[governance] corporates and ethics

[parminder]

http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/jul/06/we-shouldnt-expect-facebook-to-behave-ethically?CMP=fb_gu

"Besides, the idea that corporations might behave ethically is as absurd 
as the proposition that cats should respect the rights of small mammals. 
Cats do what cats do: kill other creatures. Corporations do what 
corporations do: maximise revenues and shareholder value and stay within 
the law. Facebook may be on the extreme end of corporate sociopathy, but 
really it's just the exception that proves the rule."

(quote ends)

Well, if I had said these sentences, there would have been an immediate 
multistakeholder (MS) condemnation, for not conforming to the 
multi-stakeholder spirit!

It is these corporations that are to sought to be given special 
political rights by the 'equal footing' MS brigade, to be on the policy 
making table and making political decisions, for all of us. ...  The US 
public, and its civil society organisations, are still reeling under the 
impact of the US court ruling to allow unlimited corporate contribution 
to campaign financing, on the basis of a novel political construction 
that corporates have the right to freedom of expression, which cannot be 
diluted under the first amendment. This judgement, many in the US and 
abroad feel, is having the impact of spinning US politics so much away 
from its democratic foundation that soon it may be difficult to consider 
US as a really working democracy.

But that 'novel political construction' of allowing corporates to have 
human rights was nothing. The 'equal footing' MSists go much much 
further; they want corporates to have voting rights and decision making 
powers for public policy matters. The rest of world has simply not waken 
up to this demon, which is making slow but serious progress, although 
somewhat clandestinely, against the values and institutions of democracy.

parminder


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