Turkish and Greek jet fighters clash
By Kerin Hope
Published: May 24 2006 03:00 | Last updated: May 24 2006 03:00
Turkey and Greece rushed to reaffirm their improving relations yesterday after the most serious clash in a decade between their air forces in disputed air space over the Aegean sea.
A Greek air force pilot has been found dead after his F-16 fighter jet collided with a Turkish F-16 near the island of Rhodes. The Turkish pilot was rescued and was being treated in hospital in Turkey.
The circumstances of the incident were not fully clear late yesterday.
Vincent Boland, Ankara; Kerin Hope, Athens
Don't look down now:
So, I wonder what those F-16's cost. I'll bet they cost enough to build schools and hospitals, as well as, pay teachers and doctors. Blech! I sound like a wimpy Democrat, don't I? I do. But, I can't help but to think that corporations like
Lockheed Martin might be a little overjoyed at the prospect of repeat orders for
F-16's. Hell, I'd even bet their stock goes up (currently it's 73.46).
I guess, what I mean to say is that if Ford could find a way to get their cars off the road, they'd do it. It's all just part of corporate culture, the root of which is profit maximization. This root may sound like a good idea on the surface, but it all depends on how you reconcile profit maximization with business ethics.
When I took business ethics in college, I used to joke that the class was my favorite oxymoron. Of course, growing up in the late 70's and early 80's, I tended to be a big fan of J.R. Ewing. My views were a bit, if not a lot, screwed up. I'm not really ashamed to admit this, because when I was a child, I thought as a child.
Now, I hesitate to even mention Eisenhower's famous words, "beware of the military-industrial complex." First of all, it's overused. Every time someone has a problem with the military or a war, they play the Eisenhower card. It's their ace in the hole. Still, though, I can't help but to think that with all the bribe scandals, these huge corporations have more reach than they should.
Is it possible for corporations to affect foreign policy? I assume it is. After all, when America is protecting her interests, I assume that's who they're talking about. My questions are:
1. Do some corporations want war?
2. Will there ever be stability when there's more profit in war than there is peace?
3. Will conservative Christians ever want to turn their swords to plowshares?
4. Should our jets knocking each other out of the sky?
If recent trends have taught me anything, it's that corporations seek short term profit over long term profit to please their stockholders.
Do corporations have any responsibilities beyond trying to maximize stockholder value, adhering to contracts, implicit as well as explicit, and obeying the laws of the different countries where they operate? My answer is "no", although maximizing value, meeting contracts, and obeying laws help achieve many of the goals by those claiming corporations should be "socially responsible" by taking care of the environment, considering the effects of their behavior on other stakeholders, and contributing to good causes. Still, laws and contracts, and individual use of their own resources, rather than corporate behavior, should be the way to implement various social goals.
Maybe this is just something for Dems to think about the next time deregulation comes up.
hink