>>SNIP
>
>Doug,
>
>Looks like we agree on the basics.
>
>My main point is that, very soon now I believe, we will really have to take away that line of "making profit for their owners" as justification for business decisions. This is because it has come to mean two different things to two widely disparate groups of individuals.
>
>The 'moral/altruistic" group uses it in the traditional sense while the (growing too fast) business leaders group (and their sycophants) use it as 'code' to mean "go ahead and do whatever it takes regardless of the external concequences".
>
>I see a possible solution as stopping to use that phrase and questioning for precise details whenever someone else uses it to justify something.
>
>Jim

Jim;

We cannot even scratch the surface of this reality. Our power company - PG&E Utility - paid 10 billion to it's parent company PG&E. They broke up for "business reasons". The 10 billion came from an added amount to each customer’s bill since deregulation went into effect. The money was paid out as “dividends” to stock holders according to company officials.

A few weeks later PG&E Utility could not pay its bills and then the fun began. Now they have filed for bankruptcy and announced they want to pay “bonuses”of about $175 million to its top management. They also want another rate hike.

The state of Californai had a $10 billion surplus that was used to pay for electricity for the state at the begining of the year. None of that money has been paid back to the state - however we did get a huge rate increase. Now the state has no surplus and many people cannot afford to pay his/her electric bill.

Many small businesses no longer exist because PG&E would not pay it’s bills. Like the little deli next to PG&E Headquarters in San Francisco, who was owed thousands of dollars months before filing for bankruptcy.

If you want to see greed at its best – come to Silicon Valley. If you want to live here be sure you have no family or human values. Otherwise you will be uncomfortable.


Tom