Both organizations have stated that they would not take such a position. A WHO representative said such misinformation strategies were common among tobacco and liquor corporations, and added that Fuller was the first producer of a solvent based product to fraudulently use the name of the organization to legitimize marketing policies. But the Fuller example shows the industry's inability or unwillingness to test activists' claims because of fiscal constraints or self-interest. When queried, SRI research firms admit they do not effectively probe multinationals' policies outside the United States and lack rating systems to evaluate transnational operations. In recent years, the power of the nation-state has been challenged by that of multinational corporations operating in a globalized economy.
Few checks exist against the excesses of corporations that put power and profit before people.
If socially responsible investing is to have real meaning, SRI researchers must understand that tough a company's policies might not be illegal, they can be unethical and an offending company should be judged accordingly. The policies and practices of multinational corporations abroad must be as important to a company profile as its domestic ones. It simply is not right that the revenue of corporations such as H.B.Fuller or SRI firms should be earned at the expense of children.