NYT Asks: "Could Greed Be Good?"
ABC's John Stossel is probably the most widely-recognized, most be-mustached libertarian out there. He sneaks all kinds of Econ 101 and pro-freedom lessons into his 20/20 segments and special. The Ur-episode is the one in which he asks, with faux shock, after examining the benefits of capitalism: "Could greed be good?"
It seems that The New York Times is asking itself the same question.
In light a dismal fiscal future, the Times has brought in new board members, "two exceptional individuals," in the words of Times chairman Arthur Sulzberger, Jr., one from Wal-Mart and one from Chevron. The New York Sun takes a look at the few choice words from the editorial board on Wal-Mart in the past:
One, Dawn Lepore, served as a director of Wal-Mart from 2001 to 2004. While Ms. Lepore was serving as a Wal-Mart director, the Times was denouncing Wal-Mart for a series of supposed sins. A November 15, 2003, editorial thundered, "This Wal-Martization of the work force, to which other low-cost, low-pay stores also contribute, threatens to push many Americans into poverty. The first step in countering it is to enforce the law. The government must act more vigorously, and more quickly, when Wal-Mart uses illegal tactics to block union organizing. And Wal-Mart must be made to pay if it exploits undocumented workers." It went on, "Wal-Mart likes to wrap itself in American values. It should be reminded that one of those is paying workers enough to give their families a decent life."An April 11, 2004, editorial, also written while Ms. Lepore was serving on the Wal-Mart board, warned, "the entry of such an especially tight-fisted employer in a community compels competitors to whittle at their own labor costs. That translates into lost jobs and smaller paychecks for everyone."
Say it with me (and John Stossel) now: Could greed be good?
Via American Thinker
