Americans have a reputation in other countries for being greedy. Having lived abroad the past three years, I hear this all the time. The truth is that Americans are one of the most generous peoples in the history of humanity. Not only do we send hundreds of billions of US dollars in humanitarian relief every year to other nations, either through our own government or private charitable organizations, we've also spent trillions in the past, especially rebuilding Western and Southeastern Europe after World War II. Today our generosity even extends to nations where a large majority hold a decidedly anti-American perspective, such as Egypt and many Latin American countries. Earlier this year, my Italian boss and his girlfriend went to the United States, but his girlfriend didn't want to go. She didn't think she'd meet any Americans she would like because we are all so "conservative". She doesn't even consider America a democracy. Well, allow me to inform the rest of you about Italy, a country of civilization and social justice.... First of all, an experienced computer programmer here, such as myself, only makes about seven dollars an hour after taxes. For comparison, I made four times as much in the United States, and generally workers even earn two to three times more in Germany and France, which also have extremely high tax rates. Today I found out that if a person here makes more than about $6,000 gross (pre-taxes), they then owe almost an extra $3,000 to the government for the equivalent of Social Security. That's a 50% tax rate on the poorest people in this country!!! Not only that, but since the introduction of the Euro (Italy's new currency, along with most of the rest of Western Europe) prices have almost doubled in less than six years. Want a loan to buy an apartment? Well, if you don't have the right type of employment contract, basically one with no term limit, then you're out of luck. The people at the bank won't even talk to you. Most Italians do not have this kind of contract. Greed is ugly, and brutal. So are ignorance and bigotry. I hope one day Italians learn the truth about how things work in other countries, where merit and hard work are rewarded. Don't get me wrong: I'm not greedy myself and don't want to be rich. I just want to get by and at least have enough money for groceries at the end of the month. I always keep in mind what Jesus said - sooner will a camel pass through the eye of a needle than a rich man through the gates of Heaven. Amen.

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