After the recent shootings an interesting take on what is social "responsible" investing.
Read and comment.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/inside-the-market/sandy-hook-gun-makers-and-the-thorny-ethics-of-investing/article6494087/
Compare the ethics of Smith and Wesson or Ruger (as mentioned in the article) to those of Exxon, or here in Canada; Imperial (Esso), Suncor (PetroCanada). Are there any differences? Back up your opinion with facts.
How about infrastructure giants like Enbridge or TransCanada Pipeline? Any differences here?
What about keeping our money in a savings account in the bank? What is done with all of our nation's collective savings (Our banks Tier 1 Capital ratio (the cash a bank must have on hand in bill form ready to go) ranges from 11-15%; meaning the other 85% of YOUR own money is tied up at work for them). Are there any differences in the "ethics" of this investing?
With all things that are highly practised and sought after, there is usually a set of restrictions and ethics that come along with such thing. Surprisingly, the stock market, where multi-million dollar investors seek to inflate the amount of money they have, buy into shares which they believe are going to experience the most inflation. This inflation is determined by supply and demand; what is selling and popular. Evidently, firearm companies are within this trend, and continue to successfully make these money-hungry investors the money they are looking to achieve. As we all are aware, those who play the stock market are suggestively wealthy, well-educated and economically aware people who believe that the shootings of 20 school children at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14 will effect the supply and demand of gun ownership. (1)
ReplyDeleteThese investors don’t go without good reason: after countless other mass shootings, little has been done in respect to changing firearm laws. People’s attitudes are obviously very hard to change, after regulation barely shifted after 12 people were gunned down in Colorado in July, another 33 in Virginia, at the Virginia Tech massacre not very long ago; to name a couple. (2) Regulation of firearm laws is something that needs to be sought after by the majority of the population, and those in power are of the most importance due to the ripple effect of their actions and decisions. This means actively investing in a socially responsible, respective way. Ignorance is no longer the answer.
The stock market is effected not only by economic factors, but many political factors as well. (3) Company news and performance has the ability to affect the stock price, indicating that a possible different response of the investors, in halting the addition to the firearms companies, such as Smith and Wesson, and weakening their beneficiaries in that way, prompting a change and moving forward with eliminating the appearance of killing products in the overall society. This is a change that is vital to the proceedings in political, economic, cultural and technological advancements in the world, undermining the use of them in hopes to prevent any further innocent fatalities.
It is very hard to ignore the incredibly life changing repercussions of which such trauma has on the victims of these events, thanks to modern day media. So, action in legacy of these tragedies is what we should seek for, in not only the regulation of gun permits but in the research done into further understanding mental wellness and the conditions of the individuals that leave such an everlasting mark. In a collective search for justice in the names of 20 beautiful, lost lives, we can create a hope for change in the future.
References:
(1) http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/how-do-you-forgive-the-unforgivable/article6673873/?page=2
(2) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18134671/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/t/worst-us-shooting-ever-kills-va-campus/
(3) http://www.getsmarteraboutmoney.ca/en/managing-your-money/investing/stocks/Pages/factors-that-can-affect-stock-prices.aspx