Okay. I DON'T GET the free pass to corporations.

[sicksicksick_N_tired]

Explain to me why the common man/woman/child is subject to laws prohibiting all forms of violence (mental, physical and spiritual) against another while corporations are NOT ONLY given a free ticket BUT ALSO SUBSIDIZED to profit off all common people.

Explain that to me.

Why is economic oppression blown off as a 'natural' and 'acceptable' activity?

Make sense of predatory "free market" to all of us who have NO PRE-CONDITIONED ADVANTAGE over those who try to participate and drown with the sharks in charge.

[deutsey]

1. Because corporatism is essentially feudalism

Economic and political power rests in the hands of a few elites that control the rest of us and profit from our labor.

That's one reason corporatists want to weaken and dismantle a strong, activist government that defends and represents the interests of the people.

Thom Hartmann has influenced my thinking on this, btw...

[sicksicksick_N_tired]

2. That's not an explanation consistent with democratic values.

You know I'm not attacking YOU, right?

I want an explanation from all those ready and armed to attack all other leaders around the globe rather than their own.

[deutsey]

3. Quote from Network (the movie)

There are no nations. There are no peoples. There are no Russians. There are no Arabs. There are no third worlds. There is no West. There is only one holistic system of systems, one vast and immane, interwoven, interacting, multivariate, multi-national dominion of dollars. Petro-dollars, electro-dollars, multi-dollars, Reichmarks, rins, rubles, pounds, and shekels.

It is the international system of currency which determines the totality of life on this planet. That is the natural order of things today. That is the atomic and subatomic and galactic structure of things today!

SNIP

You get up on your little twenty-one inch screen and howl about America and democracy. There is no America. There is no democracy. There is only IBM and ITT and AT&T and DuPont, Dow, Union Carbide, and Exxon. Those are the nations of the world today.

[BeatleBoot]

4. I disagree with one of your premises

"Make sense of predatory "free market" to all of us who have NO PRE-CONDITIONED ADVANTAGE over those who try to participate and drown with the sharks in charge."

I disagree that there is a free market, in the sense of laissez-faire capitalism.

Certainly, the oil companies aren't operating in a free market when the U.S. Taxpayer is footing a $25 Billion giveaway subsidy to them - all while they are rolling around like pigs in mud.

The U.S. Automakers aren't operating in a free market either since there are major trade barriers in other country's for their products (due to NAFTA side agreements not being enforced by the Bush Administration).

Today's corporations feed from the teat of corporate welfare.

Most (not all) of the upper management of these entities are Republican and they loathe social welfare, yet they don't seem to mind their companies feeding from the U.S. Taxpayer trough either - all while being incorporated in Bermuda - offshore - not paying a dime in U.S. Taxes.

Other than that, I agree with pretty much everything you stated.

[Arugula Latte]

5. They buy the politicians.

Simple as that.