'profit motive' is a hilarious euphemism when you think about it. the language of crime used in benignity. it got me thinking about other states of being for profit. the motive, the means, the opportunity, and the alibi
incentive to turn a good idea into a profitable one assumes that profit can be made kindly. just because two entities both benefit from a transaction, one in value and one in service, doesn't mean the third entity those people are operating allegedly for is in on the deal.
life-saving products created under competition with the goal of reaping value is ghoulish. to patent life-saving medicine is to patent the sky, to paraphrase jonas salk
but since companies exist to generate profit, or dragon hordes in the case of 'non-profits', the only interaction they can have with the world is transaction
the motive to care is profit. the means are through production and are as of yet unseized (but maybe we're getting there?). the opportunity is monopoly.
so what's the alibi? where were the billionaires during the profit? why, they were "saving the world", of course.
of course.
it's amazing the crimes you can get away with when 'saving the world'! being on the side of 'humanity' suggests all profits are simply a casualty in progress, financing an ephemeral future return of peace, of cured disease or famine. (for people who can afford your "help".)
the rich aren't saving humanity. just the profitable humans.
when these billionaires are dead and gone, their contributions will persist in name. in brand, in power, and in the future returns of only their successors.
and humanity will still be needing saving, won't it? solving problems in the pursuit of profit means problems must never be truly solved. a cure can be sold, but prevention of the cause must come at enough of a premium to justify losing future returns.
the more dangerous the threat, the more profitable it has to be to solve. saving the world is expensive after all, so pay up; it's collecting overdue library fees from survivors of alexandria.
"your honor, i couldn't possibly have been profiteering from human suffering- i was saving the world at the time!"
They are saving the world from being equally shared and saving it aside like a tasty morsel.
They are saving it aside for themselves, not for the rest of us. Only the rich get to be people, to be individuals.
