Plans to deregulate Wall Street
I am not an economist, but, intuitively, Trumps plan to deregulate Wall Street seems very wrong to me. In January, Oxfam researchers declared that just 8 men own the same wealth as half of the world. Wealth disparity statistics become more and more shocking every year. How is increasing the rate of growth of wealth disparity a good thing? Perhaps Trump would argue that as the wealthiest get wealthier everyone becomes more wealthy. But Bill McKibbon in his book "Deep Economy" has shown that the accumulation of global wealth in the hands of only a few makes the rest poorer. So, for example, while a family in the West could once function on one income, today a family requires two incomes to get through. Oxfam explainshow the super-rich are fuelling the inequality crisis by dodging taxes, driving down wages and using their power to influence politics. Oxfam calls for a fundamental change in the way we manage our economies so that they work for all people, and not just a fortunate few. The trajectory of biblical ethics of production and economics supports Oxfam's call for change. This may be summed up: God owns it all, and God wants everybody to be able to enjoy some of it. God wants everybody to flourish, not just a privileged few. "There shall be no poor among you" (Deut 15:4). In fact, those who would accumulate excessive wealth at the expense of others are symbolized in scripture in the ugly figure of Pharaoh the selfish king of Egypt. God's rule means a brand new day where every person can flourish, especially the most vulnerable.