Gainsaying big names?

Is there a place where you are allowed to challenge the opinions of WorldShif celebrities? The very thought is intimidating.

Nevertheless, I have to say it: Putting ones faith in the business world to save the world is a naive illusion. A fairly basic understanding of economic principles would indicate that such hopes are unrealistic.

The business of business is business. That business is to serve society by producing goods and services with optimum efficiency within the constraints imposed by physical and environmental limits of a finite world.

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Comment by Janos Abel on January 3, 2010 at 1:33pm: Hello Robert and Robin,
Thank you for engaging with my blog message. I am suspicious of movements that rely on big names and recognised leaders (the state of the world is due to their failure to influence the course of this ship of humanity).

Enlightened enterprises, yes, provided we deal with the threats posed by unenlightened ones (providing winning examples will not be enough). Part of being "enlightened" includes recognising that the customer base is an important stakeholder in an enterprise alongside the traditional list of workers, owners and investors. This means open accounting.

The claim of finiteness as a cover for all kind of reactionary and non-progressive development. Yes, I think I know what you mean, Robert. Finiteness does not mean scarcity in resources needed in building a Type One Civilisation. However, responsible and optimally efficient use of resources are still required.

On the microeconomic level every business knows that is insane to run a business by eating up capital. On the macroeconomic level this simple fact is simply neglected.

We are happily destroying combustible fossil resources instead of using them as feed stock for producing new materials and synthetic food---where appropriate.

Currently I am trying to evaluate the Declaration and am quite unhappy about Annex 3 with its assertion that population numbers is a major driver of undesirable processes within the human family. On this issue I am with the evolutionists Teillhard and Peter Russell and others---the planet is developing the optimum population needed to form a planetary brain.

I want to ask Laszlo, Attenbourough, Lovelock and like public icons, what they are proposing to do with the five out of every six of us who are deemed to be a burden on the earth's "carrying capacity"?

PS
I tried to join Renaissance2 but I am no longer in business and declined to put in fake details, but I want to echo Robert's view that the context in which the purpose of business is discussed needs to be expanded ("...the purpose of business needs to be given a broadened worldview ...").
In particular, faulty economic theories need to be exposed and discarded because these outdated intellectual constructs drive the powerful industrial lobbies who resist a change in course of the juggernaut that is the "industrial military complex".

Comment by Robin Wood on January 3, 2010 at 9:31am: sorry- forgot the link to that topic: http://r2meshwork.ning.com/forum/topics/what-is-the-purpose-of

Comment by Robin Wood on January 3, 2010 at 9:27am: Hey Janos and Robert- I'm with you Robert in co-creating a type 1 civilization powered by the sun. That is not goin g to happen without enlightened enterprises. Join us for further conversations on the Renaissance2 meswork abou the Purpose of Business- I'll shortly be posting there on this exact topic. Happy 2010!

Comment by Robert Short on January 1, 2010 at 9:34pm: Jello Janos,

I'm not a spokesperson for ws2012 and actually waiting for a confirmation among the league. Meanwhile I for one, be me naive or illuisionary do find the tasks achievable. Although my goal is much broader and with defined focus. That defined focus is to advance mankind into the beginings of a Type One Civilization. Your omni-present definition of economics is clearly taken as well as finite. What happens when finite becomes despotism?