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Criminal business is the most profitable business and "unethical" just means "white collar crime". If the law allowed drug trafficking and kidnappings, the bigg

by akomtu 5y ago

Criminal business is the most profitable business and "unethical" just means "white collar crime". If the law allowed drug trafficking and kidnappings, the biggest corp in the US would be a drug cartel and the only reason they are outlawed is because even people at the top agree that such cartels are bad. Things are different for white collar crime: most people believe that its OK to do shady things if nobody's obviously hurt. This is why senators brazengly trade stocks influenced by the laws they pass. They don't believe its a crime. So unsurprisingly, the biggest corps in the US exploit this weakness at scale. It may take centuries before the collective agreement will equate such business practices with drug cartels.

bostik 5y ago
> If the law allowed drug trafficking and kidnappings, the biggest corp [anywhere] would be ... History proves you right. The entire British empire, a fabulously wealthy system, was founded on slave trade (think: kidnapping, trafficking) and when that became too risky to maintain either the trade or profit margins, they moved over to global drug trade. The opium wars.
- agumonkey 5y ago
  this has a few diagrams https://historyindoors.co.uk/britains-dark-past-the-atrocities-of-the-british-empire-and-its-legacy-today/ https://historyindoors.co.uk/britains-dark-past-the-atrociti... some are telling
Cederfjard 5y ago
> the biggest corp in the US would be a drug cartel This is besides the point you’re making, but I disagree with this. Disregarding the ones who make drugs for medical use, we already have recreational drug companies operating legally, namely those selling alcohol and tobacco (and coffee I guess). They are not the biggest corporations in the US (although some are still huge and powerful, of course). The reason it’s currently so insanely profitable dealing in some of the other drugs is their prohibition, which makes prices skyrocket (and of course, when you’re already on the wrong side of the law, you might as well cut corners and utilize harmful practices to the extreme, even further increasing the profits).

by akomtu 5y ago

bostik 5y ago

> If the law allowed drug trafficking and kidnappings, the biggest corp [anywhere] would be ... History proves you right. The entire British empire, a fabulously wealthy system, was founded on slave trade (think: kidnapping, trafficking) and when that became too risky to maintain either the trade or profit margins, they moved over to global drug trade. The opium wars.

agumonkey 5y ago
this has a few diagrams https://historyindoors.co.uk/britains-dark-past-the-atrocities-of-the-british-empire-and-its-legacy-today/ https://historyindoors.co.uk/britains-dark-past-the-atrociti... some are telling

Cederfjard 5y ago

> the biggest corp in the US would be a drug cartel This is besides the point you’re making, but I disagree with this. Disregarding the ones who make drugs for medical use, we already have recreational drug companies operating legally, namely those selling alcohol and tobacco (and coffee I guess). They are not the biggest corporations in the US (although some are still huge and powerful, of course). The reason it’s currently so insanely profitable dealing in some of the other drugs is their prohibition, which makes prices skyrocket (and of course, when you’re already on the wrong side of the law, you might as well cut corners and utilize harmful practices to the extreme, even further increasing the profits).