Wealth
How is it distributed, and what does that have to do with Freemasonry?
Contemplating Seattle, I can’t help but be struck by the contrast in the wealth of its people. Seattle of course is home to Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates, yet also home to thousands of people living under tarps along its roadways.
Countless dollars are spent by all levels of government and a myriad of charitable organizations, attempting to solve the housing needs of so many, and yet for every dollar spent, the problem grows worse.
Is it any wonder that the problem continually grows worse when housing costs are so very high? My wife and I recently sold our home. We liked it very much, but it was small. Really small. It was also located in a small city with few jobs and a challenged economy. But being within Western Washington, it sold in three days. For well above our asking price. For a ridiculous amount of money, and a tremendous profit for an ownership time frame of around ten years.
How can a person making minimum wage, or even double or triple the minimum wage ever hope to own a home when they are so very expensive. Or rent an apartment for that matter?
Advocates clamor for government cash to address the situation, government increases taxation yet again, spending ever more cash in attempts to solve the problem, and as a result, the problem grows ever worse.
Why do we not look at the core of the problem? Why do we not consider that the Growth Management Act artificially limits the amount of buildable land available, thereby driving the price of that which remains through the roof?
Why do we not consider that local government permit requirements and fees easily add over fifty thousand dollars to the cost of a modest family home?
Getting tremendously local, don’t we realize that the requirement in my small City that every apartment come with a garage drives up housing costs tremendously?
None of these things are necessary to ensure quality housing, yet they are all imposed by our State, County, and City governments. Add them together and it is easy to see why rent is so expensive, and why home ownership is impossible for so many. These are just three quick examples of needless costs and regulations, there are hundreds more.
By pointing this out am I trying to somehow communicate that I don’t feel that people have personal responsibility for their lot in life?
I am not.
I believe that if someone is living under a tarp alongside a roadway, he or she has clearly made some really bad decisions in life, and those bad decisions have wrecked obvious havoc.
But I am saying that the situation is a lot more complex than just deciding that someone is a bum.
A huge variety of factors play into the desperate poverty we see on our streets, and to be fair, we must recognize that not all of them are the fault of the homeless individual, or within his or her control.
We need to recognize that, if we are going to see the truth of the situation.
We also, I think, need to recognize that we are never going to address the situation by throwing money at it. We’ve been doing that since at least the late 1960’s, and it clearly hasn’t worked. There really isn’t much use in continually doubling down on failed policies, for they will simply continue to fail.
Real poverty, homelessness, income inequality, these are huge problems in our society right now, and growing worse each day. They seem insurmountable. Those are I think facts that no reasoning person can deny.
But do they have anything to do with Freemasonry?
Should we, as Masons, be considering them, thinking of ways the situation can be improved?
I believe that these problems are, and should be, of concern to Freemasonry.
Not for us to deal with through the creation of another Masonic institutional charity. Not through clamoring for wealth redistribution schemes whereby the government takes even more from those who create wealth and gives it to those who do not. Throwing money at the problem has never worked, and it won’t suddenly start working.
But, we owe it to ourselves, and our society, to consider the root causes of the problem. Both the causes within individual lives, and within the societal and regulatory frameworks in which we live. We should consider this, as Masons.
Why?
Because ultimately Freemasonry seeks to take a good man, and provide him with the tools with which he can carve himself into an even better man. These good men who want to become better men are properly the men we accept into our fellowship.
But it goes beyond that. While recognizing that Freemasonry is only for a select few, only for those good men seeking improvement, Freemasonry certainly hopes that everyone in our society, Masons and not, have the opportunity to improve themselves. That everyone has the opportunity to try and live a good and moral life.
If an individual is truly desperate to meet the basic needs of life, then morality is going to be the last thing on his or her mind. Prohibitions and taboos against cheating, wronging, and defrauding are very easily swept aside within an individual’s mind when he is wet and cold with no opportunity for warmth on the horizon.
Do we want to live in a society in which a significant portion of the population is driven to committing crimes against others? Some will always chose crime, for evil exists in our world, but do we want, as a society to encourage it? To push people towards evil?
I would argue that we most certainly do not, but when basic needs go unmet, that is exactly what happens. And no amount of charity dinners or government ‘feel good’ programs are going to stop it.
Society has a soul. When we forget that, when we allow the pursuit of business success to become the most important thing in society and in our lives, well then that collective soul darkens. When we view men like Gates or Bezos as heroic or superstars, well then we are valuing too highly that which just isn’t all that important.
Benjamin Franklin is remembered for what he did in the cause of freedom. Not for his great wealth. Thomas Jefferson and Winston Churchill both died with the bill collectors nipping at their heels. These are the kinds of men, and actions that made actual positive impacts on the lives of millions, that should be and are remembered.
No one remembers us for our wealth, after we are dead.
Yet far too many in our society today are living as if they will be.
This attitude is what allows a city to be home to the wealthiest men in the history of the world, and at the same moment, in the very same place, people living under tarps.
Jesus of Nazareth tried to teach us about the evil that can result by seeing wealth as the highest virtue or calling, and Freemasonry tries to teach us that as well.
Do I have a solution in mind? No. I do not. Beyond changing our collective attitudes.
I do know however that it must be a concern for Freemasonry.
It must concern Freemasonry because we are an institution that teaches and celebrates morality.
Does the child growing up while living in a car with a single parent have much opportunity at all to learn about morality? To consider the spiritual aspects of his or her life?
If every waking hour is a scrabble and a struggle to survive, there is no time for contemplation of the self, and therefore no opportunity for moral and spiritual growth.
This is the antithesis of Freemasonry.
Our broader society is called to solve the problem, but as Freemasons we are called upon to contemplate it.
Recommended Reading
Our Emeth Recommended Reading List has grown again thanks to the suggestions of so many of you. The current list can be found at:
The Emeth Recommended Reading List
Zoom Life
Like every Sunday, I’ll open Zoom at 7:30 this evening. Login information will go out via email to those with a paid subscription to Emeth at 5:00 PM.
If you would like to join in this Zoom gathering, but need to upgrade your subscription to do so, please do it before 5:00 this afternoon to ensure that you receive the information.
As in previous weeks, we can talk about what was discussed on Emeth over the past week, talk about what we would like to discuss in the future, and of course toast each other and our Ancient Craft.
The meeting agenda will be tight, and like always, limited to 40 minutes.
I look forward to seeing you this evening!
A Request
If you enjoy Emeth, will you forward it to your Masonic friends and the men of your Lodge, along with your recommendation?
Truly the more Masons we have participating here, the better Emeth will become. Did you notice for example that our last open discussion topic had 44 serious and in depth comments? That our last paid subscribers only discussion had 27, even more in depth? That is superb.
I firmly believe that Emeth can help us all on our individual Masonic quests, and through that, help our Lodges as well. If you have read this far into today’s email, then I know that you believe that as well, and that is why I am confident in asking that you recommend it to your Brothers.
Discussion Recap
As always we discussed a very wide range of Masonic topics last week. We started the week talking about Plural Memberships. Then we moved on to Emeth itself. I would like to thank you for all of your very kind compliments.
On wednesday we talked about Creating Sacred Spaces within our Lodge rooms, and then in our Tiny Book Club read some great words of wisdom from the sitting Grand Master of Oklahoma, MW Robert Davis. As always, our paid subscribers only Live Open Thread was very wide ranging, and interesting to me.
I will say though that the discussion I enjoyed the most was the one in which we discussed the York and Scottish Rites. I think we reached clear consensus that the Rites have great value and potential, but that they (especially the Scottish Rite) need to slow down, confer the Degrees slowly, and give a man enough time to absorb some of the lessons of the Degree before conferring the next.
All of the discussion topics remain open, so please feel free to add your thoughts.
Thank You
I owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to everyone who has purchased a paid subscription to Emeth. So, Thank You! Emeth would not be possible without you.
Thank you to all of our new subscribers since last Sunday. I truly do hope that you find value and inspiration here, and that you will jump into our discussions whenever inspiration strikes.
Thank you to everyone who reads Emeth. There would be no use putting these words down without readers!
For all of you who add your voice to our discussions, Thank You! I learn a lot from your comments, you inspire me, and I’m quite sure that you have that same impact on everyone who reads them.
Finally, Thank you to everyone who shares Emeth on social media and recommends it to your friends. Our continual growth is due to your promotion, and it is greatly appreciated.
Just in case you missed it:
As a small qualifier, I’ve interacted with the homeless population for 30 years as a deputy/detective and my wife was the Executive Director of a homeless teen shelter. It was and is a non-profit organization that has had to scrimp for donations to keep its doors open. As an example of the regulations imposed by the state, is employees of the shelter are required to have a 4 year degree. There aren’t many people with a 4 year degree who want to work for minimum wage.
One issue (of many) that you didn’t mention is the mental health of the homeless population. The longer a person is homeless, the more their mental health deteriorates. I know some become homeless due to their own choices, but others find themselves homeless through forces beyond their control.
Last fall, having been retired for only 8 months, I suffered a TIA (pre-stroke). I was fortunate that it cleared up on its own and only had to spend one night in the hospital. Even with insurance (which is a topic for another time) it has tremendously effected us financially. I can share, as I’m certain other brothers have experienced, the added stress trying to pay additional medical bills on a fixed income. I share this because I just as easily could have been financially bankrupted and found ourselves in a different living arrangement. Those homeless that are there due to forces out of their control quickly lose their self-esteem and if they are employed, quite likely will become unemployed. Where do the homeless bathe or wash clothes? If they have a family, the stress of providing security for them becomes overwhelming and paranoia begins to set in. I believe it should be the government’s responsibility to care for its most vulnerable populations. I don’t believe throwing money at the problem is the answer either.
What can we do as Masons? There are already plenty of agencies involved so we don’t have to start something new. We all own suits we rarely, if ever wear. Could that suit help someone gain employment? Could we hand out pb&j sandwiches one day a week? It’s not going to fix the problem, nothing may, but it’s something.
Don't get me started on permits, overregulation, and land use limitations.