The WGA strike drags on, and it is a David and Goliath battle for writers. In this case, Goliath has mutated into a network of money-lusting tyrants. And it isn't just about writers anymore. This strike is about everyone who works for a living, really. It is a demonstration by a group of people who are standing up for what's right, even though it means they may have to suffer for it right now. It is a reminder that we live in a capitalist society, and sometimes capitalism gets out of hand. It is a simple call for justice. It is humanity, united, pointing to the truth. Think about this: millions of people are supporting the writers in this strike. It is a mere handful of men at the very top who don't want to share. That should put things into perspective. Look up the word GREED and you'll find this list of names:News Corp
Time Warner
Disney
Viacom
General Electric
CBS
Sony
2 comments:
I'm unaccustomed to defending corporations, but I'll take a stab. The problem is not limited to individual corporations; it is a systemic one. You have listed 7 corporations. Most of your readers probably own (or have benefited from) several of them. Don't believe me? Do you know what's in your mutual fund, 401K, or other pension funds? Ever inherited money from someone who owned stocks? The problem is not that capitalism has "gotten out of hand." The problem is modern capitalism itself. Please don't confuse what I'm saying with market based economics or the profit motive. Those are not to be confused with modern capitalism. The problem with modern capitalists isn't that they are all greedy. The problem is that our modern system doesn't provide an atomosphere where they are permitted to both function humanely and survive. Are you familiar with Dodge vs. Ford? This was a case where Henry Ford decided to stop giving out his customary enormous special dividends to shareholders because he had additional, non profit oriented goals for his business. He wanted to grow his company his way, which meant employing more men at higher than average wages, who could actually afford the product they were manufacturing. He was the majority owner, and everybody was still earning a profit, and shareholders could sell at a profit at any time they didn't like what he was doing. All good-right? Wrong! He was sued by the Dodge brothers, who were successful. Ford might have won the case if he had argued that ultimately everybody would make more money with his method, but he didn't. He was honest, and admitted that making money wasn't his sole goal, that they were turning a profit, but that he also had higher goals for the money. That was his downfall. As every right winger's favorite capitalist, nobel laureate Milton Friedman, put it : "There is one and only one social responsibility of business. To use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits so long as it stays within the rules of the game, which is to stay engaged in open and free competition without deception and fraud." This sounds benign enough, until you really examine its implications, (which have of course been written about extensively elsewhere). So essentially, whenever a corporation fails to make AS MUCH money for its shareholders as legally possible, it exposes itself to lawsuits by common shareholders who can claim that the corporate heads have effectively stolen some of their wealth. If as a CEO I want my employees in Mexico to have better working conditions than the average Mexican, I am only technically permitted to do that if I can argue that it best suits the economic interests of the company. Sometimes I can make that argument effectively, but sometimes, of course I can't. How many common shareholders actually know what companies they own, let alone take moral responsibility for them? We like and keep the stocks that go up; seldom do we care why. For that matter, how many consumers take moral responsibility for consuming the products of such behavior? This is the "tragedy of the commons" writ large, tacky and toxic. Certainly the writers will probably win, because their product is unique enough, and their opponents aren't very bright. But a smart studio head might just decide to shake things up a bit, and hire lesser writers outside the union, maybe even go abroad, hiring hip Indians who have grown up with American TV/Hollywood movies and can replicate the 100 or so storylines that the major studios are known for most of a century. And he'll do it for a fraction of the price. It might actually increase their profits in the long run. And if that is the case, then many would argue that this course of action is in fact LEGALLY, even morally OBLIGATORY. Whenever a company becomes a corporation you observe a similar pattern; the same people who want a capitalist stake also want their "limited liability" as well as limited ethical responsibility. You can see it today in Whole Foods, a once relatively decent company that now appears obsessed with market share at any costs.
16 hour days, children's labor, complete and total exploitation of the masses that don't have any say in their own lives, by a few relatively lazy and talentless individuals. Who also pollute and use up resources at will. That is the norm in capitalist history. It was the norm in American capitalist history, until grassroots progressive movements were finally permitted to speak without threats and intimidation. After NAFTA and MFN with China, almost all US companies who tried to maintain their US base for moral reasons, not wanting to engage in modern slaveholding, have long bit the dust. And many of those Disney writers benefited from all of those promotional toys that those slave laborers make. Those writers chose to be a part of an ultimately corrosive and inhumane system. They might not have realized it when they originally signed on, but if they are as smart as they think they are it will become increasingly clear. At least they have a choice, as relatively well off, educated people with developed, transferable skill sets and savings. There is little stopping them from joining together and working for themselves. Little that is, except for the fear that they would miss out on all the economic goodies that these corporations and their toxic memes produce for themselves.
Corporate greed seems to be overwhelming America right now. In the food world, it's the Monsanto, Smithfield, etc. In the wine world, it's the Wine & Sprits Wholesalers Assoc. What a sad state!
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