The Pope Can Make All of Us More Thankful Today, Says Shikha Dalmia…

…in the Washington Examiner, by stopping his yammerings against capitalism.

In a speech this week he went on yet another anti-capitalistic rant, claiming that the

"opinion" that "economic growth, encouraged by the free market, will inevitably succeed in bringing about greater justice and inclusiveness" has "never been confirmed by the facts."

This shows, notes Dalmia, that the Pope pays no attention to Bono, which is a sign of good taste.

His judgement, however, is another matter. It seems the Pope hasn't put down his copy of Das Capital to actually look at the world around him in quite a while. If he had, he'd not only notice how it has raised living standards in countries where it has (sort of) been tried (and these don't include his native Argentina and his new home, Italy). He'd also notice how these (semi) capitalistic countries keep the Catholic Church and its charitable mission going. She writes:

Capitalism puts more discretionary income in the pockets of people to devote to charitable pursuits. It is hardly a coincidence that America donates over $300 billion annually toward charitable causes at home and abroad, the highest of any country on a per capita basis.

The church itself is a big beneficiary of this capitalist largesse, with its U.S. wing alone contributing 60 percent to its overall global wealth. Some of this money comes from donations, but a big chunk comes, actually, from directly partaking in capitalism: The church is reportedly the largest landowner in Manhattan, the financial center of the global capitalism system, whose income puts undisclosed sums into its coffers.

So the new pope needs to be careful not to bite the hand that feeds his institution and its work. Otherwise, neither he nor the poor in whose name he is speaking will have much to be thankful for.

Go here for the whole thing.

Happy Thanksgiving.