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How we CAN get corporations out of our government?

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BILL53 Donating Member (79 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jan-22-06 12:24 PM
Original message
How we CAN get corporations out of our government?
History shows us that in too many cases large corporations have greatly enhanced shareholder profits by buying legislation, or a nice profitable war, from politicians all too eager to sell.
In the early part of the last century Henry Ford wanted to use corporate profits that he viewed as excessive to raise worker salaries and reduce the price of his company's automobiles. His stockholders wanted that money for themselves. The stockholders sued, and the judge ruled that the whole purpose of business is to maximize shareholder wealth, and if Ford "wanted to pursue a (charitable end) he should do it with his own money, not with other people's."(Dodge v. Ford, 1919)
http://breakthelink.org/

http://breakthelink.org/Legal.php
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yurbud Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jan-22-06 12:28 PM
Response to Original message
1. cut off their money even indirect through soft money, revolving door...
and corporate personhood. OR if we want to affirm corporate personhood, fine. They should be eligible for criminal penalties up to and including the death penalty (dissolution) and it should be done often enough to put the fear of God in them.

The other thing that can be done is condemn and forced sale a la the Kelo decision.

The most destructive or critical to our infrastructure should be nationalized or tightly regulated so that they can't commit economic blackmail as oil companies and deregulated power companies do.
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FightingIrish Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jan-22-06 12:32 PM
Response to Original message
2. The fatal flaw of capitalism is that
it gives the greatest power to entities that have no soul. Corporations are greedy by their charter and when they buy power and influence they are really stealing it from the people. There has to be a better system.
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Selatius Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jan-22-06 12:45 PM
Response to Reply #2
4. Corporations are immortal.
They have an everlasting memory the size of the largest computer databases. If they fail in passing a piece of legislation, then they have an infinite amount of time to try and try again to pass. The law of averages says they will succeed sooner or later. The fact that they are immortal and the fact that many corporations have vast amounts of wealth means they can institute plans to influence government that could literally last several generations and can simply buy their way in many cases ahead of the interests of ordinary people. Corporations are, essentially, super citizens--immortal, vastly powerful entities with the same rights as anyone of us.
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Selatius Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jan-22-06 12:40 PM
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3. You have to pursue campaign finance reform...REAL reform
This is the best system I have seen yet. Just view the video at the link:

http://www.caclean.org/materials/
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Name removed Donating Member (0 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jan-22-06 12:48 PM
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elifino Donating Member (331 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Jan-22-06 01:19 PM
Response to Original message
6. How we CAN get corporations out of our government?
Get rid of bad elected politicians of all parties and corporations will have no access to government.
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Indy Lurker Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Jan-23-06 01:59 PM
Response to Original message
7. Get spending out of the Federal Govt.
It's all about money.

If the Federal budget is $2.6 Trillion per year, and there are 435 poeple serving in Congress, Thats $5.6 billion per congress person. On top of that, add billions in tax breaks or laxer regulations and you have the reason corporations are getting involved in govt.

I'm NOT saying to cut taxes, or reduce outlays to people, only that it is done at a state level, or through another method, that dosen't feel pressure from lobbiests, perhaps something structured like the IRS.

If it's done at a state level, Lobbiests will have to do 50 times more work have thwe same impact.

Also, get Govt out of business. Govt is having a larger and larger impact on company bottom lines.

Enviromental regs are one thing, but but deciding who gets tax breaks and who dosen't, and what union contracts are void etc. naturally draws business into govt.




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