Come to Muhammad

Du Café

Economy – Listen to Muhammad (PBUH) come to him

It's not a question of enough, pal. It's a zero sum game, somebody wins somebody loses. Money itself isn't lost or made; it's simply transferred from one perception to another.(Gordon Gekko Wall Street– 1987)

In the aftermath of WWII, allies were up against each other in a cold war. Both wanted to force their political and economic systems. NATO forces Marshall Plan for building Europe by providing monetary support and it was also an effort to keep communism from spreading. Two allies fought proxy wars and NATO forces defeated on many grounds, i.e. Korean War, Vietnam War, Cuban Crisis etc. Afghan war changed the entire situation, Media highlighted how bad communist system was and ushered the world to Capitalism.

Winning the war gave capitalism reasons to flourish. The system evolved from dollar standard to dirty float. Organizations like IMF, IBRD, and WTO created to control finance infrastructure and trade of the world. BIS published guideline after guideline Basel series of regulations to mock the world that that the bumpy ride would smoothen. Humanity taken to brutal, greedy and lusty path created reasons to continue the journey. Our lived beyond their means, “ME, MY and MINE was injected in our blood. This system created crisis after crisis since 1944 every new one is bigger than the previous one. There always been a few who benefited from this system, they weave the web the world is trapped in. But there is growing understanding now that benefits of financial system are limited but it harms vast majority of humanity. According to Yale University Professor Robert Shiller, people in the financial world lost morality and to combat this race to the bottom, he has suggested regulatory regime both at government and industry level.

If not fixed, it will be difficult to continue present life style austerity measures is merely a term reality is this system cannot go on. Europe is adjusting at the moment and others will have to follow. Although in order to save this mockery trillions of dollars pumped in the system but their effectiveness is questioned. Let me ask you here, if a person arteries are blocked amid cholesterol, can injecting new blood in his arteries would help him. I am sure you answer would be a no. Blankfein, CEO of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has said that he is not a socialist and yet he believes the economy hasn’t done a good job of distributing wealth fairly. Isn’t he questioning the effectiveness of our present financial system?  

So, what alternate world has at its disposal? Roger Scruton suggests listen to Muhammad (PBUH) in this regard. Scruton thinks his teaching is on ethics and morals. Muhammad prescription provides a perfect financial system. More interestingly, it addresses almost all the problems created by the present system.  What is the harm, why world is not shifting towards it? Well, there could be many answers for this simple question though all would lead us to a class who benefits the most from present system and who consider Islam as a threat. So, they propagate against it to save theirs. An ordinary human is so busy solving his day to day problems that he has no time to judge what is right and what is wrong. He has no time to touch the earth or see the sun he is just running. He has been programmed to earn money by hook or by crook, steal or snatch, but for what, for serving our present economic, financial system?

But this system is build by an elite oligarchy and in years they would not let it go like that, even if they have to declare a war against a just, fair, moral based ethical system. They would termed the followers as terrorist and declared a war against, they would show the world how bad Muslim countries system is all around the world by doing so they have tried to create an hedge so instead of challenging their system people are lost in what Muslims are doing. Trust me this is not Muhammad teachings his teachings are continuation of what Adam, Noah, Ibrahim, Isaiah, Jacob, Moses, David, John and Jesus have preached.  

In the end, I would like the world to consider Quran and Muhammad teachings in solving financial problem. The simple dos and don’ts create an ethical, just, vibrant and equal system benefiting all. I am not advocating if not adopted the world would end though it would be very difficult to continue our present lifestyle in the future. Nouriel Roubini, New York University professor is predicting a global perfect storm by 2013 and he is off the view that it be even worse than 2008. Time is running short and the hour is getting late.

Riaz Andy