These Old Heroes Won't Save Us

Corporations Won't Save Us

Corporations prioritize "The Profit Motive". And the profit motive has metastasized into "profit at all cost". Directors often make decisions that run counter to the long-term interests of the public, the planet, and sometimes even their shareholders. And while American corporations currently enjoy the legal status of a person (and the political influence of a legion), it is largely free from the social and legal forces that ensure good behavior from real people, such as empathy, social ostracism, and threat of physical imprisonment. In his book "The Corporation", law professor Joel Bakan argues that "Unlike the human beings who inhabit it, the corporation is singularly self-interested, and unable to feel genuine concerns for others in any contexts." Corporations too often exacerbate suffering, inequality, destruction of nature and exploitation of resources for short-term gain. And corporations have grown immensely powerful.

Government Won't Save Us

Governments are impotent in the face of corporate power. They've conspicuously failed to stand up to business interests when comes to safeguarding the environment, protecting human rights, ensuring access to healthcare and decent working conditions, and regulating financial institutions. To many, it seems like the policies are explicitly designed to benefit the wealthy at the expense of the poor. Reforms are needed, and nowhere more than within the very institutions charged protecting public interest. But change isn't going to originate within these institutions. They've been "bought" by corproate constituents and have a vested interest in today's status quo. For change to happen, bold alternatives would need be created to render old and broken models obsolete.

Public Policy Won't Save Us

Public policy is strapped by bureaucracy. It is designed from a top-down approach, mired in red tape, and lack a nuanced appreciation of practical ground-level details. The primary feedback mechanisms for policy makers - press reports and elections - punish failure and demand results in impossibly short time frames. This focus on quick wins to satisfy election cycles, rather than affecting long-term change, come to favor short-term appearance of success over actual success. This dynamic understandably distorts good policy making or positive social change.

Charity Won't Save Us

Charity soothes the conscience of the rich. But it provides temporary relief to the poor. And in doing so, it does not have sustainability in mind. Social entrepreneur and Nobel Peace Prize Winner Muhammad Yunus explains that “We often use charity to avoid recognizing the problem and finding a real solution for it. So charity becomes a way to shrug off our responsibility, and appease our consciences.” And while it can be useful in providing immediate assistance to those in need, it ultimately creates a culture of dependence, lacks sustainability, is highly patronizing and paternalistic, reinforces power imbalances, and diverts attention from the systemic issues. By treating the symptoms rather than the systems at the root of those social issues, the charity model can reinforce defici-based aid over strength-based change.

Non-Profits Won't Save Us

Non-profits typically provide bandaids. And while they may provide crucial services, their work is frequently reactive rather than proactive, placing an emphasis on temporary charity over systemic change. Furthermore, their efforts are strapped by financial instability. They are beholden to donors and constrained by external expectations. This dependency on external factors limits their autonomy and strategic direction. They're often restricted in their innovation and flexibility, and unable to adapt quickly to changing circumstances. Their bureaucratic structure and hierachy can also hinder rapid responses and innovative solutions. Finally, non-profits are often focused on alleviating the symptoms of social problems rather than addressing their root causes. This keeps the problems overwhelmingly intact. And while non-profits should be working themselves out of a job, many sadly prey on the problems just as much as those who created them.

Activism Won't Save Us

Activism offers outrage without solutions. It seeks to elicit change by influencing decision makers of traditional institutions, or by changing public opinion. The effect can be to bring into sharp focus the moral deformity of an issue. Institutions on the receiving end of social pressures are at a loss about how to respond to the demands for change. It's not enough to condemn bad practices or boycott bad actors. We must show them how to build the future. We must advise or compete with them. This dimension - the constructive element of change - is too often overlooked by would-be changemakers. We need demonstrated solutions, not just political outrage. Activists have typically been the ones to voice the need for change, but social entrepreneurs are the ones who demonstrate how it's done. We need an outlet that is more concerned with solving problems than voicing outrage.

Coming Soon: A Sneak Peek at Who Will Save Us...