Oops, you caught me in a homonym faux pas. Of course "sow" as in plant.
You are misinterpreting what I mean. Oil companies are problematic because they take shortcuts and the cheapest way out, and spill oil. The profit motive has to be tempered by good oversight, to protect us all from the high costs of them making mistakes. They make pretty insanely high profits, and so they need to be held to the highest standards possible. And the risks when they screw up is something we all pay for. What is the saying? Internalize the profits and externalize the costs? That's the part we need to avoid.
You do know that they get lots of subtle subsidies -- and with all their profits, they can line the pockets of those in government who are supposed to be looking out for all the rest of our interests. The unfettered market is a disaster waiting to happen.
I'm fine with long-term profits, because if they are sustained, they are less likely to be taking shortcuts. It's the short-term quick profits that are most problematic.
I still think it is pretty odd thinking to equate the profits from a book sale vs what the oil companies rake in. C'mon, I didn't just fall off the cabbage truck...