[samiv]

Was it "financial gravity" that made the decision at VW to install emission cheat devices?

Was it "financial gravity" that made the decision at Google to cheat at the ad exchange?

Was it "financial gravity" that made the decision at DuPont to dump toxic sludge in the environment and make unsafe products?

Or perhaps was it just a group of immoral people chasing more personal gain and wealth?

Humans are too weak and too easily corrupted by wealth, power and shiny things and our political and economic systems place way too much power in the hands of fallible individuals. I expect it to be our downfall.

[Akranazon]

Answer: the cause was financial gravity, rather than immoral people, because the former is what selects for the ladder.

[jimbokun]

Those all sound 110% like "financial gravity" to me?

I mean, all of those are examples motivated by sacrificing other principles to make more money.

[samiv]

so let's call it what it is then? Corrupt individuals instead of "financial gravity"

[eries]

By this logic, there are no such thing as psychological forces or institutional structures that affect human behavior unconsciously. I don't think that can quite be right. If you read the book, you can see the much more detailed and (I hope) rigorous argument, and then judge for yourself.