Government to host billionaires’ conference

September 24, 2010
Issue 

Over September 28-29, Sydney was due to host the 10th Forbes Global CEO Conference. The official conference website said it would be attended by “over 400 global CEOs, tycoons, entrepreneurs, up-and-comers, capitalists and thought leaders”. The host sponsors? The New South Wales government and Australian federal government, of course.

Guest speakers will include Australia's richest man, Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest (worth $US4.1 billion); the world's richest man, Carlos Slim (telecommunications billionaire from Mexico worth US$53.5 billion); Forbes CEO, Steve Forbes; treasurer Wayne Swan and NSW Premier Kristina Keneally.

Maybe Swan and Keneally are considered “up-and-comers” — surely they are not attending as “thought leaders”.

The conference description is so full of bad sailing analogies, there's no need to satirise. Here's how the conference describes the role of business leaders: “When the sea is calm, anyone can hold the helm. In volatile times, business leaders must take on the role of the master mariner.

“Their challenge is to set a course through the aftermath of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, outwit the forces of nature, keep their ship on an even keel, and head towards safer ports which promise more growth.

“Like captains of an open sea, business commanders are often buoyant optimists undeterred by turbulence. How can they exercise the power of innovation to create new goods and services delivered more efficiently? How best can they address global humanitarian concerns through sustainable practices of social responsibility and philanthropy?

“The journey of the master mariners is ridden with aftershocks from the crisis, but glory awaits those who surmount them with determination and help create a better future.”

So by now you're either really excited about capitalism and setting a course to outwit the forces of nature, or you’re feeling seasick.

If you are sick of governments catering to the needs of the super-rich while the human rights of the vast majority go ignored, you are not alone. Green Left Weekly campaigns for society's wealth to be transferred away from the Twiggy Forrests and the Carlos Slims, to the needs of people and our communities.

Social justice and our planet is worth more than their profits.

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