Typically, responsibility is something that people working in a business typically presume applies not to their business, but instead to stakeholders, whether a customer, supplier or distributor. It is not uncommon for retail stores to hang signs indicating that the store is not liable for this and that. What if such a store is nonetheless at fault? To be so and even just claim not being liable for it reeks of selfish disregard for others. The idea, or mentlity, is that the other guy should pay for even problems for with someone working for the store caused. Responsibility in this twisted sense means “I won’t pay; you must pay even though I'm at fault” The underlying mentality can be said to come from a point of weakness rather than strength, for healthy companies can afford to shrug off any temptation to be small-minded and inconsiderate. In writing in this way, I am drawing on Friedrich Nietzsche, from whose theory it can be claimed that the store signs are actually weapons used by the weak out of resentment for the strong (i.e., customers). In comparing stores on Nietzsche's strong/weak spectrum, companies that are strong are naturally generous whereas the weak ones relish even being rude or even cruel to the stronger out of resentment.
For more, see Skip Worden, On the Arrogance of False Entitlement: A Nietzschean Critique of Business Ethics and Management, available at Amazon.
For more, see Skip Worden, On the Arrogance of False Entitlement: A Nietzschean Critique of Business Ethics and Management, available at Amazon.
