Oh, you know. Everyone is moaning about gas prices, it's terrible, America sucks. Call the waambulence. I've had arguments about the moral responsibility of the oil companies, and whether we should expect them to self-regulate. My answer is no. I think that to even ask that question is to misunderstand the nature of business, which I admittedly have not studied in any form, we can call it armchair economics. As far as I know, the goal of business is to bring in the greatest possible income, by spending as little as possible. There's no room for morals in that definition. The various people-turned-cogs in the corporate machines get their pats on the back for cutting costs. Which individuals should we ask to sacrifice their employee review in our favor? I know of very few people who would choose the stick over the carrot out of social decency alone, and, of course, none of them would ever be caught working a job that could offer that choice. There's no morals in a business machine just as there's no morals to be found in the mechanisms of an automobile.
The oil company is a lion, whose cage has been left unlocked by an irresponsible administration. We could blame the beast, but I think it's the zookeeper we should be after.
IfI bothered to take a business ethics class I guess I would either feel very sheepish or spend the semester rolling my eyes.
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