Why do people assume american businesses in general are greedier then other business?

[Xanikk999]

It just irks me that people beileves that americans businesses are greedy.

Just because you start a business wether its a sole proprietor or a corporation, it doesnt make you greedy to want profits.

And it doesnt make you greedy to just be in the position of a CEO. Its just a stereotype that business leaders are greedy.

Sure there are some businesse owners that line thier wallets with bonuses and earn more then they should. But why does everyone assume thats the norm and capatalism is bad?

I just hate the common hype that everyone thinks capatalism and bussiness is bad. And i really only get it fromt talking to europeans on this forum.

Why do you guys think business owners make profits at the expense of thier employees? Thats just a stereotype! Just because some might do that doesnt mean they are all like that.

 

[ComradeDavo]

I used to work in this shop. On about £5.29 an hour. I did more hard work than the manager did (not to mention he was completely useless and had no udnerstanding of any of the oepration teams actual jobs) and he was on 75 grand a year.

That is why people think 'buisness is greedy'.

 

[The Last Conformist]

The OP doesn't seem to have much to do with the thread title ...

 

[ComradeDavo]

The OP doesn't seem to have much to do with the thread title ...

True that. And the title is another classic case trying to make out America as being picked on. Truth is that people like myself think European buisness is just a greedy as American buissness

 

[aaglo]

Truth is that peopel like myself think European buisness is justa s greedy as American buissness

I think this is true. But it just seems that, as the US economy is greatest in the planet, and the corporations are generally bigger than anywhere else, their impact on the "greed scale" would be bigger...

 

[Lambert Simnel]

Hmmm. The SEC and PCAOB keep pointing to companies such as Parmalat to indicate that corporate fraud is a global issue, and not just a US one. On the other hand, Enron, WorldCom, and Martha Stewart have all grabbed a lot of headlines in the past few years, and I think, yes, there is a general impression that American CEOs are expected to push as hard as they can, and rules are there to be bent, if not broken.

The European and Asian stereotype is a lot more patrician, almost, with a CEO looking after the good of his people etc. Yes, it's simplistic, as all stereotypes are. From experience (mostly indirect, chatting with senior partners in audit firms), I think there is still some grain of truth in it.

 

[ComradeDavo]

I think this is true. But it just seems that, as the US economy is greatest in the planet, and the corporations are generally bigger than anywhere else, their impact on the "greed scale" would be bigger...

That is true. When people see McDonalds and Starbucks in their town instead of local stores, then they naturally are going to think that Americna buisness is 'greedy'.

 

[Lambert Simnel]

C'mon, CD. 3 posts, 4 attempts to spell "business", and you're batting 0 for 4 at the moment. Keep posting - we're all rooting for ya!

(I'm sorry, I don't normally do that, but this one is bugging me each time I see it...)

 

[ComradeDavo]

C'mon, CD. 3 posts, 4 attempts to spell "business", and you're batting 0 for 4 at the moment. Keep posting - we're all rooting for ya!

(I'm sorry, I don't normally do that, but this one is bugging me each time I see it...)

Meh. I'm not exactly known for my typing skills.

 

[CaptainF]

It just irks me that people beileves that americans businesses are greedy.

Just because you start a business wether its a sole proprietor or a corporation, it doesnt make you greedy to want profits.

And it doesnt make you greedy to just be in the position of a CEO. Its just a stereotype that business leaders are greedy.

Sure there are some businesse owners that line thier wallets with bonuses and earn more then they should. But why does everyone assume thats the norm and capatalism is bad?

I just hate the common hype that everyone thinks capatalism and bussiness is bad. And i really only get it fromt talking to europeans on this forum.

Why do you guys think business owners make profits at the expense of thier employees? Thats just a stereotype! Just because some might do that doesnt mean they are all like that.

I don't know what you are talking about.

But i'll take a stab.

Businesses are founded to make profit. That is not in itself greedy, but Americans, no scratch that, people in general are.

 

[Lord_Iggy]

A small amount of greed is good. It's what feeds their families. But excess, which virtually every large corporation has, is bad and exists everywhere.

 

[Alpine Trooper]

Theres two obvious things here:

1. Xanikk999 has never worked a day in his life.

2. Xanikk999 lives in a world where everyone is happy and the sun never goes down.
Moderator Action: Warned for trolling. You just served a ban for the same offenses. I do suggest you not repeat those mistakes or else you'll find yourself on another vacation soon. - The Yankee
Please read the forum rules: http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=422889

 

[Ethics]

I used to work in this shop. On about £5.29 an hour. I did more hard work than the manager did (not to mention he was completely useless and had no udnerstanding of any of the oepration teams actual jobs) and he was on 75 grand a year.

That is why people think 'buisness is greedy'.

Heh, reminds me of when I worked for Krogers in my teens. I literally pushed myself to the max to be seen as the best and hardest worker in the store... and I actually had departmental managers fighting over who would get me. Manager was decent, and I probably would have moved up and been given a raise if not for the store being an acquisition from another chain buyout and under a contract.

Then, about six months before the contract ended we got a manager shift. This might have been nothing, but with us being so good to the point of knocking out all the local competition and with all of us becoming full employees with all the pay benefits that come with being full employees, the manager was hell on Earth.

The 411 on this new manager was that he was entirely a union/minority hold on that had been with the company for twenty five years. He was a total moron, and was horrible at management (the Pepsi vendor had delivered to the last two store this guy had been at and he had destroyed the longterm employees and the business with his poor management). I literally remember him just walking into the store, sitting down at his desk and putting his feet up on the table and calling up his buddies to talk about how "sweet" his office was going to look at when he spent the cash on a new desk and all that jazz... when he wasnt doing this, he was condescending down to every employee and frankly recommending moronic ideas that did not cater to the local communities buying habits.

Within six months, over 75% of the store employees had quit, and business and quality (a mixture of morale and bad policy) was down. He had been the perfect stooge for the management, and the union. The union loved him because he was a quota wedge to get what they wanted from the company, and the upper management loved him because they could use him against employees to keep down people becoming eligible for full employee benefits. Its probably the worst job experience I've ever had... because what turned into a great job with great people, turned into a never ending battle with the employees being caught in the crossfire between the union and management.

Now, I'm not going to sit here and say corporations are horrible. Unfortunately, they're run by humans, and not all humans are good decent folk.

 

[Shaihulud]

American business are not greedier than Europeans or Asian businesses. All businesses are by nature greedy and American business has an advantage that is their country is a superpower and that the world uses American currency. Their general sucesses has been translated as greed by jealous people, thats all, but really, all business is cutthroat or should be.

 

[The Fjonis]

I read somewhere (I can look up the source if really necessary)that the CEO's in the larger US companies recieve around 60% of their total "wages" in the shape of shares in the company, while the percentage in European companies is much lower. It goes without saying that if you own a lot of shares in the company you're running, you're going to be more inclined to look for solutions that give a short term profit and increase the company value rather than making investments from which one will only be able to reap the fruit long after you've moved on to another job. Such "short term solutions" are often actions that are percieved as acts of greed, hence people get the impression that American corporations are more greedy than their European equivalents.

 

[C~G]

American business are not greedier than Europeans or Asian businesses..

I agree.

All businesses are by nature greedy and American business has an advantage that is their country is a superpower and that the world uses American currency.

I would also say that the overall way of life in US is geared towards economy driven lifestyle.

Their general sucesses has been translated as greed by jealous people, thats all,

I partly agree but it's also that this represents the american way of living which is seen driven by anything but money.
In many cases it hasn't anything to do with jealousy but by the fact that this way of living destroys possible all the other ways of living including traditional ones. So this new line of thinking makes people ask more than they are used to which equals greed.

but really, all business is cutthroat or should be.

If you ask some europeans the same question I'm sure they say otherwise. There's the difference. In many European countreis your personal success doesn't only have monetary or popularity value. For europeans it looks like that in America it is like that. US and it's citizens boasts about it's succees.
There's fine line making good business and cutthroat business. Nowadays the level of competition makes people drive for the latter. And yes, greed also.

In many european countries people swear because of the greed of their own corporations so no american corporations are thought to be more greedy.
It is just thought that US has caused others to change their way of living in favor of this American way and these corporations and CEOs are the things people first notice.