(Clearwisdom.net) In China, an obvious problem in society is the declining morality. But many people think the cause of the declining morality is poverty, and mistakenly believe that morality will improve as soon as the economy is strong and the standard of living rises. Is this true? No. And why not?

1. There is no absolute relationship between one's moral level and being rich or poor. In history, there have been many noble people who were poor. And there have been many people from wealthy families that have done many bad things.

2. The level of morality has fallen most rapidly in China in recent years, just as the country's economy has boomed. Thus, development of the economy does not bring about an improved level of morality.

3. Some people think the decline in morality is due to theft. They think that once people are wealthy, there will be no stealing and morality improve. In fact, theft is only a small component of inferior morality. The worst examples of immoral behavior are corrupt officials who do all kinds of evil things. They are rich. One reason for their corruption is their greed.

4. In China, some people think that honest people will never get rich. People do anything in order to get money. Everyone looks to made money. The price they pay is their morality.

5. People's desires are limitless. Without moral restraints, which come from belief in the gods, the development of the economy serves only to expand people's desires for material things. More development means ever more declining morality.

6. People that follow Falun Gong's principles of "Truth, Compassion, and Forbearance" become good without the restraint of laws or surveillance. People are changed from the inside. The Chinese Communist Party can't solve the moral crises in society, such as corruption, dishonesty, sexual degradation, etc. On the other hand, eliminating these bad behaviors is very basic to people who cultivate.

May 18, 2007