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Free Market Concerns and Corporate Greed in the 21st Century

Uploaded by jetzzz on Oct 26, 2011

This paper discusses various aspects of social inequalities, including free trade and corporate greed, and further discusses the ideas of Plato, Nietzsche and Marx with regard to class struggle, and how the ruling class became the ruling class.

Political Thought Free Market Concerns and Corporate Greed in the 21st Century

I Introduction

In the latter half of the 20th Century, and particularly in the 1990’s, we have seen an increasing tendency toward the privatization and “marketization” of many facets of our lives. The argument about the unregulated free market has been going on for centuries, with conservatives tending to argue that the free market works and should be left to its own devices; and liberals pointing out that such a “dog-eat-dog” position often means that the very people who should be able to compete are instead forced out of the market. This is perhaps the most basic example of the way in which large economic issues impact society.
The example that most Americans have before them, however, is that of Enron, Worldcom, and other giants of “Corporate America” whose egregious business practices have led to the suffering of the many while a few grew enormously wealthy. The social and economic inequities that result when greed runs rampant, aided by a government that either cannot, or will not, act to curb the excesses, are startling, and can undermine the entire societal structure.
We also see examples of privatization in the suggestion that government programs should be run by private concerns: prisons are already one of the largest growth industries in the United States, and the current Administration is seeking support to privatize Social Security. These ideas are questionable at best, and at worst, are being suggested in order to maximize profits to a few, again at the expense of the many.
This paper will examine the inequities that result when the so-called “free market” is left on its own; it will also examine briefly the type of philosophy that drives people like the Enron executives, and in order to do so, it will look at the writings of Plato, Marx and Nietzsche to see if clues and explanations for today’s behaviors can be found in their writings. It also argues that unbridled greed is vicious; that the government must resume its basic duties and responsibilities toward its poorest citizens; and that Corporate America must be regulated. It also argues that...

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Uploaded by:   jetzzz

Date:   10/26/2011

Category:   Contemporary

Length:   19 pages (4,250 words)

Views:   1500

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