Monday, Monday

I actually wrote this last night, but didn't get a chance to post until now.

Adu salah! I am actually in class—Cults of America, and we have a guest lecturer: Ken Samples from Reasons to Believe. He is talking about Seventh-Day Adventists. Somehow, I can listen and take notes, and type this, all at the same time. I am supposedly connected to the internet, here in Rood 55, but the signal is very weak, so I can’t really be on my blog real-time.

Well, in my categorization of weekdays, Monday is the special day set aside for gripes and pet peeves. And you know what I really hate? Automatically flushing toilets. They don’t seem to work very well, they are often wasteful (flushing unnecessarily, multiple times), and it is annoying when they flush before you are complete, while you are sitting on the toilet, thus splashing toilet water all over your rear end, with all of the difficulties and discomforts attendant with such an event. Blah!

I was thinking more about the issues of last week, wondering about Marx, and what it means to be oppressor and/or oppressed. I stated last week that I, as a worker, am exploited by (1) the U.S. government and (2) those who willfully live in such a way as to be dependent on the government (i.e. taxpayers) for financial support and even survival. People laughed, particularly Naomi, but after thinking about it, I realized that in the sense of Marx’s definition of exploitation (to receive as a result of another’s labor a profit in excess of that which said laborer has received in exchange for his or her labor), I am exploited, and possibly, by extension, oppressed. The government does have right and reason to receive from me certain sums of money commensurate with their contributions to my well-being and that of the country; it is my strong belief, at the same time, that I do pay a little more than I receive in return. Oh, well, ‘twer ever thus, I suppose. I am becoming more and more confident that by Marx’s standard, I am exploited by those who are on welfare; they receive a lot more from me (money via the labor I put forth that is taxed) than I receive in return for my labor (I receive nothing from them—I don’t ask for much—maybe they could come wash my car or something? That’s just a little bit of labor.). Anyway, those are thoughts on exploitation of me. But don’t stop there! (In Apu’s voice: Silly customer! You cannot harm the Twinkie, and you cannot become wise if you stop reading Deb’s thoughts halfway through!) Marx harangues against exploitation and oppressors (with good reason), but is exploitation always bad? From one standpoint, the entirety of Christianity is based upon exploitation—our exploitation of God’s free grace. We essentially offer nothing to God, while receiving everything. We exploit Christ’s perfect righteousness, giving Him in exchange our sin.
I believe that Marx had no place for God in his view, and excluded Him intentionally, because there was no place in Marx’s system for a perfectly giving Being, with free grace and blessings for all. There was no way for Marxism to operate in a universe that contained a Being Who has everything, and yet gives it all away, to those beneath Him, demanding nothing in return.

There's even more to think about...