Capitalism and the alpha predator - The Economic Times

The district of Ahmednagar, in Maharashtra, has been renamed to Ahilyanagar. But what has not changed is the story of how it originated. That the site was identified by the spot where a hare turned around and fought a hunting hound. This story comes from the 15th century. Similar stories are told to explain the origin of other cities such as Vijaynagar, in Karnataka, in the 13th century, and the city of Anahilawad, in Gujarat, in the 8th century.
In Hindu mythology, the difference between nature and culture is this. In nature, the predator eats the prey, the hound hunts the hare. But in culture, the prey will fight back and will not be reduced to food. The hare will not be intimidated. In Vedic literature, a king is supposed to help the weak, protect the small fish from the big fish, a story that makes its way to the story of Vishnu's matsya (fish) avatar. But when a king fails to do this, the prey has to protect itself - fight back like the hare turning around to fight rather than submit to the hound.

These stories capture the mindset of how tributary states defy imperial powers and become autonomous entities. The Ahmednagar Nizam, as well as Vijaynagar kings, split away from what was the mighty Bahmani Sultanate, and the Anahilwad Chavda kings defied the might of Gurjara-Pratihara kings.

In modern corporations, the hare is never likely to be the mascot of a sales conference. It will most likely be the hound. Most sales conferences valorize even venerate alpha predators, like kings of yore who loved the lion as their symbol. In the backdrop of sales events, one usually finds a lion, tiger, cheetah or a wolf. Sometimes, it is even a dinosaur like the Tyrannosaurus (T-rex). Why is an alpha predator used as the symbol of success and victory in the corporate world?

In the jungle, an alpha predator is not really the dominant species. It plays a key role in the ecology. It ensures that the population of herbivores remains under check, to prevent overgrazing. This problem occurred in Yellowstone National Park. Here, the removal of wolves led to overgrazing by deer which destroyed the flora of the ecosystem. As soon as the wolves were reintroduced, the deer population was kept in check. As a result, the flora flourished. The number of new plant species had such an impact that it even changed the course of the river.
But when corporations think of alpha predators, they are thinking of hunting hounds who catch the hare, which probably represents the elusive customer, or market share, or the employee who needs to deliver more. In the business world, the presence of alpha predators does not necessarily create a better society. We observe that 1% of the population is controlling 70% to 90% of the wealth in different parts of the world. This means corporations are not creating a healthy ecosystem.
In nature, the alpha predator eventually ages and dies. The eater is eaten. Thus the karmic debt is repaid. In capitalism, the alpha predator does not age or die. It grows bigger and hungrier, seeking more and more food, consuming more and more, determined to be on top of the pecking order, and perhaps establish a monopoly. Capitalism is clueless about ecology.

Modern businesses, driven by shareholder value, forget businesses are not just about customers and shareholders, it is also about employees, and society at large, hence the value placed on taxes and corporate social responsibility. The obsession with profit at the cost of social equity is what made China put brakes on its business ecosystem. It is what is turning the neo-liberal USA into a dystopia, where unemployment and homelessness are on the rise along with the rise of multi-billion dollar companies, innovating newer technologies that are totally oblivious of the social and natural cost.

As the world is increasingly moving towards automation, we are realising that the 1% wants to create a world where goods and services can be provided without human intervention. In other words, they don't have to deal with labour unions. They simply desire an ecosystem where consumers pay shareholders and there is no large number of employees to deal with.

This mindset is a dangerous one, because it doesn't think of business as a contribution to the social ecosystem. It sees society as existing for businesses rather than the other way round. All organisations are part of industries, industries are part of societies and societies feed on nature. If we create a society that indulges only the shareholders and the consumers at the cost of the employees, we create an unhealthy ecosystem. We then create an alpha parasite rather than an alpha predator. That is something of which we must be wary.

The rise of unions in trillion-dollar companies is not just socialism pushing back on capitalism, it is the hare fighting the hunting hound, reminding kings that life is not a sport for their ambition and amusement.

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this column are that of the writer. The facts and opinions expressed here do not reflect the views of www.economictimes.com.)

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