Freedom to Fascism - Part IV

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Well kids...here we are, and the check marks continue...

For those of you who haven't seen what this series refers to, we're going on this link:

http://prorev.com/fascisthints.htm

We're on Check Mark #7, as I remember...

Check Mark #7:  A Government Subservient to the interests of the country's largest corporations

Well, no matter what the situation, or the industry, I think we all know, that as capitalists, our leaders tend to lean towards making our large and successful corporations happy.  We're afraid to operate any other way.  We give them all the tax breaks, we let them take jobs overseas to save money, we let them get by with poisoning or killing off the population, and at no small cost either.  Our economy suffers, our ecology suffers, nature suffers...and when all of these suffer, naturally, we as citizens suffer.

How many times have you heard of natural resources, like water and air, being poisoned by toxic dumping or air pollution?  Oceans and the life they carry killed off by oil spills?  Entire areas affected by nuclear waste?  Dump sites in general, affecting the wildlife in the area...or worse yet, US!!  Well, we, as individuals, have probably not, each one of us, heard of them all.  Oh sure, we hear about the major ones...but I don't think we have nearly a clue about even half.  Some are covered up by our Government, mainly to save face.  Some are, I'm sure, are not even reported.  A lot are bought off, no doubt.  Let's see if we can find some figures and examples.

Upon investigation, kids, I don't see a list that tells all.  I can tell you though that, with the help of a list at:

http://list25.com/25-biggest-man-made-environmental-disasters-in-history/

containing the top 25 worst man-made disasters, our biggest industries and major corporations who cause the better part of these disasters, whom we hail and support, tell a pretty grim tale.  These are, evidently, the 25 we couldn't possibly keep secret.  Too big to hide.  It's very sad, really, how we treat our home, at the expense of the world's (and our country's, of course) citizens.  I won't go into them...not only couldn't I, without lengthening this post about 12 more web pages...but someone else (see the aforementioned website) has more than amply done so for me.  The point is, it's because we back up our big money corps, and give them the chance to do so much damage to us and the earth without accountability...because we're worried about losing the jobs they represent, or the taxes they pay as countable income...whatever the reason, it's the WRONG reason.  Usually, we come along the things they do wrong well after the damage is more than done.  I mean really, just something as simple to consider as "everything affects something else affects something else..."...I mean this is more than enough to realize we have big problems here, with our government coddling these corporations.

Millions upon millions of people have died from tobacco use, utilizing one of our better known examples...and when did our government finally step in?  After the numbers were huge, and all the money possible made, and America tired of losing relatives, friends, spouses and children to cancer-related deaths from tobacco and nicotine, it's primary killing ingredient.  It came to the  point where the nation just finally put their feet down on the whole shebang...THEN the government, in an effort to not piss us off, finally turned a sympathetic ear to our way-too-late plight.  Remember, and never forget America, that no matter how much our government caters to our current way of thinking, and even though it appears to back our recent campaign to help us "kick the habit", that tobacco is STILL a government regulated commodity.  I don't care how many campaigns against tobacco are begun, the corporations that produce cigarettes are still very much alive and still raking in tons of cash at the expense of the lives of Americans and any country they export to, as well.

As to the subject of sending jobs, or allowing corporations to outsource employment overseas to countries where the mainly unemployed are a problem, in a major effort to save money or show bigger numbers in their profit column...well you know my stance on this one already.  In this writer's opinion?  If you want to save money by sending American jobs overseas, why don't you just pack up your headquarters and go with them?  I figure, if you care that little about contributing to the job market of the country that made you great in the first place, all because you want be able to buy yourself a new Porsche next year with all the money you saved, then we don't want you here anyway.

It's a lot like giving our money to countries in need.  This to me is definitely, in a general sense, very philanthropic in nature, as a whole.  I don't see a lot of this, however, when done by government, as something that's done solely out of the kindness of our hearts.  Almost always, it seems that a lot of our generosity is done with something more sinister at its roots, or to pacify the people when the outcry gets too loud.  In the case of a natural disaster in another part of the world, for example, it's often hard for me to believe that the first thought running through our President's head is "Oh my God!!  We gotta hurry up and help those folks!!"  Anytime I see the President address the nation after any one of these disasters, the only thing I see crossing his mind and his face is "BROWNIE POINTS!!  ELECTION VOTES!!"

Mostly though, the thing I have to say on this is what I've ALWAYS had to say on it.  If we're in no shape to help, then we shouldn't be helping!!  And we are most DEFINITELY not in a position to help!!  Our debt is in the Trillions.  We ourselves have our own smaller scale disasters.  Our people are sick and not being healed (without major cost), homeless and not being housed, and hungry, and not being fed!  How can we give our money (which, as the experts say hasn't been our money since the early 1900's) to others in need, when we're in need ourselves!!  OK, there was a time when we were prosperous...but we're in a major recession!!  There are obviously nations in the world in better shape (like the ones that are forever lending US money) that should be stepping up instead!  But because it's been expected of us since we began doing it decades ago, now it's our job to do it?  NO!!  Maybe when unemployment is back down to 3%.  Maybe when the better portion of us are NOT on welfare.  Maybe when foreclosures aren't as frequent as the current divorce rate...then MAYBE.

Check Mark #8 follows close behind.  Stay tuned.