Author Archives: Larry Franz

A Revelation

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Anyone who has been exposed to the Book of Revelation or had trouble sleeping after watching The Omen should read Revelations, a recent book by Princeton professor of religion Elaine Pagels.

According to Professor Pagels, the Book of Revelation was written around 90 C.E. by John of Patmos, an itinerant preacher and follower of Jesus. He wrote the book as a piece of anti-Roman propaganda, in response to the fact that Rome had colonized Judea and destroyed the temple in Jerusalem. The Romans are the villains in the Book of Revelation. The number 666 is probably a numerological translation of the full Latin name of the emperor Nero.

The Book of Revelation became an official part of the Bible when the New Testament was codified in 325 C.E. Professor Pagels argues that it was included for political reasons. It was useful to the men who were organizing the Catholic Church to have a story that could be used against their political enemies, i.e., the Christians that church leaders like Irenaeus and Athanasius called “heretics”. The early leaders of the church were a quarrelsome, unprincipled bunch who did whatever was necessary to suppress opposing views. They claimed that some of their fellow Christians were the evil enemies of God described in a story written 200 years earlier about the Romans. But now the Romans weren’t the bad guy anymore. 

This is a depressing but necessary book. Generations of innocent people have been scared and even scarred by a horror story that purports to describe a coming apocalypse, albeit one with a happy ending for a few true believers (us, not them). To borrow from Nietzsche: “What cruel and insatiable vanity must have flared in the soul of the man who thought this up”.

Choosing to Fall Behind

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We’ve gotten used to thinking that America is the greatest country in the world. Obviously, we’re a rich and powerful nation that has historically been a land of opportunity for most of our citizens. We have accomplished so much. Yet we are falling behind other advanced nations. Not because of external circumstances, but by choice.

Eduardo Porter, writing in the NY Times, points out that: “Every developed country aspires to provide a better life for its people. The United States, among the richest of all, fails in important ways. It has the highest poverty and the highest infant mortality among developed nations. We provide among the least generous unemployment benefits in the industrial world. Not long ago one of the most educated countries in the world, the United States is slipping behind. The reason is not difficult to figure out: rich though we are, we can’t afford the policies needed to improve our record.”

Why are we falling behind? Mr. Porter explains:

“Citizens of most industrial countries have demanded more public services as they have become richer. And they have been by and large willing to pay more taxes to finance them. Since 1965, tax revenue raised by governments in the developed world have risen to 34 percent of their gross domestic product from 25 percent, on average.

The big exception has been the United States. In 1965, taxes collected by federal, state and municipal governments amounted to 24.7 percent of the nation’s output. In 2010, they amounted to 24.8 percent. Excluding Chile and Mexico, the United States raises less tax revenue, as a share of the economy, than every other industrial country.

No wonder we can’t afford to keep more children alive.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/15/business/economy/slipping-behind-because-of-an-aversion-to-taxes.html?ref=eduardoporter

Here are two principal reasons why we can’t afford to do what needs to be done.

Reason 1: We no longer have a progressive tax system. When you factor in the various kinds of taxes we pay, it turns out that the people who could afford to pay more are taxed at roughly the same rate as everyone else.

taxday2012table

http://ctj.org/ctjreports/2012/04/who_pays_taxes_in_america.php

Reason 2: It’s hard to believe, but the US is responsible for at least 40% of the world’s total military spending. We spend 5 times as much as China and 10 times as much as Russia. Unless we’re going to fight the rest of the world, or maybe counter an invasion from outer space, we are wasting a whole lot of money that could be spent toward making this the greatest country in the world.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_military_expenditures

We are choosing to fall behind.

Illness Part 2

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Three days in the hospital turned into five. But I’m mending now.

Speaking of illness, a judge in Lubbock, Texas, has supposedly justified a small tax increase in order to strengthen the local sheriff’s department. He wants to be ready if Obama gives up our sovereignty to the United Nations and the UN troops try to take control of Lubbock.

http://www.myfoxlubbock.com/news/local/story/Lubbock-tom-head-tax-rates-president-obama/PeO4Q8GeGEiy_FpxheUnmA.cspx

Illness

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After what doctors call a “complication” from a medical procedure, I’ve just spent three days in the hospital. I haven’t been this sick since having pneumonia many years ago.

One thing I was reminded of is how difficult it can be to sleep in a hospital bed, while connected to various tubes, with inflatable straps around your legs to prevent blood clots, the bed undulating to prevent bedsores, high-tech machinery beeping, chugging and whooshing, and periodic visits from the nurses and technicians. They should call it a “patient platform” instead of a “bed”.

The more significant thing I’ve been reminded of is how illness can change your perception of the world. Having an abnormal perspective makes the world seem very different. What is normally interesting, enjoyable or possible isn’t anymore.

I’m very glad that I’ll recover soon. I wouldn’t want this unpleasant state to start feeling typical, the way being healthy becomes a memory for people with chronic illness. Being ill for a long time doesn’t mean that it’s normal to be ill — you can still compare your state to a healthy one. But maybe you can adjust after a while, your abnormal perspective becoming “normal for you”. The world might seem interesting and enjoyable again.

I don’t want to find out if I could get used to this particular perspective. Apparently all I need is some more hemoglobin and the world will again seem normal.