Morality/Ethics

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Flawed from the Beginning

Capitalism is a fundamentally flawed system and thus the effects from practice can’t help but be harmful to people.  The flaw lies primarily with its intention in relation to humanity and Nature, if not life, itself.  An article by Lynn Parramore offers a summary of Christian theology’s influence on eighteenth century economic thought highlights such notions as the import of individualism and competition, self-interest behavior making for greater economic good, private property ownership and the underlying notion that money-making is the pathway to heaven and accordingly, to sin is failing to maximize one’s personal gain.

So it makes sense where the self-reliant type of assertions about the poor likely come from such as, they need to pull themselves up by their own boot straps, or it is the result of their laziness, or the poor are unworthy. And about the rich, well they are rich because of hard work.

Adam Smith was influenced by those he closely associated with (e.g. theologians and philosophers of his time) as well as his religious upbringing. Thus, we can understand the origin of Adam Smith’s ‘invisible hand’ in his economic system.  Smith assumes a foundational premise that individuals seeking to maximize material self-interest serves the greater good (almost magically as an unintended consequence). This is also related to the seemingly all-powerful role of ‘the market’ as the one thing that will make the needed adjustments. 

In a system wherein what’s-in-it-for-me is the guide, concern for the common good, the We, is given no place in capitalism: Essentially, it is Me against We— this cannot foster morality or ethical behavior.  So, in the context of human society in Nature, wherein interdependence is a foundational characteristic, how could acting in our material self-interest as if we are independent of each other and Nature not lead to harm for all?

The system of capitalism is not broken!  It is working as intended and thus causing us to do precisely what it requires! 

Economy as a Machine

Further, the development path in the field of political economy from its beginning in (theological) philosophy likely was influenced by Newton’s discovery. That is, the findings and laws of physics arising from Newton’s work on the movement of planets was likely thought to be the holy grail for economist to do the same for economics.  Consequently, the economic thought influenced by Christian theological understandings was developed as a mechanistic quantitative science wherein laws regarding the aims of self-interest and wealth accumulation were sought, hypothesized and advanced through models as if they were inherent or immutable laws of human nature.  Necessarily, capitalist society is structured with people cast as primarily, if not solely, as self-interest seeking beings—the cogs in society’s wealth producing machine wherein capital employs labor. Yet, to date, few if any economic models prove all that predictive of the greater good being realized.  

Human Interest

So what is “our interest” as persons?  Apart from what I assume is the shared interest of continuing to exist/live, we each have interests that emerge from the context/culture within which we develop as persons—a culturally manufactured interest, what society requires.  On this latter point, capitalistic society requires us to believe that our interest is material self-interest; thus ensuring people believe themselves to be independent individuals competing for their very own self-benefit.  Likely in an effort to be accepted in capitalist society, we conform and unknowingly cooperate in making our world a dog-eat-dog world.

If we fully grasp the notion that behavior is context-based, then we could understand that our choices of how to live as persons in a society are greatly influenced by what the values and norms that society tacitly advocates and enables. That is to say, people are far less likely to come to understand their humanness and the commonality in their shared humanity when living in a society/culture with a mechanistic materialistic self-interest-based system of orientation such as capitalism—individualism predominates. 

Being Sold-Down-The-River

The fact that we live in such a context and behave in self-interested ways is not confirming evidence of the validity of this premise but rather evidence of our adaptation to the societal requirements in which we live (or is it operant conditioning, where our very human need to be accepted, to fit in is leveraged?). Accordingly we are tacitly taught that if we work hard—providing our labor—we will realize capitalism’s promise of wealth. Of course capitalism does create wealth, but only for a few.  It is like a loaded die or a slot machine, where the chance of winning is stacked against us.

The pursuit of wealth accumulation has led us to become a profit seeking society and, inevitably a life destroying society. With profit as the basis and measure of rightness of decisions, the vast majority of decisions by those in authority—captains of business/industry and elected officials–who impact the lives of so many people are so guide.  Accordingly, inner-value as persons do not matter, but rather people’s service to things of outer-value/material value is all that matters!  Essentially casting people as instruments for use to this end. It is a system requiring subservience of labor/people to capital/things. That is to say, what happens to people is of less importance than what happens to profit. 

How many among the business-minded advance ideas for tweaking or fixing the system and how many are challenging the very aim of the capitalist system? Doing the latter essentially acknowledges events emerge from the system requiring a change of the system and not merely a change in the system. We desperately need the latter, not the former! 

Changing the Intent Changes the System

A system is determined by its intent.  Capitalism’s intent is (private) profit and wealth accumulation.  Given the escalated commitment—a.k.a. addiction—to profit and its maximization, we likely can’t expect those in authority currently benefiting from this system to change it. This would take moral strength, courage, and a deep realization/understanding of our shared humanity—a rarity! 

Consider this: If I don’t know about the ill-effects of an action then what happens as a result of taking that action can be cast as a mistake or an unintentional accident. However, if I know the ill-effects of my decision to act and I choose to act (anyway) then what happens is no longer an unintentional accident but willfully harmful behavior.  By extension, what may have been a mistake in the actions taken in the 18th (or even the 19th) century, is today willfully harmful behavior.  Think: Tobacco industry and lung cancer; Oil industry and climate change; Agribusiness industry (not farmers) and destruction of healthy environment/biodiversity; Health Insurance industry with health services restricted or denied.  It sure seems as though capitalism opposes life in advocating for the primacy of profit.  If you doubt this, just from the above short list (to which more can be added) there was/is an unwillingness, if not resistance, for what is unmistakably needed life-saving action by the captains of these industries! Today the captains of industry don’t/won’t acknowledge the willfully harmful actions—which is tantamount to saying, look how much profit has been made, it can’t be wrong!

As we, especially those in authority, continue to adhere to the requirements of capitalism in structuring life in society, we become complicit in its life destructive ways.  Destructive to the environment we are so inextricably dependent upon and destructive to the human spirit we share—this complicity is tantamount to suicide.

To change the way the business is conducted requires unlearning and learning followed by a re-thinking of the intent of the business.  Doing so would be a conscious choice and one of moral strength and courage—you could call it authentic leadership.  Not doing so would be submitting to habits of thought and allowing the past to overtake the future, in light of what is now known about our dynamic interdependencies in life on this planet.

Let’s just give this a little critical thought: Given what we know today about our dynamic interdependence with each other and Nature on this finite planet, with its very specific habitable requirements, what is the likelihood that the capitalist system would be conceptualized and embraced by people as the organizing system for a viable and joyful life in society on this planet?   

A Fundamental

As human beings we share the very same fundamental needs/interests–that of the will to live and to realize our human potential, which involves learning how to cooperate and co-exist with all that is alive?  Isn’t this needed learning fundamental to us toward being and becoming more of what we are, rather than to accumulate and have more—be more, not have more?  That is, to continue in our existence as persons and to become more of what we potentially are as persons—to fully manifest our better qualities for the benefit of all—and not simply to acquire more stuff!  Shouldn’t this be the aim of a system of economics in service to a society of people, rather than wealth accumulation which can be realized only by a few?  Shouldn’t there be inner-value realized through our work? Shouldn’t we be enabled to develop and derive joy from our work and not just get a paycheck?

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Unfortunately All Too Similar Prognostications

The Doomsday Clock has been recently set at 90-seconds. Why 90-seconds?  Let’s name just a few interrelated reasons: increased probability of nuclear escalation from a Ukraine war that continues without noticeable significant talks for peace; unabated warming of the climate thus diminishing the viability of a life on this planet; continued loss of biodiversity; continuing  pollution of air and water; disregarding the need to mitigate the emergence of infectious diseases such as COVID-19.  As Rachel Bronson, Ph.D. (president and CEO, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists) said: “We are living in a time of unprecedented danger, and the Doomsday Clock time reflects that reality. 90 seconds to midnight is the closest the Clock has ever been set to midnight, and it’s a decision our experts do not take lightly.”

Yet, given this frank reality, few have been paying attention. Could it be that people are so consumed by the rat race (possibly even addicted?), in the day-to-day getting and spending to meet their basic needs?

Humans aren’t inherently consumed by or addicted to things, rather such behavior is a (tacitly) learned behavior in relation to that thing.  It is learned behavior through constant practice/experience—habitual behavior.  The constant practice and experience of capitalism has by design made for an un-attentive, if not apathetic, citizenry.  Most all industrialized societies are in different degrees capitalistic.

In the U.S., essentially since the early 70’s–following the blueprint put forth in the Powell Memo—the captains of business & industry (a.k.a. professional management class, the business-minded class) have successfully captured (and defunded) the public sphere. Effectually, making the political class a class of business-minded sycophants, turning main stream news and healthcare into profit seeking enterprises, remaking public education into a test-taking training space yielding an uncritical thinking citizenry, and turning higher education into an economic hardship for most.  In short, keeping people concerned about meeting their basic human needs—see  so they don’t have time to place focused attention to what’s really happening to them.

Management’s use extrinsic motivation (a.k.a. reward/punishment, operant conditioning) techniques as the way to incite desired behavior among those they have legitimate power/authority over is capturing us as individuals as well.  That is, many of us experiencing extrinsic motivation management practices which Ryan and Deci (2020) found that over time we internalize these extrinsic motivating sources.  The implication of extrinsic motivation becoming internalized is that individuals come to believe that the external sources are internal—that the motivation is coming from within them—when in reality the motivational stimulus is coming from outside of us, thus supplanting the emergence of inherent need for development—we become alienated from our very own humanity.  No wonder so many of us don’t experience the vitalizing spirit and joy from the work we do—and sadly we are unaware as to why.

Having captured society’s institutions, if not much of society itself, capitalism’s intent of wealth accumulation through each atomized individual pursuing unlimited material growth has created a general disregard for life itself.  Business as usual translates into societal suicide. 

It is long overdue that we think critically about what is actually happening and to do what we can to make this world a very human world, and reject the capitalistic “what’s-in-it-for-me-world’.

Unfortunately, the vast majority of people aren’t even paying attention or capable of thinking critically. For them the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists is no different than the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club. 

Reference

Ryan, R.M. & Deci, E.L. (2020). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation from a self-determination theory perspective: Definitions, theory, practices and future directions. Contemporary Educational psychology, 61, 1-11.

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It’s About Being Responsible

The intent of this site is to offer an informed perspective on the business of business.  That said, the following, while at first glance might seem to not align, a little further critical thinking places it squarely within the realm of the business of business, more specifically the identification of the responsibility business or more accurately is it a problem of irresponsibility with business as practiced.  

If we continue to ask why, then we often get to the root toward a better understanding.

A Problem 

After a mass shooting event—and there are many each year—the go-to-utterance “our hearts and prayers go out to the families of the victims”, is heard from the public office holders we see at the other end of the camera.  But then, without missing a beat, their go-to-response to the shooting in the moment they unflinchingly offer their questions of exploration into why this particular tragic event, placing the sole blame on the shooter.  It is the mass shooting version of pilot error, disregarding the entire system facilitating it happening.

Mass killing-by-gun happens so often it is endemic in the U.S.—no other industrialized country comes close!  The U.S. presents the context (a.k.a. system). No, the U.S. doesn’t have a higher incidence of mental illness but the U.S. does have a higher market penetration of gun sales/ownership.  Moreover research has shown that most people with mental illness are not violent and so the link between mental illness and mass shooters is a weak one at best—far more other factors are involved.

The U.S. has the highest per capital firearm ownership in the world.  A PEW Research Center survey found thirty-two percent of U.S. adults are gun owners, yet the number of guns per 100 people is 120—a little over one gun for every person.  Clearly, gun ownership in the U.S. is highly concentrated within a segment of the population.  What a profitable business strategy, getting your customers to buy more of your stuff—now that’s customer loyalty!

Why?

Why do these mass killings continue to happen?  As noted above, the avoidance tactic of placing focus solely on the specific shooter in moment,  diverts attention and effort away from actually understanding the facilitating system that makes it possible, if not probable.  With each individual presenting his unique story, we never really get to understanding the epidemic of mass shootings and gun violence in general.  Yet, increasing the number of guns in the mix by arming teachers, resource officers and additional police presence are offered as the solution.  This will likely increase gun sales, but it doesn’t get at the root.

So, the story line is that there is not enough political will (a.k.a. moral courage) to stop it–to make it so that he can’t or is far less likely to happen!  

Why?

What’s influencing the political will?  Agency theory: Industry money flowing to elected officials with authority over policy transforms elected officials from agents of the public (i.e. care and concern for people’s well-being) to agents of the industry (i.e. care and concern for an industry’s profit ).  

Why?

Why the change in agency? There is just too much money to be had from those in pursuit of profit through growth in market penetration.  We mustn’t forget, how much money one accumulates (a.k.a. wealth) is the measure of success in capitalist society. There is little to be had in caring for peoples’ well-being and a boat load to be had in facilitating the intent of business.

Why?

Why is this continuing to happen?  

The simplest, logical and most obvious answer is because they can: that is to say, the system is facilitating industry, political officials—as well as shooters—so they can?

It’s just business (ah hum, ‘what’s in-it-for-me’), nothing personal!  

The Overarching Question

Since the above applies to all types of industry—all industries have lobbyists—we must ask, what is the meaning of corporate social responsibility when the intent of business is the maximization of short-term profit?  In effect, with the corporate intent not encompassing responsibility to society—actually running counter to it—then corporate social responsibility is an oxymoron. To the business minded a society (of people) is a resource for exploitation, not a responsibility—no different than any and all other resources (think Nature)!  

So here is something to think about: Should business/industry adapt to and meet the needs of people in society or should people in society adapt to and meet the needs of business/industry?

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Wrong-headed Decisions

In regard to the health and well-being of society, most decisions made by those in both politics and business are wrong-headed (self-serving) decisions. A narrow focus of attention can’t help but to lead to far too many unintended consequences!

Examples are everywhere and emerge almost daily—in regard to healthcare, climate crisis, education, economy, etc.  Let’s look at just one: the current rise in consumer prices (a.k.a. inflation). Evidence shows that the vast majority of large corporations—those providing products and services to people in society—are realizing remarkable increased profit while at the same time consumers are finding meeting basic needs is costing more. Application of a little logic leads one to conclude that the large gains in profit are the result of increased prices.  Moreover, as Dean Baker’s analysis shows, with a declining wage share of corporate income inflation can’t logically be influenced by wage growth. 

Corporations are profit maximizing entities—the intent of business—and thus it is the primary reason why corporations increase the price of their products and services.  You can rest assured, that the business-minded understand this relationship between prices and profit quite well!  

So what has the political class decided to do in the face of this inflation?  Raise interest rates.  Why? It gives the impression of doing something without (actually) doing anything to address the problem. It is a decision that preserves profit making for corporations while intensifying the negative impact of higher prices on the public. Let’s not forget that price is not automatically/mysteriously set by some dynamic in the ether, but rather by people in the corporations—that is, the corporate decision-makers.

Accordingly, the malarkey unquestioned by the press and offered to the general public is that the reason there is inflation is that demand is too high and so there is a need to place downward pressure on demand.  So who winds up paying for this price hiking profit maximizing scheme (a.k.a. profiteering)?  The consuming public, who repeatedly pays—first for having basic needs (like the demand for food, shelter/housing, transportation to get to work, etc.) and in turn for continuing in seeking to satisfy these basic needs.

Moreover, there is little indication that the cost to consumers informs decisions and that the health and well-being of society is a concern. There is absolutely no evidence supporting the notion that these decision-makers are thinking critically; since doing so would necessarily mean that they’ve considered and assessed a wide range of perspectives.  But to the contrary, in essence, the decision-makers are saying to the general public, it sucks to be you!

What are we to do?  

There are two options:
1) Change minds of the decision-makers
2) Change the decision-makers

The first option is to provide the learning experiences that would change the thinking, knowledge, understanding and values held in the minds of the decision-makers. This of course will only be effective if the mind of the decision-maker is open to learning things that challenge, if not run counter to, the beliefs they’ve long held.  How do you change the mind of someone whose career success depends on no such change happening?

The second option is to replace the decision-makers with decision-makers who are of a different mind. That is, replace a mechanistic material-based minded person with a living system people-caring minded person. Unfortunately, there are so few of these both critical and systems thinking people.  Moreover,  those of such a mind likely have very little interest in business school and/or have a slim chance of rising in the hierarchy—perhaps this is why there are so few people of such minds in business, or politics for that matter.  

Correspondingly, in America’s two-party political system, wherein each party is beholden to their very own group of oligarchs, realizing such a replacement among the political class is very near impossible.  Why is it that a politician espousing business needs is applauded while a politician supporting people’s needs is disparaged and scoffed at?  

I repeat: A narrow focus of attention can’t help but to lead to far too many unintended consequences!

If only people understood!So, what might be a third option?  Could it be that we, the people, need to learn, to think critically?  

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Thought and Intent

Upon watching an interview with Alex Gibney about his latest documentary, “The Crime of the Century”, which presents the fraudulent behavior of the pharmaceutical industry in selling harmful drugs, namely OxyContin.  But beyond this the pharmaceutical industry (a.k.a. Big Pharma) is keeping their hold on Covid-19 vaccine patent protection (a.k.a. profit generator) to the detriment of (desperately) needed Covid-19 global vaccine manufacturing/distribution as well as diagnostics and oxygen.  

Yet, I found myself saying wait, wait this is not the only noteworthy crime.  In fact it is but one of many perpetrated upon people of society by industry, all in the name of profit. Here is a list of just a few:  

  • Tobacco industry

Tobacco has killed and continues to kill people

  • Automobile Industry

Multiple settlements  

  • Chemical industry

Forever chemicals have killed and continue to kill people

  • Pharmaceutical Industry

OxyContin is addictive and has killed and continues to kill people

  • Big Tech (Media) Industry

Disseminating public health misinformation has killed and continues to kill people

  • Fossil Fuel Industry 

Burning of fossil fuels has killed and continues to kill by destroying the life supporting environment—water, air, soil, climate–thus making life on earth uninhabitable

It should be noted that, in each case, the potential harm to people was known, so these are probably not from missteps/mistakes but reflect conscious decisions in support of a corporate profit goal absent of any concern for collateral damage/external cost. What’s operative in regard to the conduct of business is external (societal) cost or collateral damage and the internal private profit—the former doesn’t show up on the balance sheet.  

Corporations, in these industries, are often fined– which generally is a very small fraction of the realized profit—thus giving the appearance of justice served but (usually) without having to admit wrong doing or responsibility. Case in point, to put an end to lawsuits J & J and its distributors settled to pay $26 billion as a result of their part in the opioid crisis—a relatively small cost of doing business.  Moreover, to my knowledge, no one in authority within the companies in these industries has been convicted (let alone indicted) due to the criminality of their decisions. 

On the basis of the sheer number of lives harmed or killed, it seems the fossil fuel Industry is in the lead for causing The Crime of the Century (if not in the history of humankind, spanning both the 20th and 21st centuries).  As reported here, between 2015 and 2019 the 5 biggest fossil fuel companies spent at least $1bn in lobbying efforts denying the existence of climate change and investigations showed these companies knew for decades about the causal link between their products and climate change. 

What’s the Commonality?

It appears, crime does pay if you do it through the auspices of a capitalist corporation. The communality lies in the fact that each are grounded in and are practitioners of capitalism. The corporations are doing what is required: Each is seeking to increase/maximize their profit absent of responsibility for external costs. As previously explained here and even here, capitalism has no grounding in morality.  Hence if we are waiting and hoping for those in authority within these corporations (a.k.a. leaders) to demonstrate sound moral judgment, we’ll be waiting a very long time.  Such action requires a very different mindset than that of the current business-minded who occupy the C-suite. 

We do shape the leaders we get—leaders emerge out of our societal values in practice.  Hence the above list!

We Participate in the Reality We Experience

Unless the system changes, the list will grow–nothing will change.  To change of the system requires us to change what we actually care about—change what we think about and what matters–and with it we’ll change the intent of business and the experiences provided.

“For both the rich and the poor, life is dominated by an ever growing current of problems, most of which seem to have no real and lasting solution. Clearly we have not touched the deeper causes of our troubles…the ultimate source of all these problems is in thought itself, the very thing of which our civilization is most proud, and therefore the one thing that is “hidden” because of our failure seriously to engage with its actual working in our own individual lives and in the life of society.” 
― David Bohm

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On Management in Crisis

In these times where the emergence of crises is seemingly unending, it might be instructive to step out of the chaos, just for a moment, to critically think about and reflect upon what we’ve experienced for a good number of years in organizations, institutions and society in regard to the phenomenon we call management.  I purposefully avoid the use of the term leadership here simply because it is so misunderstood and too often self-ascribed in an attempt to elevate status. We’ll keep to the use of the term management consistent with that found in W. Edwards Deming’s Out of the Crisis, where he concluded, management is the problem! Continue reading →

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Who’s for Business?

It seems opposition to proposals intended to help the greater mass of people, such as providing a livable wage or ensuring healthcare for all or having regulations that ensure a healthy and safe environment, quite often is that they would not be good for business. It does seem that business is opposed to being helpful to people in society, which is consistent with Milton Friedman’s (neoliberal) contention that a business enterprise has no responsibility apart from maximizing profit and shareholder value (over the next quarter).

 

So, who’s for business? Continue reading →

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Results Obsessed

We appear to be obsessed with results (further explained here)—the outcome of our activities—while we generally give little attention to the activity itself. Why? Continue reading →