In Joseph Heller’s classic WW2 satire, Catch-22, the infamous and hilarious war-profiteering character,
Milo Minderbinder, represents the very idea of capitalism and its almost psychotic indifference to the suffering it might induce for profit. Milo Minderbinder is a United States Army First Lieutenant, stationed on an Italian island, who starts an enterprise called “the Syndicate.” This syndicate (Aka M&M Enterprise) buys and sells goods around the world, and as Minderbinder points out quite often to anyone who may criticize his profiteering, “everyone has a share.” Indeed, as many politicians today like to say about business, Milo declares, “what is good for the company is good for all.”
As the novel progresses, Milo’s business grows steadily, and eventually he begins doing business with the Germans. He starts attacking American troops and also replaces CO2 cartridges in emergency life vests with notes informing the American soldiers that it is good for the country (i.e.the syndicate). Milo explains to the protagonist, Yossarian, who is disgusted with his dealings with the the enemy, that “the Germans are not our enemies. Oh, I know what your going to say. Sure, we’re at war with them. But the Germans are also members in good standing of the syndicate, and its my job to protect their rights as shareholders.”
Eventually, Milo’s business ventures with the German’s earn him a government investigation and denouncements from congressmen, until he opens up his books and reveals all of the profit he made and promises to reimburse the government for all the property and people he had destroyed. All is forgiven, of course, because after all, everyone had a share.
Milo’s remark that what is good for the syndicate is good for everyone comes from Charles Erwin Wilson, the former CEO of General Motors and later Defense Secretary, who said at a Senate hearing for his secretary nomination, “what’s good for General Motors is good for the country.” This kind of thinking, that what is good for business is good for everyone, is still quite popular in America, with politicians and the populace alike. Indeed, the United States government has a long history of supporting industry and helping America become the leading economy it is today. Since our first Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton, established a national bank and set up a tariffs system to help young industries thrive, the government has helped build the massive industries of today.
So in a sense, there is truth to Milo’s reasoning; especially in our capitalist world of today, where everyone anticipates unemployment rates and GDP growth every month, hoping that businesses are doing well, and therefore our economy.
Milo’s lack of loyalty to any nation, though, reveals a very dark truth about the globalized capitalism of today. While “American” corporations enjoys spouting their patriotism, and applying the same logic that what is good for them is good for America, the truth is, multi-national corporations only have an allegiance to one thing, and that is money.
If big corporations really felt an allegiance to their country, they would not hire hundreds of accountants to slip out of paying their fare share of taxes. American corporations like Apple, GE, GM, etc, have been harshly criticized for their complex tax avoidance schemes. It has been reported that over $2 trillion in U.S corporate profits are sent offshore to avoid the high American corporate taxes. Apple, for example, has set up subsidiaries in low-tax countries like Ireland, the Netherlands, and the British Virgin Islands.
Another popular tax avoidance technique is a corporate inversion, which is when an American corporation buys a foreign company who’s country has a lower tax rate, and therefore ends up paying less taxes to America. The White House estimated that inversions could cost the Treasury nearly $20 billion over the next decade, and President Obama has called them unpatriotic.
But, if paying less taxes is good for these companies, then surely its good for America, right? This is that capitalist mindset that Heller captured so well in his classic novel, and it is even more relevant today, in the globalized world we live in. Trade liberalization and technology innovations have helped multinational corporations become the powerful global brands they are, moving profits offshore’s and hiring cheap labor in third world countries where workers have less rights. These techniques are good for business, and thats all that matters in the Minderbinder mindset. What’s good for Apple and GM is good for Apple and GM. But we do not all have shares in Apple and GM, we all have shares in the governments who collect our taxes every year. If corporations want to call themselves American or British or any other nationality, maybe they should start doing the same.