The Mines of Ghana are God’s Vineyards

Note: This letter was sent by way of participation in an Oxfam Campaign and borrows content from a sermon by Sociologist Anthony Campolo on corporate responsibility.

Golden Star Resources Ltd.
10901 W. Toller Drive, Suite 300
Littleton, Colorado
80127-6312 U.S.A.

Dear Mr. Tom Mair,

I read the reports from Oxfam (who is like the Mother Theresa of global care and relief agencies), and like a lot of people, I don’t know how to get through to you. We live in a time when people do not believe there will be an accounting for what we do, for how we live our lives. We live in a time when people believe that the lives of one set of families must be improved by exploiting another set of families – in short, we live according to the most primitive ethos with the most advanced technology. We’re savages with computers.

I am asking you to consider the following words, which no doubt you’ve heard before:

There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He improved the land, and strengthened the land, and he gave it into the trust of some men to keep in good faith as honorable stewards of the land. When it was time to harvest the good rewards from the land, he sent his servant to the tenants to collect his share. But they seized the servant, beat him, and sent him back empty-handed. So the landowner sent another servant, and they hit this one on the head and treated him shamefully. He sent another servant and that one they killed. He sent many others, and some of them they beat and some of them they killed. Finally, he sent his own son, whom he loved, thinking “They did not respect my servants, but they will respect my son”. But the tenants had a meeting and decided, “This is the heir. If we kill him, the land will be ours to do as we please.” So they took him, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. What then will the owner of the vineyard do to these stewards when he comes?

Letter About Prisoner Medical Care

Senator Constance N. Johnson
Oklahoma State Senate, District 48

Senator Johnson,

I am concerned about legislation introduced and planned for introduction in 2008 by State Senator Owen Laughlin of Woodward and others. The legislation concerns inmates in county jails and financial responsibilities for pre-existing medical conditions. Links at the bottom of this letter include the recent court decision and area news articles on this matter.

On the surface it makes a great deal of sense that counties shouldn’t be responsible for a candidate’s cancer because he happens to get incarcerated. . . .

To the United Nations

I’m writing to ask that you intervene early, not wait, in the erupting situation in Kenya. I am deeply and personally concerned.

Letters to Congress

I’m not political. But recently, I sent letters to each of my senators, and the representative for my district. This is an example of one such letter:

Representative Fallin,

I’ve lived in your district for about three years, but I’m less familiar with your work than I’d like to be; I’m writing to find out what you’re doing about two things in particular – Sudan and Burma. And I’d like to urge you to do everything humanly possible.

You remember at the end of the film Schindler’s List, when he took off his watch and said “This could have bought several more lives. I could have done more…” That’s a man summing up the meaning of his life.