| Civilizing Capitalism? Taming Corporate Weasels? Good Luck! (Los Angeles, Ca.)... |
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The Corporation: The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power Joel Bakan 
Rating: 4.5/5 Stars Rank: 8647 (Los Angeles, Ca.) April 27, 2005 - 5.0/5 stars "The Corporation" is one of my dream books come true. It is a well researched bare knuckles expose of the structure and structural defects of the for-profit corporate entity. Prof. Bakan has expertly exposed why corporations are so often seen as parasitic and predatory- like maladjusted children or glitch-ridden robotic programs, set loose like the proverbial bull-in-a-china-shop, trashing anything that gets in the way of their blind, rabid, selfish lust for profit at all costs. One should know, however, that Bakan is not an anti-capitalist zealot. Rather, he only takes issue here with what he sees as the central corporate problem and that is a defective operating blueprint in dire need of a serious, rapid overhaul- top to bottom. He sees the corporate entity as easily brought into conformity with a new civilized operating structure- a structure based on public benefit, responsibility and concern for sustainable resource use, environmental sensitivity and most importantly, a humane and fair distribution of corporate profits. Sounds like a pipe-dream? While I am more skeptical than most about the success probabilities of trying to potty-train irresponsible parasites like the infamous "capitalist-corporate pigs", Bakan certainly appears to understand the fundamental need of corporations and that is: the obsessive, pathological desire to stay in business and keep making money at all costs- even if that means being hemmed into civility for their very survival. And shareholders are well-advised to take note of this, continued stock value depends on sustainable, lawful conduct. With a carrot of continued profits dangling in their sights, and convinced by the success of other corporations that have seen the light and profit in applying sustainable/regenerative practices, it is still a crap-shoot, but Bakan seems to have an abundance of guarded faith that a corporate structural overhaul will save the day. This same guarded optimism is seen in the writings of one of the most famous government and corporate critics of them all, Prof. Noam Chomsky, who also holds no punches when pointing-out the nefarious schemes and skullduggery of corporations and government alike and this can be seen in his book, "Hegemony or survival...", et al. In their book, "Natural Capitalism", authors Lovins and Hawken are very enthusiastic also about the success of those corporations who have made a remarkable turn-around in their refined, socially responsible operating methods and profits are soaring for them. All they needed was a little, OK, a lot of guidance to get on the right track, but their current growth-rate demonstrates that, a) It can be done, and, b) success is the reward for doing the right thing. In his book "The Great Work", Thomas Berry is also onboard with Bakan and Chomsky in pointing out from top to bottom, the defects of current corporate structure along with the environmentally, unsustainable, resource depleting life styles of the general public and does not mince words in chastising this foolhardy, un-Godly dead-end existence, but with an abundance of positive guidance to a more sane relationship with all life. Can corporations change for the good? They must! Their survival, let alone common decency and civility demand it, so here is a simple, but profound ancient Chinese Proverb they can chew on for motivation: "If we do not change our direction, we are likely to end up where we are headed." ...and in this case, that is the chaos of a corporate shark frenzy- and there are no winners there. (Proverb borrowed from Duane Elgin's book, "Promise Ahead"). Corporations are well advised to take seriously Joel Bakan's message and the `profit' in doing so will undoubtedly be rewarding. I highly commend and thank him for this potent piece of work!
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Editorials(3) | Product Info | Product Listings Customer ReviewsThe Corporation: The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power Joel Bakan Customer Review
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