NationStates Jolt Archive

I get the feeling that this, if it even lasts for a whole 40-post page, will quickly descend into a traditional partisan grudge match, but let's find out, shall we?

Which do you distrust more, big government or big buisness, and why?

I get the feeling that this, if it even lasts for a whole 40-post page, will quickly descend into a traditional partisan grudge match, but let's find out, shall we?

Which do you distrust more, big government or big buisness, and why?

Big government.

Why?

Because they control my life. They make laws.

I can always choose to buy from another corporation. And they don't make laws. And I can always start a new corporation.

I can't always start a new government.

GO SECOND AMENDMENT!

Which do you distrust more, big government or big buisness,
and why?

Yes.

"The interest of the dealers, however, in any particular branch of trade or manufacturers, is always in some respects different from, and even opposite to, that of the public. To widen the market and to narrow the competition, is always the interest of the dealers. To widen the market may frequently be agreeable enough to the interest of the public; but to narrow the competition must always be against it, and can serve only to enable the dealers, by raising their profits above what they naturally would be, to levy, for their own benifit, an absurd tax upon the rest of their fellow-citizens. The proposal of any new law or regulation of commerce which comes from this order, ought always to be listened to with great precaution, and ought never to be adopted till after having been long and carefully examined, not only with the most scrupulous, but with the most suspicious attention. It comes from an order of men, whose interest is never exactly the same with that of the public, who have generally an interest to deceive and even to oppress the public, and who accordingly have, upon many occasions, both decieved and oppressed it."
-- Book I, Chapter 11, Part 3, An Inquiry Into The Nature And Causes Of The Wealth Of Nations by Adam Smith

Big Business is out to screw me. How? Big Government.

Two sides. One coin.

I get the feeling that this, if it even lasts for a whole 40-post page, will quickly descend into a traditional partisan grudge match, but let's find out, shall we?

Which do you distrust more, big government or big buisness, and why?

Both. Both have an inescapable monopoly and neither have my best interest at heart.

I can always choose to buy from another corporation. And they don't make laws.


Except when they are buying politicians, funding election campaigns, and lobbying Congress/State Legislatures for favorable legislation.

I get the feeling that this, if it even lasts for a whole 40-post page, will quickly descend into a traditional partisan grudge match, but let's find out, shall we?

Which do you distrust more, big government or big buisness, and why?


Big Business. Without regulations, greed runs amok! Silly human beings!

Both. Both have an inescapable monopoly and neither have my best interest at heart.

So true!

Big Business. Without regulations, greed runs amok! Silly human beings!

Or do regulations actually assist big business?

For instance, why would a big business call for an increase in the minimum wage? (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4377344.stm) Because regulations like the minimum wage are bad for workers and small business. Artificially inflated wages make paying for labor more expensive than smaller businesses can afford. Thus, these businesses must layoff workers in order to survive. Not only does unemployment go up, but smaller businesses with fewer employees do less business and create less competition (they also make less profit and so must reduce the wages and benifits for those employees that are lucky enough to keep their jobs). Less competition is good for the big box chains, who can easily absorb the extra costs.

Big Business absolutely adores regulations based on notions of "greed." The minimum wage is the best thing that ever happened to Big Business. Edit: I consider Big Business an enemy, however, I am not inclined to recommend or support most kinds of regulations on commerce because each such regulation is just another avenue for Big Business to work it's evil. See my first post above about the two sides of the same coin.

I'm going to go with big business. Despite the crying woe of the big government today, in the last century we saw relatively unfettered big business exploiting people in very real and tangible way. Company stores, 16 hour days (hey, wait a second...I work sixteen hour days...anyway), lack of safety, etc. Further, an unfettered business can remove the choice to 'shop elsewhere' and thus be completely free of any responsability to the people, while a government (at least ours) still has to be elected. And again, an unfettered big business can excercise undo influence on government thus spoiling the notion of representative democracy, as the corperation's voice suddenly has more weight than the citizenry.

Which do you distrust more, big government or big buisness, and why?

Big business, provided the government is transparant and consists of different parties with different ideologies (iow: a coalition government with opposition). It at least has a chance to somewhat represent *my* interests.

Gah...

...a single BUMP to gather the opinions of all of you un-nocturnal types.

*sees sun...hisses...slinks back into coffin*

Which do you distrust more, big government or big buisness, and why?
Big business. There's no such thing as vendor-lock-in in Government.

Which do you distrust more, big government or big buisness, and why?

Where's the difference?

I'm pretty sure I sit quite firmly in the "both" camp.

When government gets to big its power and control over your life can become ridiculous, my usual argument for that is when the government blatantly does something that the people don't want. Or when the european government spends money on legislating how bendy a banana should be.

When Bug business rolls around I think that tradditional values always lose to money. That isn't "always" a bad thing, but when you look at communities that can be wrecked by big business moving in then I think you've got a good case. Additionally when big business can afford to spend more than the people in running the government (ie lobbyists) then I think that big business and government start merging together.

Big business because they are out to screw you and are bribing big government.

big business, as while big government may have its problems, it generally is trying to good things for the public sector (and in my view the public sector is a good thing)
big business, however, is only ever trying to do what is best for itself, and squeeze as much money out of people as it possibly can...

ergo, big business' relentless drive for profit and owner satisficing leads me to distrust