Weigel's 'To See Things as They Are' | National Catholic Reporter

Weigel's 'To See Things as They Are' | National Catholic Reporter by MSW. MGB: A few points, I am doubtful about whether Weigel is a neoconservative - for neoconservatives are folks who are otherwise liberal who support Israel and all the militarism that this implies.  If Jesus were here now, he would be standing with the Samaritans - i.e., the Palestinians, which include both the Samaritans and his family's surviving members.  As for Evangelical Catholicism, I still think this is a gambit to make nice with the Christian Right Evangelicals.  Since they are Calvinists economically, that is a bad idea.  Consumerism, by the way, is a safety valve for capitalism - and the percentage of the economy in consumption cannot be sustained. It is too low.  The other items in GDP are government purchases (excluding transfer payments) and investments.  Unless one is a supply sider or a socialist, there is nothing wrong with consumption in its current range.



This essay seems to pander to Weigel's funders or the funders of those who read his column.  That must include the Koch brothers, so this attack is stealthy.  The subtext has to be the coming encyclical on the environment - and Weigel, like most Koch apologists, fails to mention that the Pope is a head of state as well as Vicar of Christ.  Unless he is suggesting that this bit change, it is not Weigel's place to delegitimize his role on the Environment.  As for the bishops, they love this stuff - because they want aborton to be the number one issue - even though nothing can really be done about it except urging Catholics to vote Republican.  That is the true nature of the movement and the scandal is that the bishops are so deeply involved in a fraud.