But they are approaching it from the standpoint of rules and a framework. The rules are called ethics and the framework is society. Laws and government regulati

But they are approaching it from the standpoint of rules and a framework. The rules are called ethics and the framework is society. Laws and government regulations are a different set of rules, and much newer and more transient. What should be guiding all of us, I hope -- regardless of the current state of legal rules & regulations -- is whether something is ethical and what the impact is on society. By some standards, what hedge funds are doing is unethical or parasitic, and may in fact be a chaotic force which on the net creates more hardship than benefit to most of society. Thus, the details of whether they are currently legal or not is not important, in comparison. We can change laws to better reflect our ethics and what we think is best for society. So talking about social value is precisely and massively relevant: it's one of the main reasons we have laws. And it's quite possible that hedge funds are exploiting a temporary state of affairs where technology and the legal context allow them to do certain activities, and they'll continue to exploit until and unless we make changes to their environment.