In Their Own Words -- Again

Since I didn't preach (at least, not officially) last Shabbat, and I am trying to give my readers what to read anyway, here are two VERY different essays worthy of our thoughts and consideration.

The first is an extremely thought provoking piece about the state of life and the economy in America today, and how we got to where we are today. Regardless of whether you find this amusing or a cheap shot, I challenge you to move beyond the biases of your own positions and contemplate the data presented carefully:

http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=178989022468&id=511915235

The second is not as universal in scope. But it will probably hit those of you who are part of a religious community, especially a synagogue (like mine), just as hard as the first. Again, it is easy to throw counter arguments to almost every point. I would love to see some empirical evidence that embracing this philosophy in practical terms DOES lead to the desired results. But again, move past the biases and listen to the words....

http://ejewishphilanthropy.com/including-those-with-financial-challenges/

And please -- the fun in blogs like today's comes from the thoughtful exchange of reactions -- it is called debate, and it leads us to fine tune our own thoughts and ideas :)