Re: Survivor

[Jim Devine <jdevine@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Louis wrote:
>  I told her that the landlord seemed stupid to be so greedy. If he had
> simply proposed a rise in rents that would have increased his profits,
> while leaving nobody in danger of eviction, then everybody would have
> been spared needless expenses and aggravation.
>
> Her response startled me. She said that "He needs to make money. He is in
> business." This despite the fact that she was one of the people who simply
> could not afford to live there...

But isn't she right, in the sense that the societal nature of capitalism
drives people to make as much profit as possible, no matter what the cost
to others?

Maybe your point made sense in terms of long-term profit maximization, but
at this point in history, capitalism is very short-term in orientation (at
least in the US), with companies having to show a profit every quarter....

Jim Devine jdevine@xxxxxxx &  http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~jdevine