Corporate Social Responsibility

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/c4d25c8a-f13d-11dd-8790-0000779fd2ac,s01=1.html

The problem with Green and what Pelosi, Obama, and Reed can't seem to get around.  It is more expensive, and people have less money, so their initiall caring for BDF starts to wane.  My Strategy Prof in business school has the same bottom line:  The most corporately responsible thing a business can do is make a profit.  That leads to jobs, economic stimulus, and prosperity for society.  Once they rise to a level of income, they can start worrying about buying a $35 Green T-shirt to promote themselves and make them feel better about rumors of exploitation. 

Of course who defines exploitation is another issue altogether.  When I was in China, I saw construction workers living in what I considered nasty conditions.  I was told that free market capitalism actually raised the standard of living for all  people, as they were making more money and living in better conditions than they were on their farms in central and eastern China. So maybe Socialism/Communism isn't socially responsible!