I am saying that we end "being insulated from consequences" by choosing to reduce it down to those two options.
Think of it similar to handling explosives. Are they useful and important in society? Definitely. Are they subtle and complicated, such that working with them can easily harm somebody in ways that are not foreseeable to the naive? You bet.
But when somebody decides to create and apply explosives and hurts somebody, we don't just say, "Gosh, that's very complicated. Who could have known how it would work out?" We say, "You intentionally chose to work with something powerful and dangerous, so you're responsible for the harm you caused."
Is it more complicated? Sure. And I'm saying that when it comes to highly paid executives who seek out positions that put them in control of dangerous complexity, they become responsible for the outcomes.
They are already seen as responsible when it comes to anything good that happens on their watch, which is why they get paid such fast sums. I'm saying they should be seen as equally responsible when it comes to the harms. No more of this, "Oops we crashed the economy/poisoned a bunch of people/actively enabled genocide" stuff. All of that "more complex" reality becomes their problem if they are in control of it.
Think of it similar to handling explosives. Are they useful and important in society? Definitely. Are they subtle and complicated, such that working with them can easily harm somebody in ways that are not foreseeable to the naive? You bet.
But when somebody decides to create and apply explosives and hurts somebody, we don't just say, "Gosh, that's very complicated. Who could have known how it would work out?" We say, "You intentionally chose to work with something powerful and dangerous, so you're responsible for the harm you caused."
Is it more complicated? Sure. And I'm saying that when it comes to highly paid executives who seek out positions that put them in control of dangerous complexity, they become responsible for the outcomes.
They are already seen as responsible when it comes to anything good that happens on their watch, which is why they get paid such fast sums. I'm saying they should be seen as equally responsible when it comes to the harms. No more of this, "Oops we crashed the economy/poisoned a bunch of people/actively enabled genocide" stuff. All of that "more complex" reality becomes their problem if they are in control of it.