Current Events and Importance of Open Mindedness, Civility, and Action

    We are now being ravaged in the news with stories of protestors in the streets carrying weapons and demanding their voices be heard. This is currently regarding health care but it wasn't that long ago it was the war we were protesting and immigration as well. After September 11^th, we banded together as a nation and were stronger than ever in our unity. That has over last 8 years started to fall apart. It is now at a point that we are as divided, if not more so, than we ever have been before. Right wingers have expressed extreme fear in Obama and the course our country is taking; left wingers are worried that the right wingers will not allow the necessary changes to occur. Another divide has now occurred that is slightly different. There are those that feel that are scared by all the fear and anger beginning to rise. They worry that something bad will happen if people become too worked up. They point out some valid reasons why we should not bring weapons into the streets during a protest. On the other side are the protestors, those that are becoming more and more angry and scared every day. They have reached a level that borders on demanding revolution and they don't understand the apathy of the silent. Who is right in this situation? What are their best points? How can we be the best citizens we can be and at the same time the best friends and neighbors?

    Those that are against the fearful bring up some very valid points. First of all, the structure of the government is set up with Checks and Balances. We've all leaned about them since we were in grade school, but this process helps ensure that no part of the government becomes any more powerful than the others. In addition, the will of the people is represented 3 times in our votes for the house, our votes for the congress and our votes for the President. The majority of us have decided that those in the position of power best represent our beliefs and they will do their best to make sure that we get what we want. Secondly, and to further demonstrate the powers of these checks and balances, not much has changed in the United States in decades. We have been through several Presidents, each rocked with their own scandals, wars, and fears and somehow we still seem to be on top of the world, with the majority of us enjoying the rights of life, liberty and happiness. Lastly, a religious argument is brought up, for those who believe, and that is one of confidence. We are told that God has a plan for us and that we should not fear walking through the valley of the shadow of death. We are told to put our faith in God and that in the end everything will be okay.

    The second group brings up some excellent points on why we should fear apathy the most. The checks and balances system is bruised at the moment. The party of the President now controls all of Congress. The only other branch of government isn't elected by the people but nominated by the President and confirmed by the congress. In this situation, if played correctly changes can be made to the country in an amazingly easy fashion. The most horrifying descriptions would be to say that a blitzkrieg of legislations can be brought down on us, whether or not it is the best decision. Secondly, we are not given all the facts. The major media outlets are our only window to the world as a whole and what they say we have to take as Gospel. Unfortunately, they do not give us all the facts and they work in a world that pays them more for exacerbating problems and fear mongering. How are we to have our voices heard, when they are most often the ones representing us to our peers? Lastly, in Pope Benedict's encyclical on Love he points out that if we truly love God, and want to be the best we can for him, then no longer is His will some alien will imposed on us, but it is actually our will. We can not sit by apathetically and hope God will take care of us; we need to first think hard about the choices in front of us, secondly, pray that the choice we make is the one he would also want us to make, and then we need to act. God says to love and forgive, not be apathetic. If the Apostles were apathetic we would not know about Christ.

    So where does this leave us. First of all, it is important that all parties keep an open mind. Listening and gathering more information is NEVER the wrong step. Secondly, if we do decide to act it is important we do so in a Christian manner, without weapons. Imagine the students at Tiananmen Square kneeling in front of tanks. They were not violent and their voices became louder through that sacrifice. Thirdly, we should not believe everything we hear. We need to do our own research, if CBS or Fox News or the Daily Show tell us their opinion about a major piece of legislature we should note it but come up with out own decisions. Hopefully we are not making up our minds before we get all the facts. Lastly is a word of warning. Our government has proven since Nixon that it can lie to us. It can manipulate the world behind our backs and systematically take away our freedoms. Historically in times like these where the powers that be feel that the people have become divided and are beginning to lose power, they will create a false flag terror attack. A false flag terror attack is "covert operation conducted by governments, corporations, or other organizations, which [is] designed to deceive the public in such a way that the operations appear as though they are being carried out by other entities." (Wikipedia, False Flag) These were performed most notably by the German's before WWII to rally the people against Poland and surrounding countries. Personally I fear that the government might perform one these attacks, and blame those that are the least apathetic, like the members of the Campaign for Liberty. We are coming to a crossroads. I do not know where will go as a country, but whatever happens, I hope that we remember the quote by Thomas Jefferson, "When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty."

A Wish Come True (A metaphor on life)

    "All I can tell you Jeremy is believe in yourself and don't ever give up."

    Jeremy reached up and grabbed the handlebars of a zip line going from the 32^nd street YMCA rooftop out to the middle of the baseball diamond. He could see ahead of him a man with a purple cape and mask carrying a bowling ball shaped bomb starting to run from the first floor entrance into the baseball field. There was a safety net below him and his entire family and friends from school standing in the street smiling and waving him on.

    "Come on buddy, you can do it!"

    "Help, Jeremy, Help!"

    "Only you can save us! You can do it!"

    Jeremy was a 10 year old boy and because of a disease he couldn't pronounce he wouldn't live past 11. You've never met a happier boy though, especially considering what he was going through. He loved school, but was forced to miss several weeks at a time in the hospital. He sang with his Church choir and has a crush on Hannah Montana, but doesn't like to talk about it.

    4 months ago the Fairy-God-Mother Company found out about Jeremy's situation and called his parents. They wanted to give Jeremy the chance to feel what it was like to have his dreams come true. His parents were thrilled that their son had this opportunity and Jeremy's dad sat down to talk with him about his dreams.

    "Would you like to go to Disney World, or meet someone famous? You know we could probably get Hannah Montana?" His Dad said with a big grin, sitting on the edge of Jeremy's bed.

    Jeremy blushed, "Dad! No!"

    "Okay then Son, what do you want?"

    Jeremy thought hard, he looked around his room at the sports wall paper, and his racecar bed. He looked at his stuffed animals and then his eye caught it: a 6-inch action figure of Batman. He was standing with his fists tight and on his hips, chest out and looking across the room proudly. Below Batman was his father's collection of original Batman comic books. He knew his Father loved Batman and whenever he read the comics he always imagined Bruce Wayne was really his Dad, and that late at night when he went to bed his Father would put on a cape and mask to fight his arch-nemesis the Joker.

    "I want to be Batman," he said and pointed at the action figure.

    His father's eyes immediately filled with tears and he felt tightness in his chest. That's exactly what he would've asked for he thought. He wished he could see what kind of man Jeremy would grow up to be but at that moment he knew that Jeremy wanted to be Batman to not only to fulfill a dream but to make his Dad proud.

    Time had passed and the company agreed to help organize a staged capture of an evil villain planning to bomb the local baseball field where Jeremy liked to play. The whole community got involved and Jeremy's entire family flew in to see the event. Jeremy was told to get dressed into a Batman costume that was made just for him. When he was done the doorbell rang and it was two police officers telling Jeremy "Batman" they need his help. After an exciting car chase in the front of a police cruiser with the siren on, he was sent inside the 32^nd street YMCA and told to check the roof. When he got to the roof his dad was standing there with the zip line handle bars and a big smile.

    Jeremy ran up and hugged his Dad. He was so happy he could just about burst. Still holding onto his Dad he looked over the side of the building and saw his whole family who let up a big cheer. Tears started to pour from his Dad's eyes but he was still smiling.

    "You look good son, are you ready to fly?" he choked on the last word to keep from crying more.

    "I love you Dad," was all Jeremy replied.

    His Dad stood up took in a deep breath and puffed out his chest and said, "All I can tell you Jeremy is believe in yourself and don't ever give up."

    Jeremy grabbed the handle bars and stood on the ledge, his Dad buckled him into the safety rope and the gentleman from the Fairy-God-Mother Corp checked the rigging then gave the thumbs up. The villain ran out of the downstairs doorway and into the baseball field.

    Jeremy was a little nervous but held extra tight to the handlebars and jumped.

    He began to fly towards the baseball field; he could feel his cape fly out behind him and the wind blow by his face. The roar of his family was hard to hear over the wind and in his mind there were no handlebars, Jeremy was Batman, flying across Gotham after the bad guys.

    Jeremy was welcomed at the baseball field by his mother and a huge hug. She reached down and handed him his big squirt gun and Jeremy pumped it full of pressure, ran up to the purple masked man and squirted him right in the chest. The purple villain fell in a heap on the pitcher's mound and the two police officers ran in and cuffed him.

    "We'll take it from here Batman."

    "Great work!"

    Just then the whole family including Jeremy's Dad ran up to hug him and lift them on their shoulders. One friend looked up at him and said, "Good job, Batman". He looked down with a big smile and said, "I'm not Batman, I'm Jeremy."

My Theory of and Method for Intergenerational Philanthropy

One of the most unfortunate facts about living in the world today (and almost any day for the matter) is that a large majority of the world's wealth belongs to a very small percentage of the world. If you are so lucky as to be in that top percentage that does not necessarily mean that this theory doesn't apply to you. In fact, it applies more to the wealthy than the poor. The goal is to create a family who, driven by the ideals of Christianity, can become the greatest philanthropic force ever.

Before I begin, it's important to stress the importance of charity. In addition to alleviating the massive disproportionate distribution of wealth charity is the single most important Christian activity one can participate in outside of Mass. We are called by Jesus to love our neighbors, and we are told that when we clothe and feed them, we are really clothing and feeding him. This act of Agape or self-giving love is tremendously important if we are to live a Christian life. Also, while critics might point out that it is impossible to alleviate the world of hunger, we need to emulate the lives of the Saints like Mother Theresa of Calcutta who despite unbelievable odds stacked against her, used the power of prayer to build her hope which in turn gave her the patience to meet her charitable challenges every day.

While there are many more points that can be used to justify the act of philanthropy, this theory presupposes the reader already agrees with them. I will present the theory then we will talk about why it is true, and then get into the method for achieving it.

Assumption 1: The notional size of philanthropic cash flows over time grows with inflation

Assumption 2: The base family net worth (or that which is not given away to Charity) stays above a critical inflation adjusted amount X where X is equal to the amount of money necessary to sustain a family off the income from a risk free investment for their entire lives.

Theory: The net present value of future philanthropic cash flows from each consecutive generation of a family are greater than any one generation can produce.

The proof for the argument is fairly simple if you've taken an introductory finance class at some point. Because of the assumptions we have made, we can deduce that if the first philanthropic cash flow from the first generation is equal to A, then each consecutive generation will give an amount whose net present value with respect to inflation is greater than or equal to A. Because of this the sum of the net present value of future cash flows for n generations is greater than or equal to A*n. This number has no limit while each i generation is limited in the amount it can give (X + Ai), it goes without saying that there exists a value n where A*n > (X+Ai) for any value of X. Essentially as the generations pass, the value of the total family gift to charity approaches infinity.

Now THAT is a big charitable gift.

Most people don't think about cash flows across generations. Many of us live paycheck to paycheck. That is the income stream that we see. On a micro scale the same theory applies. With each paycheck we eventually (hopefully) save enough money to retire. Retirement doesn't mean we stop earning money but it does mean that we have saved enough money that we can live off of that money for the rest of our lives. Some of us might be so lucky as to have saved enough to live off the income streams from our net worth without actually depleting its value. In addition, no matter who are, as we save more and more, the amount of money we earn by simply keeping our savings in the bank increases over time, so our non-work related income increases. Lastly, if we were to give a percentage of our savings away to charity every paycheck, as our savings grew, so would the size of our charitable gift.

Simply extend this concept to the next generation and add a couple of assumptions and you will quickly see how the theory takes shape. While you might be saying to yourself, "Yeah but…" at this point, you are right to question; however, the method achieving this should assuage any worries you have already.

Method

The unfortunate problem of intergenerational philanthropic giving is the first generation will most likely not see the fruits of their labor. One must truly believe in family in order to put such a plan into action. The theory assumes that you are already of this nature, and that your family will continue endlessly throughout time. This brings me to my first and most important activity, teaching the children the importance of family, and the joy of agape.

Step 1: Raise your family properly

Selfish greed and materialistic influences are hard to avoid, especially in a capitalist environment. If we have done our job well as parents our children will have the tools necessary to fight these influences. The primary tool is faith in God and Jesus who tells us that charity is an act of love not only to our neighbors but also to him. This will then translate into a love for humanity as a whole and this should through the Holy Spirit create a desire to give. The second tool is knowledge. Without knowledge and understanding it will be hard to see how the plan of intergenerational philanthropy works nor will they have critical decision making skills necessary to choose where the cash flows go when it comes time to give. At the center of this knowledge are the studies of Mathematics, Finance, Economics and Geo Socioeconomics. Lastly we need to give our children the tool of hope. Without hope they will be unable to take risks, and unable to truly trust the generations they will not know. If they are truly knowledgeable they will have the ability to earn income off of X greater than inflation through investment. While risky, if well balanced and done intelligently, this should be encouraged for those generations that are capable.

Step 2: Save, save, save

If you are, as I stated in the first paragraph, the lucky few in the top percentage of wealth then step 2 is important, but NOWHERE near as important as it is for those hoping to get up to that level. In order to achieve the value X (the value at which a generation can live comfortably off the income streams from a risk free investment alone), we need to save that much. Depending on where we are on the wealth ladder, this might be impossible in one generation. If we can educate ourselves well enough to generate an income stream large enough to live off of comfortably and save, we can start building our families net worth towards X. This is not a foreign concept except most of us think in terms of retirement not in terms of an intergenerational retirement. For those that cannot reach X within one generation, if we are diligent and have followed Step 1, we can give to our children some of if not all of what we've saved and they will continue the pursuit of X.

Now, one of the tricky points is the value of X changes. Because of inflation, the cost of living for each consecutive generation increases, so the size of the income stream of X which is large enough to sustain a generation needs to grow over time. The only way this is possible is for X to grow faster than inflation. The primary method of this growth will come from the savings of future generations. This is why Step 2 is even important for those who have already reached X. If we have followed Step 1 well, we can hopefully produce a generation who does not need to live off the income stream from X and can add to it. This ideal scenario rapidly increases the size of the family net worth above X as it will grow also from its own compounding interest. But, we need to be aware that anything can happen to our children and we need to provide a source of income for them so they might live without fear. We cannot assume that our children will produce income, otherwise our theory becomes false as eventually, statistics will take over and a generation will require the income stream.

Step 3: Give, give, give

Once you've completed the first two steps and you have reached the family net worth X, first of all, congratulations, you are now very wealthy. Second of all, congratulations, you now have the ability to start giving great amounts to charity. There are two types of generations as we discussed: those that produce income, and those that need the income stream off X. Both of which will be receiving income of the amount Wi + Xi where Wi is the income received from work and Xi is the income received from the family savings. Each generation must use the knowledge given to them in Step 1 to determine three percentages. Whether or not Wi = 0 or not a percentage of income must be given to charity, C, a percentage must be saved, S, and a percentage must be used for living expenses L. C+S+L = 100%. Even if a generation does not have the ability to produce Wi greater than 0, they might be able to decrease their living expenses L to give to charity C and save S. This cannot be assumed, but under the most difficult circumstance where net family value does not increase during a generation or actually decreases due to necessity then the next capable generation must return to step 2 and attempt to return the net family value to X.

Step 4: Community Service

No matter what type of generation we are, we must give to charity in some form or another. Luckily, not all charity is in the form of money. By performing community service we are actually giving to charity through our time and talent as opposed to treasure. While it is hard to put a notional value on this type of giving it is very important and often the most personally rewarding. Whether we are at Step 2 or Step 3, a portion or all of C, the percentage we give to charity, can come from the form of community service. In the world today the power of money is immense and a huge number of lives can be helped through that power; however, lives can be touched on a much more intimate level through community service.

Conclusion

These methods will produce a family which according to the theory above can give to charity an amount never before thought possible. In many ways, this theory comes out of investment theory, but instead of investing our income we are investing our lives and the lives of our children, and their children down the line. It doesn't take long before you realize that the better we are at Step 1 and 2, the faster we can reach step 3 and the greater amount we can give.

In addition, to teaching our children, it doesn't take long to realize that if this is possible, and anyone can do it, teaching others the same methods dramatically increases the amount given to charity. As the number of families actually reaching step 3 increases, the greater poverty and hunger is destroyed. Eventually it is mathematically possible and statistically a fact that if enough people try these methods and teach them we can completely level the distribution of income to a point where everyone can live comfortably. And to those that question whether an even distribution of income sounds socialist; the existence of the rich and the poor does not prove the existence of capitalism, only greed.