Natural world of commerce

Some of the intellectuals in the core tradition of commerce, including Thomas Hobbes, have cited the amoral nature of the biological world as an attribute of humans.

It is evident to most people that the natural world is made up of species eating other species and often eating their own. Most large mammals eat smaller mammals and nearly all eat non-mammals. We eat a wide range of other species including the entire world of plants.

It can be painful to watch as I often see neighborhood cats attack and eat mice and birds.

There is no question in my mind that commerce has this eat and be eaten quality, though mergers and acquisitions do not seem to have the blood and moral pain I associate with cats eating birds.

It is the vast cooperative realm of bees, birds, ants and butterflies fertilizing flowers that is a model of voluntary cooperation that is such a perfect comparison of nature and commerce. Commerce is, on an individual level, nearly 100% voluntary cooperation and shared benefits.

In the biological world there is also parasitism. That describes much government, taxes and welfare in the commercial world.

Evolution in the natural world, divergence and selection, certainly parallels similar phenomenon in the commercial world. The pace of evolution is far more rapid in the commercial world.

I have written earlier blogs that argue environmentalists should see that their worship of diversity would lead them away from big government.  Now I only point out that commerce and the natural world operate in the same way and environmentalists should be more respectful of those of us who are fans of commerce.