Moved by the plight of the poor and unemployed, Pope Francis recently decried a global economy that “does us so much harm.” In this essay, Bill Moyers reflects on our broken economy.
In an essay following his conversation with Greenpeace International’s Kumi Naidoo, Bill Moyers links Naidoo’s courage in speaking truth to power with an account of the recent visit by Pope Francis to Sardinia, the Mediterranean island known for its beautiful beaches and palatial homes owned by the richest of the rich. Sardinia is now blighted by widespread joblessness — 51 percent of its young people are out of work — and as the pope heard the stories of desperation and deprivation, he threw away his prepared speech and decried a global economic system “that does us so much harm.” The story leads Bill to conclude that unless we “dethrone our present system of financial capitalism that rewards those at the top” while everyone else is struggling, “it will consume us” and democracy will be finished.
to watch the 5-minute video from September 27, 2013, click on
http://billmoyers.com/segment/bill-moyers-essay-joblessness-is-killing-us-the-pope-says-so-%C2%A0/