What Do Businesses Want?

      To understand what people do we must first understand
what they want.  Of course, at the most basic level everyone
wants the same thing.  That universal desire is for the thing we
call happiness or satisfaction.

     Our secondary wants are the things we believe will bring
us satisfaction.  These wants very greatly from individual to
individual.  The main reason for venturing into business is the
quest for wealth.  There are other motivators such as
independence and the thrill of power.  Wealth contributes to
both.

     People in business seek wealth.  Some aren't all that
fussy about how they get it.  People in business aren't
necessarily more ethical or more moral than those in
government.  The business environment rewards different
behavior than does the government environment.  Thus, people
in business behave differently than those in government.

     For most of us businesses serve one purpose.  They
provide a means for workers to increase their production of
consumer goods.  The reason for production is consumption. 
Businesses benefit us by increasing our supply of consumer
goods well beyond what we could produce if we all worked
alone.

     Businesses don't care about consumers' consumption,
unless the consumption benefits the business.  Indirectly
consumption is vital to businesses, whether they like it or not. 
Without customers buying to consume, business are out of
business, and broke.

     In free markets customers hold a business accountable by
either buying from it or refusing to buy from it.  Businesses
must have customers.  The businesses may not be terribly fussy
how they get customers or whom they hurt in the process.  As
long as the business must serve and please customers to keep
them, the customers are the kings.  In free markets businesses
can't exploit.  They must serve and please customers to prosper.

     Thus, big businesses are a natural enemy of free markets. 
Big businesses get in bed with government.  The two serve each
other.  The businesses provide support to politicians.  The
politicians grant favors to the favored businesses.  The biggest
favor government grants is to expand businesses' markets by
limiting the markets of the competition.

     Naturally this process favors the powerful.  The big
businesses grow while the weaker competitors shrivel and die, or
never get off the launching pad.  Consumers lose.

     There are many ways government provides captive
customers and otherwise expands the market for the products of
businesses.  Granting outright monopolies (such as utility
franchises), limiting the numbers of taxicab licenses, and
imposing tariffs, are some of the most obvious ways.

     Every law or regulation that limits production or restricts
competition expands the market for some businesses at the
expense of others.  Of course, the victim businesses are usually
the small, weak ones without political clout.

     New and small businesses are likely to see merit in
competition.  It is the main way the new or small business gets
its foot in the market door.  Once a business gains a large
market share, competition is more of a threat than a benefit. 
Restricting competition can allow an old, over sized, inefficient
business to continue to prosper and grow.  Those, allegedly "too
big to fail" businesses grew to their size and condition because
of government protection from competition.

     When big businesses and government get together they
strip the consumers of their kingship and reduce them to
exploited servants of government and businesses.  Only in free
markets is the consumer the king that holds the producers and
employers accountable.

     As the government-business complex grows we slide ever
deeper into serfdom.  Businesses are by no means blameless. 
"Do it my way or I will hurt you" government is the senior
partner that makes the exploitation possible.

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Copyright 2012
Albert D. McCallum
18440 29-1/2 Mile Road
Springport, Michigan 49284