Saturday, February 2, 2008

Corprotocracy and Globalism two faces of the same coin

According to Wikipedia corprotocracy is defined as “A neologism coined by proponents of the Global Justice Movement to describe a government bowing to pressure from corporate entities.” In the case of the US government, this description is clearly visible in the pressure put on the politicians through corporate lobbyists and especially evident in their control of the government agencies which were specifically created to regulate these big corporations.
While the US government governs under the banner of democracy, in actuality, it is the big corporations with their inconceivable wealth that are pulling all the strings and calling all the shots on our foreign and domestic policies.
The history of corprotocracy in the US can be traced back to the Spanish American War of 1898, where the government, influenced by greedy corporations, blamed the explosion of the warship USS Maine on the Spaniards. Even though later the tragic event was attributed to an accident, this political and corporate tactic caused the invasion of Cuba, stripping it of its government and wealth. This is one of the many examples that are recorded in the pages of history, and one only needs to read between the lines to learn the reasons for the aggression of corporations as embodied in the actions of the US government against other countries.
In the process of defending democracy, protecting U. S. interests, and fulfilling our responsibilities as the world leader we see the influences of the corporate war machine in our government’s decision to invade and attack foreign lands. Corporations are driven by profit, and unfortunately, war is profitable for these entities.
The war in Iraq represents one of the most transparent events exemplifying the concept of corprotacracy. It was based on the false pretence of Iraq’s possession of weapons of mass destruction, which was widely exposed to the American people by the President, who proclaimed the ties between Al-Qaida and Saddam Hussein, exploiting people’s fear and preoccupation with the tragic events of 911. Although purely humanitarian and patriotic on the surface, the invasion of Iraq by the US military translated into a lucrative opportunity for the American corporations; the same ones that contributed heavily to the Presidents campaign a few years earlier. Having been given card-blanche, employees of companies like Blackwater are exempt from being prosecuted and from being held accountable for murdering innocent civilians.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqM4tKPDlR8
After approximately five years of occupation and loss of over four thousand American soldiers, the cost of the war continues to rise into the billions even after the facts are exposed.
One of the most controversial books about corprotocracy is “Confession of an Economic Hit Man” by John Perkins which provides an insider's account of the exploitation or neo-colonization of third world countries
by what Perkins portrays as a group of corporations, banks, and the United States government.
http://www.democracynow.org/2004/11/9/confessions_of_an_economic_hit_man
The book illustrates in detail how the big corporations go into third world countries like Panama, Indonesia, and even Saudi Arabia, where under the pretence of building the infrastructure of the country, they inflate economic prediction and in turn secure loans and funds through various international banks, which put the country in great debt that it will never be able to pay-off.
Perkins also casts some light on the relationship between the house of Saud of Saudi Arabian and the Bush family and their extensive financial collaborations.
Perkins also talks about the current President’s failed ventures in the field of energy and how through a merger with Spectrum 7, his own failing company, Arbusto, was rescued and later purchased by Harken Energy Corp; the same company where the president serves as a board member and a consultant with an annual salary of $120,000. (Perking, p194)
This book illustrates how corporate America has its influence in the policy making, not to mention their strong hold of the White House and how they influence the presidential elections.
The past several presidents have been chairmen and CEO of fortune 500 companies. Now wouldn’t that be considered a conflict of interest?
Where is the loyalty of our presidents – in the American people or in the corporations?
In this perspective, the campaign contributions that a presidential candidate accumulates while running for the White House are more of a bribe than a contribution. The special interest groups that give hundreds of thousands of dollars to the candidate are not supporters of a cause but are companies that are paving the road for pushing a bill or a policy that favors them.
(link)white house for sale web site posts: “This Web site allows you to follow the money trail of campaign bundlers
– or people who funnel money to campaigns – as they collect thousands, and sometimes even millions, of dollars from other people for the 2008 presidential candidates.”
http://whitehouseforsale.org/
so what is the solution?
the Corporate machine is working 24/7 ecumulating wealth and robing countries of their natural resoucres.
i think it is a time to have another tea party!

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