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PITTSBURG —
Dear Editor:
I believe this presidential election is about sin and envy and greed are two of the “Seven Deadly Sins”. Mr. Romney believes wanting the rich to pay higher taxes is due to envy. Mr. Obama believes wanting to pay lower taxes while gaining greater wealth is greed. Those who envy resent that another person has something they don’t have and wish they would lose it and the Ten Commandments warn against “coveting thy neighbor’s goods.” Greed {as seen by the church} is an excessive desire and pursuit of wealth, status and power. Secular writings call greed an inordinate desire to acquire or possess more than one needs. I don’t think most of us envy what the rich have, but I do believe most of us want them to pay the rate of tax required on their Adjusted Gross Income. Merriam-Webster’s dictionary describes income as “a gain or recurrent benefit usually measured in money that derives from capital or labor.” There is no separating “investment income” from income gotten through fees, services or manual labor. To want one taxed lower than the other is not a right, but feeling entitled or driven by greed. Envy and greed are sins, but unless someone obsesses over having something others have it may not necessarily be a sin and unless someone obsesses over being wealthy it may not necessarily be a sin, but wishing more wealth at others expense probably is. Didn’t Jesus say, go vote and sin no more?
Albert Newland
Pittsburg
Dear Editor:
I believe this presidential election is about sin and envy and greed are two of the “Seven Deadly Sins”. Mr. Romney believes wanting the rich to pay higher taxes is due to envy. Mr. Obama believes wanting to pay lower taxes while gaining greater wealth is greed. Those who envy resent that another person has something they don’t have and wish they would lose it and the Ten Commandments warn against “coveting thy neighbor’s goods.” Greed {as seen by the church} is an excessive desire and pursuit of wealth, status and power. Secular writings call greed an inordinate desire to acquire or possess more than one needs. I don’t think most of us envy what the rich have, but I do believe most of us want them to pay the rate of tax required on their Adjusted Gross Income. Merriam-Webster’s dictionary describes income as “a gain or recurrent benefit usually measured in money that derives from capital or labor.” There is no separating “investment income” from income gotten through fees, services or manual labor. To want one taxed lower than the other is not a right, but feeling entitled or driven by greed. Envy and greed are sins, but unless someone obsesses over having something others have it may not necessarily be a sin and unless someone obsesses over being wealthy it may not necessarily be a sin, but wishing more wealth at others expense probably is. Didn’t Jesus say, go vote and sin no more?
Albert Newland
Pittsburg
