Worldbuilding June Day 7: Company Values

Money was what The Beatles wanted, agreeing with Barrett Strong, while also acknowledging that money could not buy love and therefore they didn’t care too much for it – they were a mess of contradictions.  But whatever the real value of money, peope do desire it, and those who have it in large quantities hold a lot of influence in our world, and many of them end up being part of Meridiem.

The huge conglomerate has resources greater than most nations.  Like the British East India Company that it has outlived, Meridiem has it’s own private armed forces to secure all its assets.  They influence law and politics all over the globe.  If something happens they want covered, they’ll simply buy or bribe all the relevant authorities.  And if someone doesn’t want to bribed, Meridiem will have them replaced with someone more open minded.  Money might not literally make the world go round but it makes a lot of things happen, and a lot of things disappear.

Organisations like Meridiem do however fund a great deal of science and medical research that ultimately does benefit people.  At least the ones who can afford it.  Their motive is ultimately profit, but many doctors see that they have access to greater technology and resources than they could find almost anywhere else.  The tricky part then is spinning the research in such a way that the organisation still profits while also helping the greatest number of people.

A group like Meridiem exists to serve the selfish wants of those running it, but at all levels do occasionally sneak in those who would turn some of its resources at least to the greater good of the whole world.