Friday, January 10, 2014

Jon Stewart explains it all for you

"Moral Hazard" is not an economic concept created in the 18th century (when "economics" first became a subject of study and not just the oikonomos, or law of the household, something historic Christianity was actually deeply concerned with. But that's another topic....). "Moral Hazard" is a concept as old as "Teacher, who sinned, that this man was born blind?" It's as old as the disciples, themselves slightly better off economically than the beggars Jesus spoke to, and living themselves off the contributions of supporters of the homeless mendicant they called "Rabbi," sometimes tried to keep away from the Teacher.  The idea that the poor don't deserve money, that money would simply corrupt them, while the rich are obviously more worthy to be wealthy, is a very, very old one.


That doesn't mean Jon Stewart is wrong, or doesn't do a brilliant job skewering that immoral and hazardous idea.

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