On 7 Dec 99, at 20:34, Brian Gordon wrote:
> I really don't think that the amount of money an individual or
> organization earns is an accurate measure of the contribution made.
I had asked, in a message Richard decided not to distribute, for us to try
to put forth our assumptions and explain the meanings of what we are
talking about. In this case it would be helpful if the term "contribution
made" could be clarified.
>Perhaps over the very long term, meaning many decades, it may be a
>valuable measure, I don't know. Certainly, measuring your self-worth by
>how much money you earn is not healthy - whether you earn a great deal or
>very little.
I agree, but I'm confused. I understood you to be talking about
ORGANIZATIONS and the profit motive, and now seem to be talking about
money and meaning for individuals (I agree with you on the latter).
> Also, I think there are many organizations and people that
> have made ENORMOUS amounts of money while actually degrading humanity. The
> Nazis, Michael Milliken (junk-bond king), and so on. How much good one
> does for society is not measurable by your income, though it may be an
> accurate value of the value that society places on you (professional
> athletes).
Again, what set of values do you bring to the business world? Do you
expect, or want organizations to act according to contributions to
society? If so, how does that balance with profit issues?
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