Name: Anonymous 2006-05-13 14:03
Ethical questions arise when corporations operate soly on the basis of profit. A frequent example is using money to lobby for laws that benefit the company rather than citizens. Companies use practices to keep prices high so that consumers cannot access generic or cheap products, or find alternatives easily. One example is pharmaceuticals, which are sold to Canada at low prices. Cheap medicine is not readily available in the US due to the FDA not allowing competing low price medicines on the market. Pharmaceutical companies are ensured a high price, while any alternate competition is squashed. Meanwhile, people buy medicine from Canada to avoid high costs. At what point should someone step in and say consumers have the right to pay low prices for the same goods? At what point should companies realize they are making more than enough money to sustain themselves? The motivation is unlimited profit, but how can an ethical goal be in place rather than being purely profit driven?