a common sense approach to a liberal world
“There is one and only one social responsibility of business, to use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits”
– Milton Friedman
Sound familiar? This is the thesis the brilliant Milton Friedman put forth in a famous article in the NY Times back in 1970 (he actually published the idea seven years earlier). This quote is widely used and often repeated – many times in ways that challenge or critique his basic assertion.Continue Reading
Yesterday we noted how a corporation is a single legal “person” made up of many people – in many respects not all that different from a single person entity. However, there is a substantial difference that should be addressed regarding corporations and their potential for abuses and wrongdoings. By it’s very nature a large corporation has more power than a small company simply due to the number of individuals – its mass if you will (we could complicate the matter further by looking at types of products dealt with, market position, etc. but let’s keep it simple for purposes of this discussion). As a result a corporation has the power to have a much greater impact than any one individual – for better or for worse. The larger the corporation, the greater the potential all else being equal.
There exists a second layer to this equation as well. Continue Reading
As I was reading another article and the accompanying comments attacking Trump’s tax loss I was struck yet again at the inherent evil many now seem to see in corporations. Corporations get blamed for most societal ills these days – along with government and, of course, Wall Street.
I find this sentiment troubling. Why does it happen and why does it exist?Continue Reading