The Morality of Business (PDF)

Tibor R. Machan, Argyros School of Business & Economics,Chapman University,USA

That business is benevolent, positive, and honorable might seem a difficult argument given the hostility among intellectuals, academics, artists and pundits towards this essentially benevolent profession. In this thought-provoking book, The Morality of Business: A Profession for Human Wealthcare, Machan argues that business, like medicine, enhances human life, and that it is indeed a thoroughly decent profession for people to choose to enter, in order to best serve the worthy goal of promoting all around prosperity. He goes beyond the utilitarian case, that business serves society quite well, to contend that caring for one's own economic well being is prudent, that enhancing the wealth of one's household is a proper objective, and to serve clients in the capacity of managing their wealth successfully is every bit as honorable as serving patients with their health needs. The result is a positive statement, in the tradition of Adam Smith and David Hume, addressing some of the most controversial topics of today, including job "security," outsourcing, and government regulation.

"Machan's The Morality of Business is a valuable resource for both participants and observers of the business world. In an engaging and entertaining style Machan explains how the capitalist orientation is fundamentally ethical. Furthermore, he dissects the chief arguments used by free market adversaries and shows how they are flawed. His book will bolster capitalism's advocates and will encourage its critics to see it in a fresh light."

- Barry A. Liebling, author of Think and Act on Business Ethics: A Radical Capitalist View

"This primer has an admirable aim: providing a moral defense of business, capitalism and free markets. Considering conventional objections, and drawing upon sources as diverse as Thucydides and Steve Martin, Machan provides aspirited assertion of the claims of business to the moral high ground."

-Elaine Sternberg, author of Just Business: Business Ethics in Action

"Professor Machan has done it again! Profit seeking behavior by business is ethical and prudent, but it only can be ethical when a person is free, and that depends upon having private property rights. Business ethics is not about 'corporate citizenship,' as so many others seem to believe. The contemplative life, so highly valued by many in academe, is made possible by the success of those in commerce. Which one lives a more ethical life? Read Machan's, The Morality of Business for his answer."

-Don Booth, Chapman University, California, USA