₦airaland Forum

Ethics In Capitalism? Are Those 2 Mutually Exclusive And Contradictory?

At work, several of my co-workers lashed out at Walmart for what they regarded as their unfair business practises. Their allegations, substaniated by a former walmart employee was that the presence of Walmart devalues the networth of homes in the surrounding areas, and more than a few accused them of unethical business practises.

The unethical business practises, that my mates levelled against Walmart was their decision of offering very low prices on their goods, thereby, attracting hordes of customers, and putting mom and pops businesses at peril. Alternatively, these medium scale businesses could follow suit by lowering their prices, to preempt the defection of their long time customers to walmart, or just pack up. I listened to them, and defended the corporation, insisting that though I wasnt a fan of capitalism, however, who am I to call the shots, when the country, USA is a capitalistic society. Capitalism, from the outside, may be about greed, profit, at all cost, be it laying off workers, outsourcing jobs, for a huge return, at a cheaper rate, or the willingness to sell the enterprise to the highest bidder.

I did not have any supporter, for I was accused of defending a corporation. One of the ladies, even stated that she shuns shopping at Gap, and other stores with questionable business practises. But what can we do? As my co-workers remarked, Walmart at times, do send their workers to rival business stores, to check on the prices of their inventory and then, would mark down their prices in order to attract more customers. As such, there is a bidding war between the rival industries, but can we, the consumers complain, when we are getting a fair deal? Can the community, complain, when they are rewarded with hefty property taxes from these corporations?

The casualties are the struggling businesses, the mom and pops store, with no resources to survive. But seriously, does capitalism really give a hoot about them? When we hear of ethics in capitalism, does it appear contradictory to you, or do you feel that both of them can go hand in hand? How can ethics in this capitalistic society be addressed, (and I am sure, it has been an issue with the Enron debacle), when companies are outsourcing their jobs, rewarding the head honchos with a 7 figure salary, while laying off workers? Shouldnt they be all lumped together, or seriously, if ethics in businesses was addressed, does the notion, "Fighting squarely with your rivals" feature in such debates? I think ethics itself in a capitalistic society is at best, contradictory. What do you think?

Capitalism encourages competition and eliminates mediocrity in the business trade. For how long it will be around mother earth, I dont know, but I dont see it disappearing anytime soon.

How cool is it that Mcdonalds is establishing a franchise in Naija? The health risks associated with eating their burgers, vis a vis, high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity is not, I repeat, is not worth it. We should not embrace every Western product. I

Ironically, while some people are comfortable with the expected arrival of Macdonalds at Tinapa, the health department in the USA is excoriating our Nigerian dishes like palmoil, garri, fufu, because they are fattening, has high cholesterol and also contains transfat. I wish the Health department in Nigeria would also issue out a warning to its citizens, not as a punitive measure against the US government, but to reduce the cases of diabetes and other risk that comes with consuming mickeedee.

http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0042/0042_01.asp

Click on that link to read about the islamic religion.

God is wonderful, Amen. Don't forget to thank Him daily.

You are welcome@Syrup.

They are the root of the problem in the architectural arena, since, they are assigned the task of paving roads and erecting structures. That's their department. If a building collapses in Nigeria, are you going to blame the government for an assignment they did not physically undertake? Sure, they could hire dependable architects, but the proof of the pudding is in eating it.

Below is the link that I found that contains some details about the NIV. Please scroll below the link and you will see it.

http://www.av1611.org/kjv/nivname.html

http://www.jesus-is-lord.com/

http://www.bloomsburgbaptistchurch.net/NIV.html

Another reason why I like the King James Version is the REVERENCE that is accorded God in the Holy Bible, by capitalizing His Name, even in the Pronoun tense.

Contractors may not necessarily be the root of the problem, but they are part of the cabal that has led to the descent of Nigeria into the pit. They are notorious for shoddy jobs in Nigeria, some of them would just pour cement and sand, water and some other stuff, and pave the roads. During the rainy season, the roads get flooded, and now, you are stating that they are not the root of the problem? If they cant build good roads in Naija, how can they be entrusted in erecting skyscrappers that would rival that of Manilla.

Like I wrote earlier, all hope is not lost.

Yeah, its as simple as ABC, until you factor in contractors doing a shoddy job, or contract money not being paid, thus leaving an elephant project abandoned. Oh, you should remember that every leader from Nigeria wont be willing to further the project of their predecessor, but in a bid to 'make a name for themselves' would embark on a new project, thus abandoning the previous projects for good.

All hope is not lost sha!!!

I like King James Version all the way!!!. I have read from other websites that some of this new Bible editions have edited words from the original King James Version. If there is one Holy Bible version that I would recommend, go with King James Version.

Good that you took the high road@linda. Never worth it to bear grudges. It only transforms you into a bitter person, that would destroy your soul. Life goes on as usual. Take care.

Le Phillipe, in your dreams

Iydagirl, comparison is blasphemous.

I think EFCC probing Obasanjo is a joke, to 'trick' us into believing that there are not leaving any stones unturned in their quest to combat corruption. My reservations may be wrong, but at the same time, I really can't fault EFCC. For the first time or so, corrupt officials have now been given a face by EFCC

17k a month amounts to a little over 200k a year. Multiply that with 20 years and you are paying more than 4 million Naira a year. That's quite steep, but most banks are all about making money. That is why, I wont criticize those whose income in the village can only net them a mud house. A man's house is his castle.

P/S: I dont know Akpabuyo, but if your house is on Atimbo lane, I know the place, because my cousins lived there at one point. Its very close to the airport.

This new precedent has given credibility to EFCC

Normal, if you are breastfeeding your child. I read it might take upto six months before your period arrives. On the other hand, if you were not breastfeeding, your period can appear as early as 3-4 weeks. Still, check on your gynaecologist for more information.

Manilla is a city of contrasts, gorgeous skyline riddled with poverty and and corruption.

Oya, where my award for this "new ground breaking trend" I don set by saying so 2x?

I love my country, I no go lie.

Londoncool, details please. Where is the new housing estate in Calabar? I know one very close to Marian Road in Calabar. My cousins lived there.

Time to get rid of those arabic inscription was way overdue.

Why do some people harbor negative/pessimistic views about anything Nigerian? Nollywood, while not in the league with Hollywood is gaining momentum. There is a guy from Zaire/Congo who likes our Nigerian movies, and the industry is experiencing a brisk business in other parts of Africa, I would think. Its gained popularity. Lets give them time to remedy their shortcomings. Rome was not built in a day.

Does anybody know the cost involved in setting up a cybercafe in Naija? How lucrative is the project? 100 Naira an hour with just 30 computers would average about 20 thousand naira a a day, and 400 thousand naira a month in 20 days. The rest of the days, I would just call off, or have an assistant manage the biz for me.

My question is this, what happens to our next generation? It sort of galls me when a child tells me that they are not from Nigeria, because they were born in America. I was telling my little cousin that she needs to visit Nigeria, but she told me that Nigeria was not her country, even though her parents are from there. She dislikes Nigeria, should I add, with a passion. So, that is another generation lost in America.

I also think of my ancestral land in Nigeria, my birthright, bequeathed to me by my father, from the sweat of his face and the heritage of his ancestors. Would I just relinquish my birthright to live in yankee? What of the future generations who would be keen on exploring their fatherland, would they be treated like strangers, or forced to apply for a visa, to visit their ancestral land? What of those with a strong aversion to Nigeria because of some negative news occuring in the country?

And even if you choose to abandon your father's land (I mean plot of land, or estate) to come to yankee, how certain are you that strangers wont take over the land, and then 'bill' your descendancts, assuming they choose to settle back home? Those are weighty matters to think of.

How do you manage to do so? I mean, working, family and all that stuff. I used to go to Stanford to read Nigerian periodicals, but I havent been there in a while. I know another place to gather Nigerian news is at Nigerian parties.