Web search firm Google - whose motto is (apparently) "don't be evil" - is setting up a subsidiary dedicated to doing good.

Morningstar – whose motto is (obviously) "don't be stupid, corporations are bound by law to make a profit for their shareholders, this is obviously a scam" – is wondering what shareholder-friendly acts of "good" will come from this marriage of marketing and tax evasion.


Can good deeds return a healthy investment, or is altruism by its very nature unprofitable?









PS
All three of these investments will aid the American institutions mentioned far more than the locals. All three projects permit the rapid expansion of international (read: USA) trade in these areas, enslaving the nations further beyond the insanely large loans deliberately imposed by the IMF and WB. When evil is perceived to be good, it is indeed the ultimate victory for evil...

That depends on whether you mean "altruism" or altruism.

Fake altruism is extremely profitable. Aside from giving to organizations that directly benefit the corporation, it's a great way to swindle consumers. Most people know jack about where that money is going and what it's doing. All they see is, "We're giving money to charities!", so they buy more stuff/services to do their good deed for the day. Companies profit doubly, and they look good doing it.

I don't think it's possible for a business to be altruistic on the same level as an individual. A corporation can't just give money away with no expectation of any returns--they have to have profits or else they go bankrupt. However, I do believe, were some CEO brave and moral enough to undertake the operation, they could create a situation where both the people and the company won.

[quote]All they see is, "We're giving money to charities!", so they buy more stuff/services to do their good deed for the day. Companies profit doubly, and they look good doing it.

Yes they do look good doing it but do they really mean to help or not? I'm sure some corporations do, hopefully.

When people worry about "good" and "evil" instead of things that actually exist, it is indeed the ultimate victory for stupidity...

There are lots of problems with this situation without unnecessarily moralizing it...

Sorry for the tangent, this is a personal pet peeve. Carry on...

Who knows exactly what CEOs and marketing/PR departments are thinking. Some may really want to help people, but they're giving money to organizations that will help the corporations as much as or more than the people--that's highly suspect.

Really, it's not in a corporation's best interest to help people too much. Alleviating major problems such as overpopulation and ignorance, which would ultimately end a lot of things like hunger and lack of housing, is risky. Programs to do this would be a huge money pit for years. The company could easily fold before they saw any returns. Plus, there's no guarantee the new market would ever open to the sponsor corporation. Educated people have a tendency to get uppity, starting their own businesses and researching the places they buy from. Leaving people stupid, letting them reproduce like rabbits, and giving them enough stuff they have just enough money to buy necessities looks much better on a spreadsheet.

"I'm too busy stalking goats to read the context of this statement... As if I have the time to read the fucking title of the post I'm lurking under... Trip-trap-trip-trap... shh! No time for you to listen to me, here comes another goat..."

Beyond the obvious baiting, it is extremely fortunate that you have apparently never encountered evil in your life; long may this be the case. You will recognise it readily enough if it does manifest itself.


As for the alturism of legal entities known as corporations: they have one and only one function - to return a profit for their shareholders. It is in their legal make-up and cannot be circumvented by the humans who run them. Speak to Anita Rodderick about the corrupting effects of turning a business into a corporation on the moral choices available to the directors.

A corporation will be as helpful, community-minded and environmnentally friendly as long as it remains profitable to do so. Beyond that point, we witness the very quiet termination of such projects, usually stalking in the back pages of a boring press-release on a day of high news drama.

The case in point is a good one: the very fact that the behemoth Google is capable of redefining "good" as projects that assist international trade is a joke. The idea that the money being invested is big, and therefore kind, is also a joke: if they didn't pay their gross profits to charity they would be stung for local taxes in excess of the money they are donating. How is starving the local government of cash "good" for local citizens?

If they want to do good, they would buy back their stock and de-list themselves, terminating their corporate status. Only then will they be in a position to attempt truly alturistic projects in my opinion.


This is my personal peeve: that greed is now idolised as good such that to publically suggest that greed is anything other than a virtue is considered evil...

Corporations just want to make money and alot, I'd rather go to a thrift shop and alter the clothes I buy there then buy $50 pants! Everyone wants to lookout for him/herself.

Perhaps that aphorism should read "Every greedy human wants to look out for themselves" as the corporate entity can be driven into self-destruction if the profit margin is correct for the short-term shareholders. Corporations must make a profit by law above and beyond all other concerns, including the survival of the corporation itself.

I personally do not believe that everyone is out for themselves; this sort of bland defeatism is promoted heavily by organisations wanting us to give in and indulge our consumer "desires" and make them richer.

Don't believe the hype, help out in your local community and see the difference. If you like people, volunteer at your local hospital to be a patient contact person or get down to the hospice and see if you can aid people building their lives back together after a stint of homelessness. If you like animals, your local animal shelter needs your support, and if you are a loner sign up for the parks litter picking detail - there is a community niche for everyone!