In a simpler economic time, the tangible rewards to oneself from doing good for others were fairly self-evident. A memorable articulation of this (from a chronicler of Eskimo life who is quoted in Robert Wright’s book Nonzero: the Logic of Human Destiny [public library]): “’the best place for [an Eskimo] to store his surplus is in someone’s else’s stomach.’” But as we have progressed from hunter-gatherer societies – where it was clear that sharing food today could lead to life-saving reciprocation tomorrow – to the modern world of complex capital markets more is now required to make the economic case for helping others.
via New proof that good ethics is good business | Ethical Systems.
