The Corporation - A Killer of the American Soul
The corporation is an ever increasingly popular and powerful business model in the US.
A business that operates as a corporation is owned , supposedly, by many shareholders and we are told it allows share holders to share in the company profits.
However, to incorporate is usually done to avoid responsibility for the actions of the corporation and to make money by selling paper, instead of products or services.
Over time, people have learned to use it for more insidious things like avoiding moral responsibility. If a corporation has a process or product that kills people, and it would decrease profit to fix it.. a corporate officer who makes such a decision could be sued by the shareholders and would technically be breaking the law. It is against the law for a corporate officer to do anything that would decrease profits. However I would bet good money, no one has pushed the issue like that.
We have seen in recent years how corporations can do all sorts of hideous things and get away with it. From Enron to Worldcom to Blackwater.
You see the main , real, problem is inherently built into the very idea of a corporation.
It has power and strength and no soul. The corporation is a highly inanimate entity.
No one who runs or works at one can usually be held legally or morally responsible for the decisions they make as an employee of a corporation. If he or she makes a decision that harms people, as long as the company does not loose a law suit over it, they suffer no real consequences. If they do, or becomes ashamed for what they did, they can quit. Most of the time, no one outside the corporation will ever know what they did. The corporation would even most likely defend the decision.
This type of environment actually has a hand in dehumanizing American culture and a huge contribution to removing morals and principles, or at least furthering the concept of conditional morals and values.
By the proliferation of the corporate model and its huge effect on our culture, the very principles of our society have been harmed. So many people now work in one, it has become part and parcel of American life.
This is very detrimental to us as a people. We have given the corporation the same right as person by law. Even though a corporation has no moral principles or human ethics and has no human accountability, it has all the power of a tremendously rich human. The flaw in this, is there are not the same checks and balances as in a human. A corporation does not have to go to bed with itself or a spouse at night and try to get a good nights sleep. It never has to look in the mirror. There is no one at church or in the community or relatives to answer too, to have to explain things too. There is no shame to suffer, there is no grave to face.
The courts have said a corporation has the same freedom as a human being and has the right to free speech. What’s worse is conservatives on the Supreme Court have always made sure that free speech included billions of dollars corporations have spent on bribing government officials. (Lobbyist spending money on politicians and their campaigns is a bribe, no matter what anyone says)
An individual or family owned business has those things to balance its actions. But a Corporation has only law suits and fines to worry about. And since its not human , it has no mind or heart worry with.
You say, but they have people who work there with a conscious. Yes there are but their conscious only has to go as far as to if they still want to be there. Money and income can over ride that any day. They also have a level of anonymity. The people who run these things live in isolation and secrecy from most people.
How else do they get away with Millions in salary and bonuses?
We need legislation to more properly reflect the lack of human accountability and freedom from responsibility. Corporations should BOT have the rights of an individual, and those who run them should accountable to more than share holders for their decisions. A corporation’s right should be subservient to those of human beings.
What do you think we can do to change this?
If I am wrong, why?
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Comments: 136
I'm no scholar of labor law, but I do believe the corporate model needs develop a conscience. I have a feeling that's what labor unions did early on - acted in the interests of the workers.
I think the site is about to go offline so I'll think on this some more.
that puts vampires to shame
for they suck the life
of everything they claim
They care not a whit for people
they truly have no soul
and making tons of money
is their only goal
the get rid of competition
from the smaller guy
running them under
with every deceit and lie
they will always tell you
smile for we are here to serve
as long as we take a profit
if not, then you have some nerve!
I wish I knew what to do to change this. I am not in business, nor have I ever taken a business or economics course that didn't make my head hurt.
It is the consumer that moves America and creates jobs, not business.
Another problem I have with many corporate mergers is that they eliminate competition, therefore allowing a single corporation to raise prices not out of need, but out of greed.
As one who've worked for some major corporations and now work for a family run business, the difference is like night and day. We have approximately 1500 workers and it never cease to amaze me when I see men and women come from behind their desks, roll up their sleeves and lend a hand to the blue collar workers when necessary. Seeing that lets one know that we all have a stake in making the business work. I never got that feeling working for some of the Fortune 500 companies.
Thank you Vivian. Many Americans were on the wrong end of the many mergers we witnessed over the last couple of decades. It's not a Democratic or Republican issue. Both parties allowed this to happen under their watch.
Steven you just defined the nature of a monopoly.
Linda I fail to see how fascism is part of this equation. It's not about any social order. It's about greed at any cost. More like Capitalism gone amok.
Amen.
We are not our Government. Whatever romantic notions people might carry about this being a "Democracy" or a "Republic" seem pretty silly in the light of day. This government has become so utterly oppressive over the last ten years that the nation is hardly recognizable. It is true, most of the infringements on our liberties, most of the tax increases, and regulations are imposed by progressive State government. However, the Federal Establishment, including the Bureaucracy, consumes so much of this nations wealth that it has become the very embodiment of greed and corruption. No collection of Corporations in America or in the world can begin to rival it. Placing faith in Government is an act of choosing a Devil. Freedom and Independence are nothing but memories; and according to most Americans, they are bad memories.
Hello Steven.
I understand how you feel about our Government. However there is a role for Government in a society such as ours.
We are better off for many of the things that Government provides and regulates. In my neck of the woods, Government works well.
Our tax dollars provide us with the well paved roads I use on a daily basis to get back and forth from work and to move around freely to the many places I need to go.
Our tax dollars provide us the ability to dial just three numbers, 911, to have a tax-payer law enforcement officer come to our assistance if necessary.
Our tax dollars subsidize our education system so vital in educating our children allowing us to compete on a global scale.
Our tax dollars allows us to maintain our great resources such as our National Parks that are real American treasures.
Our tax dollars help finance research and development in an attempt to find cures to many of the diseases that afflict our Nation.
Our Government subsidizes the strongest military on the planet Earth. And I believe we are better off for that.
I could go on and on, but I believe you get my drift.
Government is not Evil and not headed by some Devilish individual. Our Government is us. You and I.
Tell me how your vision of a unregulated society would work without Government. Sounds like you want to emulate countries without a working Government like Somalia or the Tribal regions of Pakistan.
I can see it now. An America composed of Dodge Cities springing up all over the United States. I can see it now. A United States reverting to primitive tendencies. Survival of the fittest. No room for anyone but those of wealth and power.
We are not the United States of Somalia or the the United States of Pakistan. We are the United States of America. A country that others look towards for leadership. A country that had a beautiful transition from one Political Party to another.
Our Constitution has been adopted by many countries throughout the world and there's a reason for it. Because it works.
Give me an alternative. I'm waiting.
This is not a Republic or a Democracy. It is a Constitutional Republic and "Constitutional" is the most important term. The government must not be allowed to legislate on matters that the Constitution does not give them authority over. And if the government is going to be "us" or "we" then we require the kind of public support needed to pass such amendments. Otherwise, it is not "we", but "us" and "them".
The Constitution has become a powerless force in American Politics and the ensuing corruption, swindling, and infringements on our liberty as set the Government against us. We are not our government anymore.
The people should have liberty, but the government should not, because the government is capable of taking away the liberty of the people. The people should be free to live their lives with as little government as they can stand, and this would be possible were we to have a government that was restricted to only its assigned roles and authorities, which should be protect by the Constitution, something all the States have agreed to. Something the States could change if they wanted to. There can still be change. All I ask is that it comes honestly and with the support of the American People, and is legislated Constitutionally through the prescribed amendment process. I am willing to live under laws and powers my countrymen support, even if I disagree, so long as it is done according to the amendment process.
I'm glad to see that their are some areas concerning government that we agree on. Our dispute seems to be the degree of the role that government should play in our lives.
Being a Proud Liberal Democrat, of course I'll side on a greater role for government actions. I see the positive aspects of government and I realize that their are many challenges and issues that only government can tackle.
Saying that I see a role for individuals like yourself wanting to keep things in check. That is a good thing. As you've heard, power does corrupt, and even I don't want a mighty and all powerful federal government.
This is where those in power should do as you and I have done and hash out the lengths that both sides feel government should be a part of our lives. Then there must be compromise that both sides can live with.
I understand your feelings even though I disagree with some parts of it.
I have a great deal of faith in people and I know that they do not need to give up their essential liberties for the illusions of security.
When a business has no soul, and gets so large that 100 customers complaining has no effect.. you get bad products and bad service.
Thanks for posting this to Obama YES! Palin ~ NO!
Why such a one-sided totally negative view? Why no notice of or credit given for the many goods produced, products invented and manufactured, services offered, jobs created, pensions paid, risks taken, charitable donations made, college scholarships offered, and contributions to a improved lifestyles for nearly every American. Is it perfect- No. Are most corporations/businesses doing a pretty solid job of balancing "good citizen-ship" and business success - I believe Yes. If you don't what it is your proposed solution?
Hello Ken.
Here is the problem I have with such mega-corporations. Take Wal-Mart and Home Depot, for example. Before Wal-Mart and Home Depot moved into our town we had numerous shoe stores, hardware stores, clothing stores, gardening centers, etc., etc., etc.
Now most of these independent, owner operated establishments are boarded up. Our strip malls are all deserted. Even the local Dollar store went under.
Many of the people whom operated these stores now work for Wal-Mart and Home Depot. And the consumer are at the mercy of these 2 mega-corporations. Yes, they may have lower prices, but many like myself, enjoyed having a choice. If I didn't like how I was treated at any of these owner operated small businesses, I could take my business elsewhere. Now that choice has been squashed. Customer service is at an all time low. You can't even call and speak to a manager. They have us just where they want us.
The jobs created don't provide a living wage. I haven't seen the results of the charitable donations you speak of. And to say that they have improved the lifestyles of nearly every American is just plain false.
They have imported cheap goods from all over the world at the expense of the American worker. Not everyone is suited for corporate jobs. Some of use like blue collar jobs. There's nothing to be ashamed of by that.
These corporations are not good citizens. They are mega-corporations who've grown to big to fail, thus leaving the American people footing the bill when they face a financial crisis.
In my opinion, I believe we were better off when I could visit my local shoe store, Army/Navy discount store and the local hardware store even if the prices were a bit higher. I value customer service and that's what's lacking these days.
My solution is for local communities to have the ability to say "No" to these mega-corporations intruding on their neighborhoods. As we speak, there is a huge fight going on because Wal-Mart wants to expand their store and create a grocery division. What will happen to our smaller grocery stores? You know the answer. They will soon go under after decades of existence.
Sometimes I just want to go into a store, buy my goods and get out as soon as possible. You just can't do that at Wal-Mart or Home Depot. Don't you treasure having a choice of which stores you want to patronize? Why do you want your options limited?
I believe we were all better off with the older business model.
I agree 100% with your asesment of the Retail industry, but soo many people are addicted to these BIG BOx store adn the low prices
They have, via their accumulated vast wealth beyond our ability to even imagine, gained control of the editorial policy of our vast media empire from TV, movies to book publishing houses, all of the organs that the average person uses to inform themselves about their world.
The entire deck is stacked and most have been indoctrinated to defend it, just as Ken here has.
Oh, you mean like the 100% in-the-tank support for anything Obama by the GE/MSNBC bunch. Don't you worry, Obama's new FCC czar want to tax private broadcasters at 100% of their operating costs so NPR can give us more of their unbiased stellar NewsFromtheLeft.
http://www.khakielephant.com/2009/08/mark-lloyd-fccs-new-attack-free-speech.html
While I do think capitalism is viable and not corrupt in and of itself and corporations fill certain needs in the market place, the government, which is a corporations itself, needs to do what they are obligated to do. Because we have come to believe that words mean whatever is convenient at the time, our laws (the constitution(s)) have no meaning and really do not constitution a solid foundation. They have become noting more than random words on paper.
Suppose that every customer at "big-box inc" got a better deal than they used to and everyone of them saves at least an arbitrary $0.25 on every item every day. That adds up to a lot of benefit. Suppose that several small volume local merchants are hurt by big-box and have to close and take other jobs or do other things (probably a negative). It's not trivial to weigh the two but it's certainly not obvious that the negative outweighs the positive.
Automobiles destroyed the buggy-whip industry. Was that negative?
as to the title, that is called marketing.. it got you in here didnt it?
your welcome anytime
It makes good common sense. Do you think this type of legislation would have a chance wiht the Republicans holding the Country hostage like they are now?
is an excellent idea!
We have got to get production back in America!
We are slowly killing ourselves and loving every minute of it. Advertising goes a long way to make us what we are. Guess it's time to wake up before it's too late.
Unfortunately, each individual must make that decision as to whether or not to improve our quality of life or take the easy way out. What's your guess, Dexter?
So let's take business as an example. What is the foundation of capital and job growth? Investment. Why are investors willing to risk their hard earned money without a guaranteed return? The promise of great profit.
Right?
In order to grow the economy we need to have investment and high rewards for doing so. That means we need low capital gains taxes, if any at all. That means we need to free up capital to be invested. It also means that investors will support CEOs who increase profits, reduce costs, and grow the business as a whole. What interests investors is not always what interests Communities and Consumers.
So where is the balance? Progressives and Conservatives alike look to Government to force balance on the "system". And then they act all shocked and disturbed while trying to justice the many unintended consequences of Government involvement (waste, corruption, scandal, cronyism, etc.)
The Balance must come from the consumer: informed, deliberate, assertive. Did you know that over the last 80 years, teenage girls have begun having their periods earlier and earlier, experiencing increased breast growth earlier and earlier, because of all the synthetic estrogen being pumped into beef and poultry? 12 year old's should not be having children or wearing bras, but they are due to the products they consume. The corporations are not to blame. There is a demand for Cheap Beef and Poultry.
Tell me, where is the demand for clean beef and poultry? Think about the word "demand" and what it means to our economy and why with all the outrage and hyperbole no one takes the Voter seriously.
They say one thing and they demand another.
"The corporations are not to blame. There is a demand for Cheap Beef and Poultry.
Tell me, where is the demand for clean beef and poultry? Think about the word "demand""
The public, if more aware of the problem, would decrease teh amount of demand for the current food supply.. but when the Beef and Poultry industries spend billions to keep the public ignorant of the real facts and increase the amoumt of phoney information, it ublances teh free market system... They also spend billions on lobbyist to keep goverment controls on processing methods in a manner that prevents cleaner meats from getting to the market. Capitalism doesnt work by itself.. it must have govt balance added. They have made it virtually impossible for farmers like me to sell my own beef without it going to feed lots and poultry proccess is exticnt except for mega proccessoring corporations like tyson , Congra. and others due to their intervention in teh government process. Almost 80% of all meats available have gone thru the hands of ConAgra and ADM, befoer it ever gets to market.. Not only to they control most of the food supply in the US, but they also recieve the majority of Govt Subsidies... thanks to congressman from states like Kansas, Iowa, Wyoming, Montana, Alabama, georgia etc.. which are largley republicans.
I wish I could remember.
The courts have said a corporation has the same freedom as a human being and has the right to free speech.
This is one of the biggest problems our country. The first amendment is the right to free speech in the courts for the redress of grievance and doesn't give the judges or the courts the authority to pick and choose cases without being heard.
The founders of the constitution made provisions for a civil government and allowed congress to make the rules to process one of their own or the judiciary should they violate the constitution. Not decide wether or not the person should be punished. "Shall" is the operative word. It is a question of arresting the person quietly or sending a SWAT team to their door. The US Constitution is the law followed by your state's constitution. Whenever the two conflict the one that protects the rights of the citizen more supersedes the other. Every statute, code, policy, ordinance etc is only enforceable if it doesn't not infringe on the rights of the people or grants more powers to the government. The majority of federal and state statutes are unconstitutional on their face yet we keep asking for more.
SEC. 132. REQUIRING FAIR GRIEVANCE AND APPEALS MECHANISMS.
(a) INGENERAL.—A QHBP offering entity shall provide for timely grievance and appeals mechanisms that the Commissioner shall establish.
Corporations can be financially punished (made insolvent), as well, negligence from members or employees can be held legally liable in certain situations.
Capitalism is the best thing going when you consider the alternatives. If you've got a better model, let us know.
Big Corperate has and big government has fostered the growth of each other. They've been married for years.
Have they both become, "too big to fail"? And people must continue to deed the beast, because it brings some beneficial things. Yup. I suppose so.
What are those alternatives?
My point has nothing to do with which busness are corps or nots.... it has to do with the Corporate Intity....as a form of business...
They have, via their accumulated vast wealth beyond our ability to even imagine, gained control of the editorial policy of our vast media empire from TV, movies to book publishing houses, all of the organs that the average person uses to inform themselves about their world.
The entire deck is stacked and most have been indoctrinated to defend it, just as Don here has.
And yes, corporations run the show in America, perhaps more than in other countries.
Of course there are "good" corporations, many of them. Of course they bring value to our lives ... but at what cost ?
It is in the hidden realm of their upper echelon structure of greed and eventual world domination that things take place which most adversely affect us but which we are never supposed to suspect let alone know anything about.
Sure, we Americans have it better than much of the world ... WE ARE CONSTANTLY REMINDED OF THAT SO THAT WE WILL BETTER APPRECIATE OUR CORPORATIONS. Would our corporations ever lie to us ???
For example, someone starts a business, things are going ok, and then a problem occurs (to take the health care route, maybe he or she is sick or is injured). The sole proprietor, should the business fail, could not only lose the business but everything they own. Their creditors can come and take it all.
For a corporation, the corporate entity can fail but the investors will only lose their investments. If you buy stock in a company and the company fails, the company's creditors are not going to come and raid your bank account. You just lost your investment.
In concept, this works for our capitalist society. However, as I'm sure we've all seen, we can take a decent idea and really make a mess of things.
Corporations have a responsibility to their shareholders to make profits, so they hire people to run things that they think will make the corporation profitable. But then the people who run things get the ultimate win-win deal: if they increase profits they win, but if they don't they win, too (success=huge salary+monstrous bonus, failure=golden parachute). Now these "best and brightest" have no incentive to succeed.
Can we fix this? Maybe. As Don stated, not all corporations are evil. Corporations have an opportunity to form a sense of community among stakeholders (employees, consumers, the communities they serve). But many corporations need a swift kick in the pocketbook. I guess the question is how do we give it to them.
Dexter, are you will to pay twice as much in your government taxes to receive the same "irresponsibility" benefits as a corporation does?
Its like the idiotic myth they spread about business creating jobs, when in fact, its consumer demand that creates jobs, or that if you regulate a business they will raise their prices., when prices are supposed to bean innocent process of supply and demand (according to them).
You know the public is getting smarter to these age old threats.
Stock speculation should have all the risk of any other money making scheme and should not be held sacred. It serves no solid productive purpose in society. Brokers and other stock promoters (con men who make their money on the gullibility of the buyers) have lied for years about what a great , money making thing stocks are , when in reality, its no more than legitimized gambling and should not receive any more protection than gambling does..
I dont advocate teh total removal of the corporate entity, but to have it redesigned and to legislate strick controls and remove its rights as of people an individual.
The East India Trading Company, at the time, was suffering financially and was also struggling to compete against smuggled Dutch tea. The British government passed a law to allow them, for the first time, to sell directly to the colonists in America. The law also paid the corporation a REFUND on tea that was exported to the colonies. In order to help offset the revenue loss that came as a result of this corporate welfare handout, they assessed a tax to the colonists.
What the colonists were revolting against wasn't just a tax. It was a tax WELFARE handout to a corporation, that was extremely unfair to the colonists, and gave the East India Trading Company unfair leverage.
Corporate charters were initially only issued by the state in which the corporation was founded, and the charters were only valid for a maximum of 40 years, after which time the corporation had to re-organize and be approved for another charter.
If, at any time during that 40 year charter, the state of origin determined that the corporation had not acted in good faith of the citizenry, their charter could be dissolved, and the corporation "put to death."
Many states early on also had "death sentences" with regard to any corporation that allowed any of its influential officers or employees to gain any access to any politician at any level of government. The founders knew all too well what a colossal threat concentrated wealth and power meant to the new democracy, and they weren't about to allow corporate money and power become intertwined into the government.
It was in the 1880's, in the 1886 SCOTUS case "Santa Clara County v Southern Pacific Railroad. At no time during this entire case was it ever stated that corporate personhood should be granted, yet the chief justice at the time, in his case summary, began with a statement to the effect that "all agree that corporations have personhood."
It was entirely fraudulent, but it quickly became adopted as the law of the land, and we've been losing our nation ever since. What greatly accelerated this and made it FAR worse was the development of PAC funding, which allowed corporate cash to funnel directly into the pockets of our representatives, thereby effectively making them the legislative arm of corporate influence. Today, we are, in effect, controlled almost entirely by corporate influence, and little of the democratic society that our founders created remains intact.
Aside from having the "right" to say and do basically anything they damn well please, corporations have also managed to get hundreds of billions of public wealth shoveled into their pockets, while at the same time shipping millions of jobs overseas and not paying a penny in taxes. They are not only NOT good citizens of this country, they are a very serious threat to our very lives.
Rest assured, if a government entity had gained this much control and was this toxic and abusive to society, it would've been dissolved eons ago. It is a tribute to their ability to mislead and misinform that corporations have done as much damage to this world as they have, and yet STILL have a cadre of blind supporters cheering them on and providing cover for them.
Super comment. You have not only provided the history but have explained why and how the influence has so polluted our politics.
My solution (as you probably know) is at www.nopom.info .
Section 4. The United States shall guarantee to every state in this union a republican form of government, and shall protect each of them against invasion; and on application of the legislature, or of the executive (when the legislature cannot be convened) against domestic violence.
From Clark's astute comment, "PAC funding, which allowed corporate cash to funnel directly into the pockets of our representatives,"
Doesn't that one sentence lie at the heart of the problem? And, as others have indicated, greed, by our representatives as well as corporate heads.
We have no control over who heads a corporation, but we definitely have a say over our representatives. But we need to keep informed as to who is taking big money from whom, and just how does that affect their decision making on important issues?
With our internet accessibility to such records as who got what from which PAC, we need to enlighten not only ourselves but everyone out there!
Great post Dexter!
by Dexter S.
Member since:
June 29, 2009 The Corporation - A Killer of the American Soul
August 25, 2009 10:17 PM EDT (Updated: August 25, 2009 10:19 PM EDT)
views: 201 | rating: 7.4/10 (7 votes) | comments: 113
The Corporation - A Killer of the American Soul
The corporation is an ever increasingly popular and powerful business model in the US.
A business that operates as a corporation is owned , supposedly, by many shareholders and we are told it allows share holders to share in the company profits.
However, to incorporate is usually done to avoid responsibility for the actions of the corporation and to make money by selling paper, instead of products or services.
Over time, people have learned to use it for more insidious things like avoiding moral responsibility. If a corporation has a process or product that kills people, and it would decrease profit to fix it.. a corporate officer who makes such a decision could be sued by the shareholders and would technically be breaking the law. It is against the law for a corporate officer to do anything that would decrease profits. However I would bet good money, no one has pushed the issue like that.
We have seen in recent years how corporations can do all sorts of hideous things and get away with it. From Enron to Worldcom to Blackwater.
" You see the main , real, problem is inherently built into the very idea of a corporation.
It has power and strength and no soul."
you hit the head on the nail! I don't know if there's anything that can be done to tame or right such monsters