This Is Our City

Roger: "You post nothing but criticisms." Untrue. As I hope others will attest to (if anyone else is still reading this). I have offered my 'solution' earlier, and I see no need to restate it. "The Organisation for Economic Development and Cooperation (OECD) maintains its own GINI index and related statistics for member countries. According to a 2011 OECD report, "over the two decades prior to the onset of the global economic crisis, real disposable household incomes increased by an average 1.7% a year in OECD countries. In a large majority of them, however, the household incomes of the richest 10% grew faster than those of the poorest 10%, so widening income inequality." " [http://www.gfmag.com/tools/global-database/economic-data/11944-wealth-dist ribution-income-inequality.html] Free markets work best- for the wealthiest.

Paul, your right, they are still poor by US standards. They were lifted from the lowest level of starvation poverty to less poverty and far less starvation. So? What's you're point? Show me any other time in history when so many people were rescued from starving to death. You post nothing but criticisms. You have an obligation to offer an alternative to freer markets that has demonstrated at least the same level of success.

I appreciate the article on Faith in the free market. I have a Marketplace Ministry in Nigeria, West Africa with similar goals as the Writers, Josh Kwan and Dashelle Laryea. I enjoyed reading on Wes Selke's Hub Ventures and I would appreciate further contacts with the writers and Wes Selke. My email address is mdabarshi@marvelouslight.net. I have a mission for empowerment of the Marketplace businesses for Kingdom Expansion and progress.

Roger: You give yet another unreferenced statistic. The World Bank (?) figures show that people were not 'lifted out' of poverty- they were less poor. (A conversation we had previously in another blog.) The 'marketplace' of itself does not value anything but material gain; people will always be poor as a result of the 'marketplace', except as individuals, government, and businesses act consciously to value human's and God's creation more than 'profit'. This individual, and others mentioned by CT, are good examples. That you continue to insist that the 'free marketplace' will alleviate poverty apart from individuals acting according to Christian/compassionate values, that you discount such actions, is idolatrous and not of God.

Businesses intended to do nothing but earn a profit lifted more than 500 million people out of poverty in India and China over the past generation. Nothing these "social" investing companies do will ever come close to that. I applaud their efforts and admire their work, but I don't see that they are doing more good than any other business.