Do corporations have conflicting interests with the populace? Why or why not?

Question

A politically charged question, no?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston_Tea_Party

woo wee. I guess it was politically charged.

Answer 1

we get the impression every day that a businesses bottom like is make money and screw the public, but a smart company knows that it can only succeed by being smart, creative and compassionate. new deal democrat franklin roosevelt said " the business of america is business". it was business that got america out of the depression ( and the public's lack of investing knowledge that largely caused it) but it's also the PUBLIC that needs to hold corporations responsible for what they do. it's also important that all of us understand how to invest so that when the inevitable firing comes we have a leg to stand on. for every enron there's a small business that is keeping ten or more people employed in it's own neighborhood.these are the ones that need to get the word out.

Vin

Answer 2

Sometimes yes, sometimes no.

Many on the left demonize corporations (mostly the large ones). Like any entity, there are good ones and bad ones (e.g. Enron) which become so based on their leadership. By and large, corporations aren't inherently bad-- they provide tons of job, in many cases good salaries and benefits and many do care about their communities and their image (brand, product and otherwise). There are times when there are conflicing interests... Businesses must balance customer, shareholder and employee concerns and sometimes one or more of those stakeholders get the short end of the stick. Businesses that have poor practices or leaders can also conflict with public interests around community effects - e.g. polution, layoffs, infrastructure, tax benefits.

Ultimately, we need businesses large and small to drive the economy. We can't all work for the government--

Answer 3

A politically charged question? Yes.

Corporations are dependent on me and you and people like us to purchase their products or services. They work hard and spend a lot of money on corporate image enhancement - i.e. they want us to like them.
Good examples are the WalMart adds that show how concerned and involved they are with the communities they build their stores in.

The very fact that they have to do this, in my opinion, raises a red flag concerning their credibility. If it wasn't for the bad publicity they garner, (outsourcing, utilizing cheap, foreign labor over US workers, etc.) they wouldn't have the need to blow their own horn, would they?

It is conflicting interests in the sense that they are smart enough to know that if I don't have any discretionary income, I'm not going to buy that big screen TV from them - and, at the same time, they don't want to be the entity that pays the wages that will allow me to buy that big screen.

mmmmm, that's a catch 22 for 'em, eh?

Answer 4

Yes, corporate interests do conflict with the interests of the populace.

The reasons are actually quite simple and normal in a capitalist economic structure. Corporations have no incentive to keep the populace happy... they feel that is the responsibility of the government.

In reality, corporations get more corporate welfare by far than all the welfare recipients total.

Corporations only incentive to succeed is to profit as much as possible by obtaining their bottom line in order to benefit their share holders.

Answer 5

Corporations first priority is profit for its owners / shareholders, which means minimizing expenses while increasing revenue.
Corporations , as a virtual entity, have no direct sense of ethics, just laws, to regulate their behaviour.
Big corporations have been able to pay for lawyers and lobbyiis to change laws in their benefit.
the populace have not the budget or the motivation to pay for lobbyists to make laws for their benefit, they depend on the people they elect to do that for them and to act in their interest.
The poulace is also not as educated and/or informed as the big corporations and the people that run and staff them , this is because the educated, have educated themselves to be a part of a firm or corporation , work for it in return for a salary.

Answer 6

Ah... yea, they want to get cheap labor and make lots of money.
Most people work for wages. The Republicans don't want you to know that they are for the big corportions.

Answer 7

They are if you step on their residual bottom line. Cheap labor is essential to the bottom line.

Answer 8

Of course they do , they are all about profit . anyhow , anyway they can make it .