So 'Capitalist Makes Profit' is not much of a headline. It's what they're meant to do. Over the years and decades the profits have got bigger. They make millions in profits ... they make hundreds of millions in profits. For the rest of us the numbers become meaningless. We are all too busy wondering why the income we have this year buys us less stuff than what we earned last year. People are outraged that Shell has announced $40 billion in profits. The 'cost of living crisis' does not seem to touch people at that end of the capitalist system. I was perturbed by the way we have moved from millions to billions and it seems to have the effect of minimising the 'number' that represents the profits.
40 is quite a small number.
So this post is remind you to remember that the reality of Shell's profits is
40,000,000,000
(Forty Thousand Million)
Stay safe. Be kind.
It’s mad I agree - but it’s also important to remember that Shell is not a person, nor is it owned by a cabal of stereotypical fat Victorian industrialists - it’s biggest investors are pension funds and the like, owned in turn by millions of ordinary individuals, all of whom want to see their funds grow and pensions paid. We live in a complex and interconnected world and no more so than that of corporate multinationals. To me, the bigger issue than their profits - which ultimately get redistributed- is how they be made more accountable and a force for greater good - and we should try not conflate the two issues.
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