Forum Post: You don't trust corporations but you trust the government?
Posted 12 years ago on Oct. 16, 2011, 3:03 p.m. EST by letsuseourheads
(21)
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
If you don't want to support large corporations then don't buy anything from them. It is as simple as that.
You are not afforded this luxury when it comes to the federal government. If you ignore the government you are subject to imprisonment and, depending on the extent to which you ignore them, even death. Bank of America can't do that.
The infallibility of business corporations is an article of faith that you can believe if you're a highly paid CEO or if you've been brainwashed. Let's look at the parade of failures in the last 10 years and get some reasons why we should believe in the sanctity of business: Enron, Worldcomm, HealthSouth, Countrywide, BearStearns, LehmanBrothers, AIG, and British Petroleum. Every one of these companies, subverted our capitalist system, in an insidious way. Our government is corrupt because business corporations have been allowed to buy their way into it to secure advantages for themselves. Once the government is free of their corrupting influence, it will be able to function properly again. Meanwhile we do have the ballot box.
Corporations are not entirely evil. Looking around, I see lots of things made by corporations of good quality and great usefulness. In fact everything I am using to communicate with this forum is from corporations.
I don't blame the corporations for using their collected wealth to influence our government in their favor. The purpose of the corporation is to succeed at whatever cost, and the people benefit from this as long as there are other corporations competing for the same success.
HOWEVER, it is my right and my purpose and my duty (as it is of the entire American population) to protect my government from the corporations' desire to influence it. The US government was designed for this according to the 1st 2nd 4th and 9th amendments. For this reason alone do I trust the government: that despite my lack of power, wealth and despite not having a direct influence on legislation through lobbying, I can still make a difference hand in hand with my fellow citizens and be heard.
Yes, if you fail to pay taxes, then you can be put in jail and if you ignore the federal government's laws against killing people, then you can be put to death by the government. We all know that. There's a reason we gave the authority to enforce laws to the government and not to Bank of America though. It's because most of us actually trust our government and don't hide behind couches with loaded guns when a government rep. comes to our doors. Yes, most of us trust our government. That's why certain groups like to use names that sound like pseudo government operations. Groups like the United States Chamber of Commerce. In reality, they can't be trusted, but they try to sound like a government agency to take advantage of the fact that so many people DO trust the government.
"take advantage of the fact that so many people DO trust the government."<<<--For generations. It wasn't always like that, and frankly it's not supposed to be. Look where it has taken us.
i am a libertarian and i don't trust either, and our system is fully of crony capitalism.
+1.
you guys are so funny. you accuse us of being communist infiltrators and like to say we have been deceived by outside forces and that you are the true americans. then why are you the ones trying to subvert our government? let me tell you why, because you are bankrolled by people that know no nation, no patriotism, can escape to any corner of the globe when it comes time to pay the piper. you are the lapdogs of international powers. we are protesting those corrupting our government and paying to subvert it. you need to figure out who you're fighting for.
Bravo. Tell it.
and who are those that are corrupting our government?
Who do you mean by, "you guys?"
http://merriam-webster.com/dictionary/you
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/guy
That is a cute way to ignore a question.
if you want to debate my point, thats fine. but i will not engage you on petty back and forth bs.
I did. I will ask again. Who are those that are corrupting our government?
money in lobbying. not lobbying, but money in it. lobbying in and of itself is productive. so do you need a full list of companies using this practice? cause you could find that just as easily as i could. if you would like to dive further http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h112-138
Also, I would like to thank you for letting me know what I think.
It wasn't a question of whether or not I can dig up information on my own. Obviously, I also have the internet. I was asking you to expand on your vague point.
But we ostensibly have representation and a meaningful vote. That's what's been subverted by the oligarchy.
The "don't buy anything" argument is false. Most don't have the luxury of ethical purchasing. I've tried it. It's impossible. There are very few products I don't have reservations about, but have to buy out of necessity. This would be even more true in a world that lacked any a) regulation and b) monitoring of business practices.
In addition, the "don't buy from corporations" argument is irrelevant. Corporations are an integral part of American Society. To opt out is to opt out of society. We are trying to redress grievances within the system, not tear it down. It is not only our right as citizens, it is the first right stated by our founders.
This.
Look, if we want to do better, we as people also have a responsibility to be smarter. Let's all stop conflating current implementations with underlying systems. If your car breaks down, that doesn't mean all cars are broken. If our current government has broken down, that doesn't mean all governmental systems are broken.
DEAR INDIVIDUAL READING THIS, What must we as people do to fight this grave injustice inflicted upon us, by the ones who lust for power? How can we end the reign of the wicked and immoral and mete JUSTICE upon the oppressors as we have suffered from their hands-their blood stained hands... An idea of REVOLUTION-no, the act of revolution enacted by the proletarians! Must we as individuals ,as is always done, remain pawns to these people, these monoliths that we alone as individuals cannot surmounted...I surmise that we are not ignorant to the woes inflicted upon us by their enormities? We must UNIFY! Unity will be the way in which we assert ourselves!...While I realize all are not are not without income or funds and many cannot unify with this growing movement do to reasons of possible opposition and they being the people I'm question who we oppose (Wall Street), and many have responsibility they must tend to that take precedence. We must rise and vanquish this behemothto restore the equilibrium, for when disturbed it causes much chaos and strife in the hearts of man( man being neutral to represent all genders) in his mind and when mans mind and soul are in chaos as many are they rise to vanquish the pestiferous wealthy. However we should not just target these individuals, each of us individually must confront the corruption in our hearts, how can we judge the corrupt and deem them so when we cannot be amenable for ourselves we will surely be deemed hypocrites as we will be.....I am not meaning to say that this protest is in any way unjust, for far too long have we suffered, I mean that we are expected to expiate our sins -assume our parts in the problems we face and how we may have caused it. Yes, the Bankers on Wall Street are corrupt in ways we don't have evidence of without an investigation. But as we suffer soshall they, for we will make it so. But what of our government I say, my fellow citizens do not neglect to Confront the complicit in this affair for the roots of corruption are deeply seated, we have silent enemies amongst us-be warned that although succession in our goals will happen we may face a greater threat to our rights granted unto us from birth be prudent and circumspect. Another issue I wish to address is the idea of mans continual corruption as all things will be permeated with this darkness Inside our hearts.......when a system is created it always deviates from the righteous path, for nations we have learnt of in our education are littered with tales of nations that became corrupt and faded Into the ruin of collapse, we know that a society without corruption is utterly inconceivable, impossible in ways each and everyone of us know...for as long as men exist so shall our inner evil....but I digress from my original Intent of this passage and I ask forgiveness as we must forgive all in all eventual....the rising potentiality of this movement is quite an astonishment, I thought we were not capable of such things and thus I admit I had less faith in my fellow man. I see that we have all come to the realization of the need to bring the greedy to justice, although the reasons for your protesting may be unique to you, you share many goal, I had prognostications, inklings seems more appropriate of a term, that one day man would wake to realize the greater truth outside of his/her reality, and break the cycles of obsession with superficial base needs and trite motives, a dull and predictable lot we were but we've surpassed that I hope....for if not we will founder and fall Into the patterns we had grown so accustomed to, living such prosaic pedestrian lives stultified by the elite and of our own ignorance we always have the means to educate ourselves in this age, we have no limits to what we may learn based on our status in society, the powerful can no longer succeed in keeping us stupefied we have freewill to reason and learn and form our own ideas, ideas that would otherwise have died by the hands of the bigots! Our endeavours shall be crowned with fruition of our goals for our will allows it, we have broken free from the will of the oppressors......as Desmond Tutu stated "If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor." YOURS TRULY-Aaron Thomas Bridge
You know we are not locked into one allegiance.
If today it is good corporations lead by a few bad executives, we protest those executives.
If tomorrow it is a bad President, Senator, or Representative, we protest them.
I don't trust colllusion between corporations and governments. We are living the results now
There is no reason why we cannot protest the behaviors of the companies with who we do business. If fact, change can most effectively be engendered within the organization or system rather than outside.
For me personally, I am sick of the attitude among most right-wing conservatives that corporations are the savior of the world and government is evil incarnate. They both have their problems and the sooner we all realize and accept that we can effect real change to make them both better.
Down with unhappiness!
At what point will you be happy? When you end greed completely? That is about as far fetched as ending terror.
The Tea Party doesn't trust the government. Occupy Wall Street doesn't trust business. Every extremist has his boogeyman.
http://teaoccupyunited.com/
United we stand, Divided we fall
I think "Occupy Tea" has a much better ring to it.
I didn't make the site, but occupywallteapartystreet sounds even better!! :P
I would drink that.
What do you have to buy out of necessity that you have reservations about?
Gasoline. Non-organic food. Toilet paper. A laptop for work. A cell phone. I could go on.
You did not list anything that you couldn't live without. You listed items that you would rather not live without.
But in our society, living without those items makes you basically homeless. You'd rather put people on the street than fix the system?