Every firm or corporation faces both political and social transaction costs. The existence of political transaction costs is one reason firms, and even whole industries, employ lobbyists. CSR is an example of a social transaction costs. CSR means serving social and political interests without direct remuneration but in a way that is consistent with and indirectly serves long-term investor value; it is not philanthropy. Some will argue that the firm is not really being responsible or generous but only serving its (...) own long-term interest. But that is precisely the point. The reasons this category of CSR must be introduced are that (1) it is obscured by the classical liberal perspective, sometimes to the detriment of the shareholders; (2) failure to recognize it, obfuscates the role of management, part of which is to look at a macro-context that includes more than markets; and (3) it misses the important extent to which business leaders can, may, and should have a vital role in formulating public policy. (shrink)
Identifying arguments -- Formal analysis of arguments -- Presenting your case -- Attacking an argument -- Defending your case -- Cause-and-effect reasoning.
The purpose of this volume is to inaugurate a dialogue on the common elements of all three Abrahamic traditions - Christianity, Islam, and Judaism - that touch ...
This essay argues that medical innovation proceeds most efficiently and effectively within a free market economy. Medical innovation is an expression of the technological project: the program through which we seek to control nature, to improve the quality and quantity of life. The Technological Project proceeds most efficiently with a free market economy because such a market both promotes competition and encourages innovation. As I argue, the market is a discovery process in which alternatives are tried, tested, and selected by (...) consumer's choices. The alternatives to a free market - primarily central planning and a heavily regulated market - fail adequately to encourage medical innovation. (shrink)
This paper is a contribution toward the clarification of the meaning and evolution of liberalism. Liberal values are distinguished from liberal social philosophy. Liberal values, specifically individuality, government by consent of the governed, and private property in a capitalist economy are modern despite their clear classical and medieval origins. Liberal social philosophy consists of ontological realism, epistemological individualism, and axiological teleology. Liberal social philosophy is classical, and it reflects an attempt to rationalize modern values with a classical philosophy. I argue (...) that liberal social philosophy is seriously flawed, and when it is modified for modern contexts it is inimical to liberal values. Liberal values are better understood and more defensible, as well as more compatible with nonliberal values, when divorced from liberal social philosophy. (shrink)
