Entrepreneurship With Ethics

Why is it important to establish the moral status ofentrepreneurship is the ticket to a decent chance for
entrepreneurship? Unless it can be shown that thewealth. Certainly one can agree that between stealing
entrepreneur does what is morally worthwhile as anand producing, the latter is more honorable. However
entrepreneur, that his role is ethically praiseworthy,what if quietism - the form of religious mysticism that
not only his or her status in the market but theinvolves complete extinction of the human will,
market itself becomes vulnerable to serious moraldrawing away from worldly things - is proposed as an
criticism. This is because it is well recognised thatalternative?
ethics are the free market's life line. Many economistsHow about asceticism - the religious ideal that one
are beginning to realise this. Indeed, it iscan reach a higher spiritual state by self-discipline and
entrepreneurial activity that makes the best sense ofself-denial? How will the system that is hospitable to
profit - another vital part of capitalism.entrepreneurship be defended in the light of such
However, without also demonstrating thatpowerful challenges?
entrepreneurship is ethical, the market would at mostThe most serious challenges to capitalism come from
be hospitable to morally indifferent kinds of behavior;those who contend that by making entrepreneurial
at worst it would encourage moral callousness andeffort possible - by protecting the rights to private
discourage the pursuit of presumably morally moreproperty and the pursuit of happiness here on earth -
significant objectives, such as order, self-restraint,this system corrupts human life. It tends to permit
artistic excellence, family values.the commercialisation of human relationships, making
When a system is vulnerable in one of its essentialus self-interested economic agents instead of what
ingredients, competing systems that lack thiswe really ought be, altruistic members of our
weakness become very powerful if not immediatelycommunity.
successful alternatives. Their images improve, even ifIt is insufficient to reply that the capitalist system
their actual performance leaves a lot to be desired.makes it possible for people to attain a better life
Some argue that all we need is the hospitablehere on earth. That is just what is in need of
environment, but this is false. Even in the freest ofdefense. Why should we strive for such a life in the
societies many, many potential market agents can befirst place?
lazy. Not that laziness is encouraged but that it isIn a society of just human relationships, there must
clearly not foreclosed. That is partly what freedombe a consistent and constant hospitality to
means. One has a genuine choice whether to beentrepreneurship because without this, an important
productive or not. It is not enough to show thatmoral dimension of human life would be suppressed
under capitalism human beings are free, unless theor at least seriously distorted. Without such a
kind of uses to which such a system puts humanwelcome, public policy and law would yield to more
effort can themselves bemorally worthwhile. So thewidely accepted but sadly misguided moral
question needs to be addressed. Why should one besentiments, for example, the call forgreater and
productive? Why should entrepreneurship begreater state power to regiment or re-engineer
practiced? What is good about it?society instead of making it safe for natural human
It is not enough by a long shot to answer thatinitiative.