plaguing our world the most. Of course, wrath, lust and sloth have their place and in large amounts, but I am leaving them out for now.
Only one percent of the nation’s population holds ninety nine percent of the wealth, and when you try to tax them, regulate, they get angry because they “deserve” it. People who are against are Obama are calling him a socialist because he wants the wealth to be shared. He wants universal healthcare and for everyone to have to right to a decent life. This is greeted with anger from many of the upper class because, if this was to happen, their “quality of life” would go down. They might lose there private jet, three of their six houses, they might have to fire a couple maids and do their own yard work. They might have to cut their 60,000 dollars a year clothing budget (that number comes from an episode of Wife Swap, yes it does happen). God forbid.

Gluttony (waste, overindulgence) —Thoughtless waste of everything, overindulgence, misplaced sensuality, uncleanliness, and maliciously depriving others. Marked by refusal to share and unreasonable consumption of more than is necessary, especially food or water. Destruction, especially for sport. Substance abuse or binge drinking. Dante explains it as “excessive love of pleasure”. Associated with pigs and the color orange.

Greed (treachery, covetousness) —A strong desire to gain, especially in money or power. Disloyalty, deliberate betrayal, or treason, especially for personal gain or when compensated. Scavenging and hoarding of materials or objects. Theft and robbery by violence. Simony is the evolution of avarice because it fills you with the urge to make money by selling things within the confines of the church. This sin is abhorred by the Catholic Church and is seen as a sin of malice; Dante included this sin in the first poem of the Divine Comedy (the Inferno). Simony can be viewed as betrayal. Thomas Aquinas on greed: “it is a sin against God, just as all mortal sins, in as much as man condemns things eternal for the sake of temporal things.” Greed is represented by the frog and the color yellow.

Envy (jealousy, malice) —Grieving spite and resentment of material objects, accomplishments, or character traits of others, or wishing others to fail or come to harm. Envy is the root of theft and self-loathing. Dante defined this as “love of one’s own good perverted to a desire to deprive other men of theirs”. Associated with the dog and the color green.

Pride (vanity, narcissism) —A desire to be more important or attractive to others, failing to give credit due to others, or excessive love of self (especially holding self out of proper position toward God). Dante’s definition was “love of self perverted to hatred and contempt for one’s neighbor”. In Jacob Bidermann’s medieval miracle play, Cenodoxus, superbia is the deadliest of all the sins and leads directly to the damnation of the famed Doctor of Paris, Cenodoxus. Pride was what sparked the fall of Lucifer from Heaven. Vanity and narcissism are good examples of these sins and they often lead to the destruction of the sinner, for instance by the wanton squandering of money and time on themselves without caring about others. Pride can be seen as the misplacment of morals. Associated with the horse, the lion, the peacock, and the color violet

Sound familiar. I think all of us know these people. We’ve seen them on the news, in classes, on reality TV and even on movies, where their behavior is validated.


Be conciencious of your actions!




"Seven Deadly Sins". Faust. 3/27/10 .