So last week the Supreme Court basically struck down the McCain-Feingold Act, a weak law aimed at campaign finance reform (good intentions); the law limited corporate spending on election candidates. In the court's majority opinion it claims the free speech of the companies wishing to influence elections is violated. Companies were granted some of the same rights as individuals by the Supreme Court in 1886 [more on this here], but this decision truly solidifies the corporate personhood argument.

Being that corporations are immortal- they cannot be tortured or executed, and they can attain VAST supplies of capital and resources- more money than any individuals and for a company like GE or Boeing, even more than many of the world's economies.

And now, singular companies are given the same protection as each of the people that work for and make up the company. You can bet the media and advertising industries are jumping for joy- with endless access to capital, the big corporations will be doing everything they can to influence elections- including record numbers of ad buys. Billboards, TV spots, and bus-stop benches are about to get a lot more costly for small business owners as the Big Guns buy up everything they can in order to steer the public eyes, minds, and dollars in the directions they desire.

I am really riled up about this. (Can you tell??) If it lights a fire in you, you should definitely check out radio show/podcast: Common Sense. A lot of this is discussed in the most recent episode, Money Talks.

OK, hope to update again before 2011. Maybe the next one will be a little less political in nature, but I'm starting to wonder whether I may be alive to see the next American Revolution.


Oh yea, also, I'm currently on Week 5 (of 6!) of this.

And also book plug: You Are Not A Gadget by Jaron Lanier
Can't say enough good things about this manifesto; it's a relevant, techno/anthropological book (about the relationship between computers and human beings) written by a punk computer scientist who coined the term "virtual reality."