Lyles: Serve the common good first

On May 15, 1891, Pope Leo XIII wrote an open letter to all Catholic bishops about the rights and duties of capital and labor. He outwardly rejected socialism and predicted the demise of communism, which at the time was gaining momentum, backed by ardent supporters concerned about “the misery and wretchedness pressing so unjustly on the majority of the working class” by many existing social systems.

A hundred years later, after the fall of the Berlin Wall and on the eve of the collapse of the Soviet Union, Pope John Paul II wrote a follow-up letter. Among other things, he said that rather than celebrate the demise of communism that Pope Leo XIII had so accurately predicted a hundred years earlier, we should ask “what are the greatest threats to capitalism in the upcoming century?”

John Paul II said the greatest threat to capitalism was that people in leadership positions would become self-serving rather than other-serving. He said people should work in order to provide for the needs of their families, their community, their nation and, ultimately, all humanity. The corollary is that greed, narcissism and selfish behavior are the death knell for capitalism.

JP II’s concerns were all-to-soon proved valid. Soon thereafter, the world learned about what has to be among the ultimate acts of self-gratification when Bill Clinton’s sexcapades in the Oval Office were revealed. It’s hard to imagine a more vulgar insult to America’s psyche than having the person elected to the most esteemed office in the land debauch himself and our nation in the very office that had previously been associated with the highest accomplishments of leadership and standards of statesmanship. It shouldn’t surprise that subsequently he and his wife have selfishly amassed hundreds of millions of dollars for their private foundation by trading political favors in yet another gross abuse of public trust.

Although George W. Bush’s behavior wasn’t in the same loutish or uncouth category, it’s hard to defend many of the decisions he made that served the interests of his supporters at the expense of the country. And we can’t ignore the U.S. Congress and the Senate in terms of reaching new highs in serving self rather than country. The national shift in political attitude that took hold in the late 1990s and carried over into this century, was an all-inclusive, equal opportunity transformation. Self-serving that previously existed only in such isolated pockets such as Chicago, San Francisco and Boston began to permeate the ranks of politics at every level along with government bureaucracies, unions and big business with a pandemic force heretofore unseen in our country.

Then came Barack Obama, a master at making selfishness and self-centeredness seem like worthy ideals. His hypocrisy and deceit in this regard are unparalleled. He claims to be a champion of minorities, the middle class and peace. Yet black unemployment is higher now than when he took office, middle class income is down substantially and his non-efforts to achieve peace have made the world much less peaceful.

No wonder people are fed up with the lack of leadership from a political class whose primary goal has become to survive rather than serve. It is understandable why Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump have gained fervent support, even if their numbers are small and their solutions feeble.

Even though Trump and Sanders speak ardently against the contaminated political climate that has alienated most citizens, their solutions won’t work. No one will be able to bring about the change we need until everyone — as in “we the people” — once again demands the common good be served first.

Lyles, a Poway resident, is a business mangement consultant and best-selling author. Reader comments, through letters to the editor or online at pomeradonews.com, are encourged.