Wouldn't "voting with your wallet" AND more accountability be better than just the former ?

There really aren't though, at least not 98% of the time. You are confusing the fact that multiple parties benefit with the focus of the entire process.

As things stand now it is, typically, a win-win-win type of process but it is the consumer who matters the most.

I am aware that the process is generally intended to extract resources from the consumers. Consumers in the market may have the last word on whether a product is a success or not. But again there are nuances here you do not seem to get without looking at the bigger picture.

The current price is a compromise that consumers make, usually because the substitutes are inferior or more difficult to obtain, just because their decision is the "last" does not mean they have the most bargaining power.

Your argument appears to be "Whats the point if the market will decide anyway". Well the point is that there are many aspects of economic decision making which are not up to consumers at point of purchase. Like the presence of carcinogens and harmful substances in their product which have system delays. Or negative externalities associated with production. And sometimes there are products which have positive externalities for which it would be better if they were cheaper.

Also conscientious consumers tend to sympathize with workers who have to work under dangerous or harmful conditions.

The consumer market has its own constraints, which is why I am fine with it being around, but adding another structure creates a dynamic set of constraints that can solve a great many problems without costly lawsuits, boycotts, petitions and eventually regulations/consumer protections.

Multistakeholderism is not just about the price or the end product, its about what goes into the creation of said product, its about macro-economic effects (for instance the degree of specialization and the size of companies), its how the profit is used, where the waste goes.

You would have a stronger point if production process were created merely to optimize consumer satisfaction, but look around and realise that consumers tend to satisfice when their options are few.

Moreover, while small businesses may be more responsive to consumers, large companies tend to have very involved decision making processes which have to deal with numerous interdependencies, they have to predict consumer demand, rather than respond to it because a lot of product is being moved.

Revealed preferences may be the moment of truth, but this does not mean that we eschew all planning and analysis.

/r/CapitalismVSocialism Thread Parent