Well, it can be a cynical view and a correct view at the same time. I do question the black and whiteness of the comment. Also, what do you mean by "friend"?

Well, it can be a cynical view and a correct view at the same time. I do question the black and whiteness of the comment. Also, what do you mean by "friend"? An (also cynical) argument could be made that even your actual friends are out to advance their own interests first, and are using you to those ends. A more realistic and useful statement might be that for-profit companies lie on a spectrum -- none are purely "good" and none are purely "evil." I imagine that you can probably substitute "for-profit companies" with "humans and human run organizations" and it would still be true.