Are People Good or Bad?

We tend to think that people are either good or bad. So if someone we consider as good does something wrong (whether it's a priest, a civil rights activist, or a politician), we're shocked. I was wondering about this subject until I read a book by a psychiatrist who said that each person has good and bad characteristics. We view a person as good if we focus on their good characteristics. We view a person as bad if we focus on their bad characteristics. This made sense to me. I always wondered why people I perceived as being bad, were loved by others. Those people must see something good in that person. Perhaps this is the reason why Jesus asked us to forgive others. So maybe next time, we shouldn't be too harsh with others for their imperfections, since we also have our own weaknesses.

Would You Want Someone to Help You When You're in Need?

I was at Costco with my mom a few weeks ago. She & I were shopping in different parts of the store, when mom suddenly felt dizzy and asked a woman for help. The woman refused to help and left her. When I found mom, she told me about this incident. I was quite upset about it. Who wouldn’t? I'll bet you would be too if this happened to your or your loved ones. So I wondered, maybe next time someone asks us for help, we should. Perhaps our good example may inspire others to do the same.

Good Can Come Out of Something Bad

I have a co-worker whose husband got fired from a job he held for a long time. They have 2 children, one who's about to enter college. Naturally, he was concerned about how to make ends meet. They also wondered why God allowed this to happen. It wasn't long before he found another job, doing the exact same thing he did in his previous job. The only difference is that now he's getting paid a lot more. This new job took care of his financial concerns. So something good came out of something bad. I guess we just have to trust that God allows things to happen for a reason.

Can a Society Ban What It Believes is Wrong?

You've heard politicians say they're morally or personally opposed to something but refuse to "impose" their beliefs on others. If they were referring to something like gambling, then I'd agree that they can't impose this on those who don't think gambling is wrong. But what about something like slavery? Even though Southerners believed in it, the Union banned it anyway. Why? What's the difference? It's because gambling is not an act of injustice, while slavery is. That's why societies have a right to ban unjust acts to protect the common good. So next time you hear politicians say they're morally opposed to something but will not "impose" their beliefs on others, beware! If it deals with an act of injustice, then this means they're either spineless, or lacking in intelligence. Would you vote for such politicians?

Do Politicians Really Represent the People?

Last week, Good Morning America's political analyst, Mr. George Stephanopoulos, said that Senator Hillary Clinton voted against funding our troops in Iraq. While many Americans want to see an end to the war, they don't want to cut off the supplies that our troops need. Mr. Stephanopoulos revealed that Sen. Clinton voted this way for fear of reprisals from special interest groups, such as MoveOn. This is disturbing since legislators are supposed to represent the voters, and not special interest groups. It seems that our elected representatives have forgotten that they are obligated to represent the people. Maybe it's time we contacted our elected officials to remind them that our government should be a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.