51 online
 
Most Popular Choices
Share on Facebook 8 Printer Friendly Page More Sharing
OpEdNews Op Eds   

Sovereignty

By       (Page 1 of 1 pages)   No comments
Message John St.John
The first great corporation was The British East India Company. It ruled India for 300 years and was responsible for this food exporting country having intermittent famine. It was responsible for the American Revolution. Queen Elizabeth disbanded it because it was a threat to her sovereignty. In America sovereignty lay in the vote. Free Americans were sovereigns.

Today giant corporations have taken our sovereignty from us. The Senate just passed an appropriations bill for $648,000,000,000 of our tax money for the defense department. This is nothing more than a funnel to the corporations.


It was a simple matter for the good Queen to axe the East India Company because she was the sovereign. In America the Constitution put sovereignty in the hands of the people. But the corporations have easily taken our power from us. Unlike a kingdom where this power was easily exercised by the will of one person; today governments are bought by the corporations who control the means of communication, the educational institutions, and the press. Government agencies can no longer regulate them and we have become their subjects.


Although the corporations are composed of human beings; employees are limited to the inhuman bottom line where decision making is by "cost benefit analysis . That is: if a product like an automobile with a faulty electrical system blows up and kills a number of families you only have two choicesï "pay off the fines and lawsuits and bribe judges or recall these death traps. A single proprietor would face time in the penitentiary but you can't put a corporation in jail. Because of the runaway productive ability of the corporations; war has become economic policy. It is the only way that a depression can be avoided.


The last great depression only ended with WWII. When I got out of the army I could not buy my wife a washing machine or a refrigerator. For four years the only products produced were those that could be blown up or became obsolete. Five years of peace and the market had again become glutted with consumer products. It was time for another war. Since then we have been in one war or another and now are in a war against terrorists. Imagine! 648 billion dollars to fight a guy with a bomb strapped to his waist. The rationale for war has now passed all of the bounds of sanity.

What can we do? The problem is to eliminate the corporation as a business form and turn it into a cooperative. I can not see how even the simple process of taking away corporation personhood can be accomplished. The only answer is revolutionï " revolution against the corporations and all of their toadies including the government. I dislike the thought of revolution because historically revolutions have usually ended with us being governed by even worse bastards that we overthrew. But what else can we do?
Rate It | View Ratings

John St.John Social Media Pages: Facebook page url on login Profile not filled in       Twitter page url on login Profile not filled in       Linkedin page url on login Profile not filled in       Instagram page url on login Profile not filled in

WWII veteran,cofounder of The American Veterans Committee. Editor of the dairy page for the California Farm Reporter. Organizer for Harry Bridges longshoremen. President Eagle Lodge number one, AFL Papermakers Union. Member of Impeach Bush.
Go To Commenting
The views expressed herein are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of this website or its editors.
Writers Guidelines

 
Contact AuthorContact Author Contact EditorContact Editor Author PageView Authors' Articles
Support OpEdNews

OpEdNews depends upon can't survive without your help.

If you value this article and the work of OpEdNews, please either Donate or Purchase a premium membership.

STAY IN THE KNOW
If you've enjoyed this, sign up for our daily or weekly newsletter to get lots of great progressive content.
Daily Weekly     OpEd News Newsletter
Name
Email
   (Opens new browser window)
 

Most Popular Articles by this Author:     (View All Most Popular Articles by this Author)

Sovereignty

China; From Comunist to Corporatist, with Democracy Never Seeing the Light of Day

The Mad Hatters

$648,000,000,000 For Defense

To View Comments or Join the Conversation:

Tell A Friend