"Why are people who want for nothing, driven to hoard more money at the expense of a planet in ecological and social crisis?"
Narcissism, in addition to the aforementioned dopamine feedback and capitalism/consumerism. The current system rewards behaviour that brings them more money, they are very good at playing that game, and they truly don't give a shit for anything that can't somehow bring them gratification and another dopamine hit.
Every new datum is filtered through the lens of "how does this affect me?", and if the answer is, "not much, I can use my money to shield myself", or "I'll be dead by then", the datum is discounted or discarded.
While the discussion here has been interesting, it hasn't really addressed the original subject which is "moral injury". Moral injury is a particular term used either in the military or among essential healthcare workers. It doesn't refer to the stress of day-to-day living or working. That is something that care workers and the military are used to and are trained for.
Rather moral distress and it's most severe cases"moral injury" explicitly means when you are asked to do something that you believe is morally wrong -'-that causes you distress that will likely trouble you years into the future. For example if you're asked to work without proper PPE equipment or asked to participate in banning families from being around a near-death family member, those are examples where you are asked by your employer to do something that you feel is morally unconscionable.
I think if you're using this specific definition of moral distress, the arguments thusfar need to be rethought.
For reference, see the Ethicscan covid blog site on this topic.
Every CEO and CFO has a fiduciary duty to maximize returns for their company and shareholders. That's what is the company's purpose and what the CEO is used for. Any other priority, be it the well-being of its employees or long-term goals like the survival of the planet, must be a lower priority. This is not about insanity or personal greed. It is the systemically institutionalized greed that is said to be the primacy of capital accumulation and capitalism.
It is of little use to determine whether this or another CEO is personally driven more by a drive for power, sense of superiority or madness. Within the systemic setup, there will always be someone who will take their place if they are not delivering the expected return.
The first time you earn, say $10,000 dollars with your own business, you get a rush. To achieve that same feeling again next time, it needs to be $20,000. Then $40,000, etc., etc.
Obviously, the math isn't exact but, broadly speaking, it is the behaviour of addiction.
Edward Abbey answered this in "The Monkey Wrench Gang" (1975). One of his characters has a dream where a machine that represents the capitalist ruling class utters "... the basic message. Power ... profit ... prestige ... pleasure ... profit ... prestige ... pleasure ... power ..." (p. 256)
I've seen nothing better in decades of studying the realities of social and political power.
I believe it is simply a result of the existing economic systems that are built to drive money upwards. These systems (loosely called the economy) are constructed to extract without accounting for natural capital costs. Anything that threatens that (regulation, competition from renewables etc) is attacked.
"Why are people who want for nothing, driven to hoard more money at the expense of a planet in ecological and social crisis?"
Narcissism, in addition to the aforementioned dopamine feedback and capitalism/consumerism. The current system rewards behaviour that brings them more money, they are very good at playing that game, and they truly don't give a shit for anything that can't somehow bring them gratification and another dopamine hit.
Every new datum is filtered through the lens of "how does this affect me?", and if the answer is, "not much, I can use my money to shield myself", or "I'll be dead by then", the datum is discounted or discarded.
Inability to feel empathy.
While the discussion here has been interesting, it hasn't really addressed the original subject which is "moral injury". Moral injury is a particular term used either in the military or among essential healthcare workers. It doesn't refer to the stress of day-to-day living or working. That is something that care workers and the military are used to and are trained for.
Rather moral distress and it's most severe cases"moral injury" explicitly means when you are asked to do something that you believe is morally wrong -'-that causes you distress that will likely trouble you years into the future. For example if you're asked to work without proper PPE equipment or asked to participate in banning families from being around a near-death family member, those are examples where you are asked by your employer to do something that you feel is morally unconscionable.
I think if you're using this specific definition of moral distress, the arguments thusfar need to be rethought.
For reference, see the Ethicscan covid blog site on this topic.
Every CEO and CFO has a fiduciary duty to maximize returns for their company and shareholders. That's what is the company's purpose and what the CEO is used for. Any other priority, be it the well-being of its employees or long-term goals like the survival of the planet, must be a lower priority. This is not about insanity or personal greed. It is the systemically institutionalized greed that is said to be the primacy of capital accumulation and capitalism.
It is of little use to determine whether this or another CEO is personally driven more by a drive for power, sense of superiority or madness. Within the systemic setup, there will always be someone who will take their place if they are not delivering the expected return.
Dopamine addiction.
The first time you earn, say $10,000 dollars with your own business, you get a rush. To achieve that same feeling again next time, it needs to be $20,000. Then $40,000, etc., etc.
Obviously, the math isn't exact but, broadly speaking, it is the behaviour of addiction.
Edward Abbey answered this in "The Monkey Wrench Gang" (1975). One of his characters has a dream where a machine that represents the capitalist ruling class utters "... the basic message. Power ... profit ... prestige ... pleasure ... profit ... prestige ... pleasure ... power ..." (p. 256)
I've seen nothing better in decades of studying the realities of social and political power.
I believe it is simply a result of the existing economic systems that are built to drive money upwards. These systems (loosely called the economy) are constructed to extract without accounting for natural capital costs. Anything that threatens that (regulation, competition from renewables etc) is attacked.