Request for Support

Why should you give financial support to the Caux Round Table for Moral Capitalism?

One, it is unique in the world for finding and documenting fundamental moral realities which, across cultures, guide us towards a moral capitalism and moral government.

Two, at this time in history, anomie, narcissism (including racialism), atrophy of leadership, lassitude among bureaucrats, uncertainty and aversion to accepting personal responsibility are everywhere dangers to our civilization.  They must be addressed and put behind us.  How can that be done?  Who is up to the task?

The poet, William Butler Yeats, wrote in a similar time of uncertainty:

Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere   
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst   
Are full of passionate intensity.

A recent article in First Things made this claim about our times:

Something has gone wrong in modern cultural and political life.  Only those hopelessly numb … can observe the state of things and not see serious problems on the horizon.  The great and the good have become the mediocre and the lame.  The conditions necessary for civic and personal virtue have steadily eroded.  Even if a cataclysm never comes, a civilization contenting itself to die on history’s hospice bed is crisis enough.

Only gaining resilient convictions about what is real and therefore, acceptably true, can reverse this cultural decline.

Which brings to mind the question of whether or not Confucius gave good advice when he said that the first step in providing good governance is to find and use correct words, words that resonate with reality.  This became the Chinese doctrine of “rectifying names” or perfecting thought forms.  Today, academics might associate this practice with creating a discourse regime, seeking to establish social and cultural cohesion.

The connection between thought forms – words – and the quality of our lives was put by Confucius this way: “If names be not correct, language is not in accordance with the truth of things; If language be not in accordance with the truth of things, affairs cannot be carried on to success.  When affairs cannot be carried on to success, proprieties and music will not flourish. When proprieties and music do not flourish, punishments will not be properly awarded.  When punishments are not properly awarded, the people do not know how to move hand or foot.”

Several years ago in the U.S., the Caux Round Table called out “wokeness” as an ideology inconsistent with moral capitalism.  We took a leadership position, insisting on a correct understanding of the thought form “woke.”  Later, the Caux Round Table drew attention to the inequities imposed on individuals by the procrustean program of allocating career advancement using the invidious criteria for preferential treatment proposed by diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) taskmasters.

In both cases, the Caux Round Table took leadership positions defending high standards of moral integrity.

Michel Foucault named ideological conventions like “woke” and “DEI” as “surveillance discourse.”  Such authoritarian use of language often seeks to prevent the expression of respectful humanisms.

What Really is ESG?

In providing leadership for the environment, social and governance (ESG) movement, which seeks to incentivize private firms to provide public goods, the Caux Round Table has focused on the “S” and the “G” by calling for new understandings of “capital” itself.  The Caux Round Table proposed that the “capital,” which generates wealth, enhances cultural prosperity and solidifies community well-being across generations includes more than money and traditional balance sheet assets.

Once balance sheets are revised and valuation analysis is modernized, moral capitalism can be easily practiced and financed.

For nearly 4 decades now, the Caux Round Table has sought the truth, which is revealed by the study of reality and to seek such truth in dialogue among wisdom traditions.  This collective and mutually respectful effort has brought forth very helpful learning about the moral good by using words of different languages designed to articulate nuanced insights into our common human moral sensibility.

We need your financial help in putting on the internet for global distribution educational modules on moral capitalism and moral government.  We are calling this project renaissance, a rebirth of moral courage and clarity in moral thinking after the study of humanity’s moral heritage and each individual’s moral sense.

That you may evaluate the importance of our thought leadership, I attach a copy of our 2022 year in review (annual report).

But let me highlight some of our more important and unique accomplishments:

Pegasus

During 2022, we endeavored to provide in our monthly newsletter, Pegasus, cutting edge comments and ideas responding to the challenges of our time, in line with Confucius’ injunction to get the words right so that all people can flourish on their own, having opportunities, rights and responsibilities.

Articles seeking to provide access to sound understandings were:

-The Art and Architecture of Moral Capitalism, by Michael Hartoonian
-The Charmed Structure of Friendship, by Michael Hartoonian
-Designing Friendships, by Michael Hartoonian
-Surviving Speed and Complexity, by Michael W. Wright
-Recentering Moral Capitalism, by Stephen B. Young
-The Moral Capitalist: Dimensions, Attributes and Assessments, by Michael Hartoonian
-What Are Governments for Anyway?, by Stephen B. Young
-Moral Capitalism and the Middle Class, by Michael Hartoonian
-The Re-emergence of Theocracy in Modern China, by Stephen B. Young
-No Trust, No Future, by Michael W. Wright
-The 100th Anniversary of Mussolini’s March on Rome: Il Duce’s Long Shadow, by Stephen B. Young
-The Mindset of the Moral Capitalist, by Michael Hartoonian
-Mindsets, by Stephen B. Young
-The Design of Ethical Behavior and Moral Institutions, by Michael Hartoonian
-A New Code of Ethics for Journalism, by Stephen B. Young

Caux Round Table Fellows

We relied upon our Fellows, participating in Zoom round tables, to provide their guidance as to the critical and fundamental challenges facing our global community and our systems of wealth creation and governance.

Covenants of the Prophet Muhammad to Respect and Protect Christians

We continued to promote awareness of the example given by the Prophet Muhammad in his covenants to respect and protect Christian communities.

As Pope Francis wrote me, he “trusts that such covenants will serve as a model for the further enhancement of mutual respect, understanding and fraternal coexistence between Christians and Muslims at the present time.”

Framing a New Global Ethic

In late 2022, with his invasion of Ukraine, Vladimir Putin challenged the legitimacy of the post-World War II liberal democratic international order.  The Caux Round Table responded with an initiative in Thailand to begin incorporation of Asian wisdom traditions on moderation, equilibrium and checks and balances in a new foundational global ethic.

I think that our distinctive contributions well deserve your generous support.

To donate, please click here.

If you would rather mail a check, our address is 75 West Fifth Street, Suite 219, St. Paul, MN 55102.

You can also contribute via wire transfer.  For instructions, please respond to this email.

Thank you in advance for your support and continued interest in our work.