How does anything improve without the profit incentive...

[TakeAStepBack]

According to a 2012 report by the Center for Civil Society Studies at Johns Hopkins University, nonprofit employment represents 10.1 percent of total employment in the United States in 2010, with total employees numbering 10.7 million. The nonprofit workforce is the third largest of all U.S. industries behind retail trade and manufacturing.
Number of people employed in the nonprofit sector

10.7 million people depending on being paid by organizations that depend on either TAXES or donations.

Think about that the next time you hear our president exhort people to "public service".
Take a look at the below list of ALL the projects Obama has pushed ... NONE of which designed to encourage business TAX PAYING growth... but
increasing the above nonprofit employees!
Where does the money come to pay for these projects? For these nonprofit employees' salaries?
The Obameter: Campaign Promises that are about Public Service | PolitiFact

Most college economics faculty don't believe in profits..

What a very limited understanding of human nature you have, if you really believe that.

The profit motive is a very powerful driver of human action, but it isn't the only one. If that were true, then the sole motivator of human action would be money. It may be the most powerful, but it certainly isn't the only one.

And your last sentence is very silly.

Certainly, as it is understood in my reading, the main driver is raising the standard of living. Evry human strives to achieve this. That does not mean decisions are always rational or will meet this end. it's a benchmark in follwoing human action through its course.

 

[healthmyths]

According to a 2012 report by the Center for Civil Society Studies at Johns Hopkins University, nonprofit employment represents 10.1 percent of total employment in the United States in 2010, with total employees numbering 10.7 million. The nonprofit workforce is the third largest of all U.S. industries behind retail trade and manufacturing.
Number of people employed in the nonprofit sector

10.7 million people depending on being paid by organizations that depend on either TAXES or donations.

Think about that the next time you hear our president exhort people to "public service".
Take a look at the below list of ALL the projects Obama has pushed ... NONE of which designed to encourage business TAX PAYING growth... but
increasing the above nonprofit employees!
Where does the money come to pay for these projects? For these nonprofit employees' salaries?
The Obameter: Campaign Promises that are about Public Service | PolitiFact

Most college economics faculty don't believe in profits..

What a very limited understanding of human nature you have, if you really believe that.

The profit motive is a very powerful driver of human action, but it isn't the only one. If that were true, then the sole motivator of human action would be money. It may be the most powerful, but it certainly isn't the only one.

And your last sentence is very silly.

"last sentence is silly"??
In context of YOUR first comment though it shows YOUR inconsistent thinking!
DID I SAY ALL???? NO. Again in context of the THREAD title... was a QUESTION! How does anything..."
YOU jump to conclusions just as almost EVERYONE does today without closely examining the comment!
SO you say last sentence that "MOST college economics faculty don't believe in profits" is what it is.. "MOST".. want proof?
Another survey, reported in the Southern Economic Journal, reveals that “71 percent of American economists believe the distribution of income in the US should be more equal, and 81 percent feel that the redistribution of income is a legitimate role for government.”

Economists - Capitalists or Socialists?Eliminate The Muda!

So my LINK is at least more proof then your idiotic "very silly" shows your lack of scholarship at the minimum and telling sign of your intelligence at the most!
NOW "profit motive" is as I NEVER concluded the ONLY driver... YOU did!
Again... you didn't read closely but jumped to conclusions!
MY title ASKED the question... how does anything improve without the the profit incentive"???
DID I SAY that "profit motive" was the only??? AGAIN don't jump to conclusions but READ carefully before commenting OK?
Finally I'm sure you've said this very very common cliched meme... "I just enjoy giving gifts"!
According to MOST people and most likely YOU... you would assign that cliche to the concept of "altruism"... i.e. selflessness is the principle or practice of concern for the welfare of others."
But you like most people would be wrong!
Altruism is selfish. The altruistic act generated at the minimum a chemical response in the altruistic actor brain the result of "feeling good"!
And when these "altruistic" actors are asked why they did the selflessness is the principle or practice of concern for the welfare of others..." act they will say as the person who said I enjoy giving gifts" doesn't comprehend they are selfish..i.e. they had a feeling of good about themselves..."enjoyment" of giving..!

So for profits as a side benefit are the MOST effective way of improving ANYTHING because WITHOUT the net net income (after paying salaries..jobs..buying equipment..paying taxes ) where would the incentive for any use of accumulated capital to expand the profit generating business and directly improving the product or services?

NOT ONE nonprofit generates any net income that is taxable! And depends on others to pay the taxes!

 

[The Rabbi]

Unless you're going to define "profit" as an all encompassing "everything positive," there's literally thousands of examples of innovation and advancement with no profit motive.

Convenience, as a start. Love/compassion. Necessity.

All motives for advancement aside from profit.

That only works if you define "advancement" as anything positive. In the real world actual advances that make a difference are always and everywhere the result of the profit motive.

No, not "always."

Hardly, that's completely ridiculous.

When man discovered how to create fire, there was no profit motive. When irrigation systems were created to feed self sustaining villages - no profit motive.
When tribes engineer defense weapons to defend from would be hostiles, no profit motive.

So the best examples you can come up with are a couple millenia old? How fail is that?

 

[The Rabbi]

Penicillin's founder in medicine took no money. Guess that's a pretty major freakin' advancement with no profit motive.

Penicillin wasnt founded. It was discovered. And there were several scientists involved. And shockingly all of them had jobs and earned an income.

 

[Katzndogz]

There was no altruistic public benefit in creating fire, irrigating villages or in joining for the common defense.

 

[Wry Catcher]

According to a 2012 report by the Center for Civil Society Studies at Johns Hopkins University, nonprofit employment represents 10.1 percent of total employment in the United States in 2010, with total employees numbering 10.7 million. The nonprofit workforce is the third largest of all U.S. industries behind retail trade and manufacturing.
Number of people employed in the nonprofit sector

10.7 million people depending on being paid by organizations that depend on either TAXES or donations.

Think about that the next time you hear our president exhort people to "public service".
Take a look at the below list of ALL the projects Obama has pushed ... NONE of which designed to encourage business TAX PAYING growth... but
increasing the above nonprofit employees!
Where does the money come to pay for these projects? For these nonprofit employees' salaries?
The Obameter: Campaign Promises that are about Public Service | PolitiFact

Most college economics faculty don't believe in profits..

I agree, all religious denominations need to pay taxes on real estate owned. They receive local services, they ought to pay for them; BTW, employees of non profites who earn a salary pay income tax, though I suspect what they earn is hundreds of percent less than corporate executives. Religious organizations which advocate for or against any public policy ought to pay taxes on income - including amounts collected from their parishioners.

 

[Redfish]

When man began creating clothing out of animal fur to keep from freezing to death - no profit motive.

the guy who thought of that probably got more of the females. Is that not profit?

 

[NYcarbineer]

Both my credit union and my electric company are non-profits.

Both provide better service at better prices than their for-profit counterparts.

No profit incentive = better for consumers, in both cases.

 

[The Rabbi]

Both my credit union and my electric company are non-profits.

Both provide better service at better prices than their for-profit counterparts.

No profit incentive = better for consumers, in both cases.

<snicker>
I guess everyone who works there is a volunteer, right?

 

[Redfish]

Both my credit union and my electric company are non-profits.

Both provide better service at better prices than their for-profit counterparts.

No profit incentive = better for consumers, in both cases.

thats funny, do you think the CEOs of your credit union and power company do not get paid? All "non-profit" means in these cases is that they have no "taxable" profit. They make a profit from operations and then either pay it to the employees as bonuses or put into expansion of the business.

I am not making a value judgement on whether that is good or bad, just pointing out that you do not understand how it works.

 

[NYcarbineer]

Both my credit union and my electric company are non-profits.

Both provide better service at better prices than their for-profit counterparts.

No profit incentive = better for consumers, in both cases.

<snicker>
I guess everyone who works there is a volunteer, right?

You apparently have no idea what the word profit means, which is the least surprising observation I've made so far in 2014.

 

[The Rabbi]

Both my credit union and my electric company are non-profits.

Both provide better service at better prices than their for-profit counterparts.

No profit incentive = better for consumers, in both cases.

<snicker>
I guess everyone who works there is a volunteer, right?

You apparently have no idea what the word profit means, which is the least surprising observation I've made so far in 2014.

No actually the YOU are the one with no idea. You just proved it.

 

[NYcarbineer]

Both my credit union and my electric company are non-profits.

Both provide better service at better prices than their for-profit counterparts.

No profit incentive = better for consumers, in both cases.

thats funny, do you think the CEOs of your credit union and power company do not get paid? All "non-profit" means in these cases is that they have no "taxable" profit. They make a profit from operations and then either pay it to the employees as bonuses or put into expansion of the business.

I am not making a value judgement on whether that is good or bad, just pointing out that you do not understand how it works.

You have no idea what a profit is.

 

[G.T.]

That only works if you define "advancement" as anything positive. In the real world actual advances that make a difference are always and everywhere the result of the profit motive.

No, not "always."

Hardly, that's completely ridiculous.

When man discovered how to create fire, there was no profit motive. When irrigation systems were created to feed self sustaining villages - no profit motive.
When tribes engineer defense weapons to defend from would be hostiles, no profit motive.

So the best examples you can come up with are a couple millenia old? How fail is that?

Just some.

And they prove "ALL" wrong. ALL advancements were not created as a part of a profit motive.

 

[Redfish]

Both my credit union and my electric company are non-profits.

Both provide better service at better prices than their for-profit counterparts.

No profit incentive = better for consumers, in both cases.

thats funny, do you think the CEOs of your credit union and power company do not get paid? All "non-profit" means in these cases is that they have no "taxable" profit. They make a profit from operations and then either pay it to the employees as bonuses or put into expansion of the business.

I am not making a value judgement on whether that is good or bad, just pointing out that you do not understand how it works.

You have no idea what a profit is.

Nope, thats you. Profit is the difference between income and expenses. Non-profits make that number a zero by spending or distributing "profits". Your power company is probably a co-op that gives each subscriber a rebate at the end of each year rather than declare a profit.

We are trying to educate you, but you have to pay attention.

 

[G.T.]

Penicillin's founder in medicine took no money. Guess that's a pretty major freakin' advancement with no profit motive.

Penicillin wasnt founded. It was discovered. And there were several scientists involved. And shockingly all of them had jobs and earned an income.

Hence "in medicine."

Having a job and sustaining your life is not the same thing as a profit incentive.

A profit incentive would be if they stood to gain millions by their discovery.

They DID stand to gain millions.

They declined. Their motive was different.

 

[Wry Catcher]

Both my credit union and my electric company are non-profits.

Both provide better service at better prices than their for-profit counterparts.

No profit incentive = better for consumers, in both cases.

<snicker>
I guess everyone who works there is a volunteer, right?

^^^idiotgram^^^

I guess it means no stock holder earns dividends on the labor of others.

 

[Truthmatters]

Profit | Define Profit at Dictionary.com



prof·it [prof-it] Show IPA


noun

1.

Often, profits.

a.

pecuniary gain resulting from the employment of capital in any transaction. Compare gross profit, net profit.


b.

the ratio of such pecuniary gain to the amount of capital invested.


c.

returns, proceeds, or revenue, as from property or investments.


2.

the monetary surplus left to a producer or employer after deducting wages, rent, cost of raw materials, etc.: The company works on a small margin of profit.


3.

advantage; benefit; gain.

verb (used without object)

4.

to gain an advantage or benefit: He profited greatly from his schooling.


5.

to make a profit.


6.

to take advantage: to profit from the weaknesses of others.


7.

to be of service or benefit.


8.

to make progress.

 

[Redfish]

No, not "always."

Hardly, that's completely ridiculous.

When man discovered how to create fire, there was no profit motive. When irrigation systems were created to feed self sustaining villages - no profit motive.
When tribes engineer defense weapons to defend from would be hostiles, no profit motive.

So the best examples you can come up with are a couple millenia old? How fail is that?

Just some.

And they prove "ALL" wrong. ALL advancements were not created as a part of a profit motive.

I already explained how the guy who thought of making clothing out of animal fur "profitted" from his idea. He got to screw more females and produce more offspring. Is that not a form of profit? of course it is.

 

[Truthmatters]

the ratio of such pecuniary gain to the amount of capital invested.