道德与投资

Investing in Vices

道德与投资

[1] A tricky question in investing is how much of a role ethics should play in your stock selections.

[2] Should you invest in companies that manufacture weapons? What about nuclear power? Alcohol? Gambling? Tobacco? Those are the "Big Five" in terms of ethical decisions. They tend to provoke the strongest emotions, and come up most often in discussions of ethical investing.

[3] But the list could go on and on. Should you invest in companies that have been fined for polluting the environment? Companies that have been sued for racial discrimination? Companies that don't have women in key positions? Companies that do animal testing? Companies that sponsor sexually explicit TV shows or art exhibitions?

[4] The world being what it is, too fine an ethical filter could quickly screen out almost every large company and many small ones.

[5] I tend to be tolerant of most vices in life, and also in investing. I am currently seeking out defense stocks. I'm eyeing at least one nuclear-power stock, and am favorably disposed toward gambling stocks. There's no liquor stock I want to own, but if the numbers looked attractive, I'd buy one.

不过这个名单可以一直列下去。你是否应该投资于那些因污染环境而受罚的公司？那些被指控种族歧视的公司？那些不让妇女担任要职的公司？那些用动物进行试验的公司？那些为直接渲染色情的电视节目出资和举办类似艺术展览的公司？

现实世界就是这样，如果用太细的道德过滤器去筛选，那么几乎每一个大公司和许多小公司很快都得从投资的名单中筛出去。

我倾向于容忍生活中的大部分不道德行为，在投资方面也是如此。我现在正在挑选一些国防类的股票。我至少中意于一种核动力的股票，还看好博彩类的股票。我不想买酒类股，但如果价位有吸引力的话，我还是会买一种的。

Smoke-Free Zone

[6] In my personal portfolio, the only industry I won't invest in is tobacco. Tobacco causes disease and suffering when used as intended, whereas most of the others cause problems only when they are abused.

[7] Client portfolios are a different matter. When you are managing other people's money, your job is to maximize performance. We don't have any tobacco stocks at Dorfman Investments, but I'm on the stock selection committee for a money management firm, Dreman Value Management, that has tobacco holdings.

[8] As for performance, the 80 "socially responsible" mutual funds tracked by Morningstar Inc., the Chicago research company, returned 15 percent a year on average in the five years through October. That compares to an 18 percent return for all U. S. stock funds, and 26 percent for the Standard & Poor's 500 Index during the same period.

[9] At my firm, and many others, clients with their own separate accounts can specify whatever ethical restrictions they want. One of my clients doesn't want to own weapons stocks. For her, I won't buy stocks such as Lockheed Martin Corp., Litton Industries Inc., Cordant Technologies Inc. or Kaman Corp. But stocks of that type will be in many other clients' portfolios.

在我个人的投资组合中，我唯一不碰的是烟草业。当你有意常吸烟草时，它会带来疾病和痛苦，而其它的大多只有在滥用时才会带来麻烦。

Weapons of Defense

[10] The question of whether military force can be used ethically is one of the oldest and most difficult in history. To me, Hitler and World War II are sufficient proof that maintaining a strong U. S. Military force is a moral act.

[11] Some of my best friends disagree. To them, the ends do not justify the means. I asked one friend, who is a Quaker, what the U. S. should have done about Hitler. His response: "I don't know. But I believe we should have found an alternative other than force."

[12] That is an intellectually honest position, but to me not persuasive. On the whole, I feel the world is a better place if the U.S. has rocket fuel (Cordant), defense electronics (Litton), and Seasprite naval helicopters (Kaman), than if we don't.

军事力量能否被合乎道义地使用是历史上最古老的也是最困难的道德问题之一。对我来说，希特勒和二战足以证明美国保持强大的军事力量是道德的行为。

这是一个理智的诚实态度，但对我没有说服力。总的来说，我觉得如果美国有考顿公司生产的火箭燃料、利顿公司的电子防御系统和卡曼公司的海军用海怪直升机，这个世界会比我们没有这些武器更好一些。

Power Sources

[13] Nuclear power is another issue that people feel strongly about. In the wake of Chernobyl and Three Mile Island, I can't argue that it's wrong to be concerned about the safety of nuclear plants. And yet, I believe people forget the hundreds of injuries and the massive pollution caused by oil-and coal-fueled electrical generating plants. Nuclear power, at least potentially, is a less polluting energy source than most of its competitors.

·The Blanket 一床双人毛毯(11-10)
·最美丽的心(11-10)
·幸福的要诀(11-10)
·天使在你身边(11-10)
· 情人节：玫瑰的传说(11-10)