Over the past month, since the release of the last newsletter and my dive into the Metaverse, I have come up against a few discussions on the morality and ethics in attempting to profit from an industry which ultimately is not in the best interests of humanity.
It is an interesting discussion and it is a point I think we all need to consider.
An example was given to me of how it would be wrong to invest in Johnson & Johnson and thus supporting the opioid crisis that this pharmaceutical company created. On the face of it, you may say that indeed profiting off the back of such a company is morally questionable. But, here is why I disagree.
These large multi-billion dollar companies do not survive from the investments of their bottom 99% of investors, they exist because of a small number of large stake holders in the company. Whether I invest $100k into Johnson & Johnson or not holds no bearing on the company’s ability to exist.
So with this in mind, if I for example, invested $100k into J&J in 2015, I would now have $200k. I’ve doubled my money. I can then extract the profits and put to projects which bring awareness to the general public about companies like J&J. Projects like this(People Empowerment Project) for example, helping others to empower themselves.
J&J will exist regardless of my investment and not doing so out of some higher ground moral reasoning benefits no one whatsoever. I believe we need to understand the enemy, we need to use them to our own benefit.
This is true in the case of the Metaverse. This concept of humanity living their day to day lives in an artificial reality within this one is terrifying, but it’s happening anyway. Our younger generations have been primed for this since birth via smartphones, streaming technologies, XBOX Live and so forth.
If we do not get ahead of the game, understand exactly how this technology works and how to use it, we will simply get left behind. Understand your enemy and use it against itself. This is the only way I see we have any hope to fight this.
And, in the worst-case scenario, if humanity ultimately decides to follow this pathway down to the depths of hell, then you and I want to be in a position where we don’t have to join them. Consider yourself, your children, your community.
Making a few million dollars off the back of your enemy is not immoral or wrong, in fact I’d argue it was a very smart and morally just.
It is all about balance. If the benefit you can do with the profit you extract from a morally void company outweighs the benefit your primary investment has on the company, then it is a morally sound investment.
That said, looking at this logically as I have, it can still often feel wrong investing in a company like J&J or Pfizer, but just try to keep the goal in mind – it is for a greater good and it is your duty to do whatever it takes to take humanity to a better place.
