We’ve voluntarily created our own non-human enemy entities.
You might be familiar with David Icke’s theory that reptilian overlords control planet Earth by masquerading as powerful celebrities, like the Queen of England.
While Icke is clearly unhinged, the truth is even stranger.
As Charlie Stross has pointed out, “we are now living in a global state that has been structured for the benefit of non-human entities with non-human goals.”
The non-human entity is the corporation, a powerful entity devoid of empathy, incapable of long-term holistic thinking, and ruthless in the pursuit of profit.
These “alien invaders” use mind-control via television and other media formats (not just advertising, but also cultural norms implicit in the programming or “content”). What kind of beliefs do they implant in our subconscious minds, in order to ensure their own survival?
1. Your self-esteem should be determined not by your values and behavior, but rather by the brands of the products you own.
2. Your expendable income should be entirely dedicated to purchasing corporate goods and services, as opposed to additional leisure time, charitable giving, or goods and services purchased from local non-corporate providers.
3. You should attribute less value to goods that are old, even if they are in excellent condition and function perfectly.
4. You should accept as “normal” products that deteriorate or break after a few years (or less).
5. “Loyalty” to a particular brand or corporation is a positive value with meaning.
6. Economic growth is a positive quality. Reduced consumption of goods and services is a bad thing, even if unemployment is low and quality of life is high.
7. Quality of life, the environment, and everything else is less important than economic growth and corporate profits.
8. Corporations deserve the same rights as human beings, and need those rights to function efficiently and effectively.
9. There are no viable economic alternatives to corporate structure in its current form.
10. You should not be alarmed that corporations control the planet, buy off politicians, bend the law to serve their own needs, and extract wealth from the remaining middle classes into the hands of the 0.01% richest global elite.
I’m generally a political centrist, and I think free-ish market with reasonable regulations in democratic societies are a pretty good idea. But the current situation is deeply alarming.
How do we fix it? Corporate charter reform is a good start. Corporations should not have free speech, but they should be free, and in some cases required, to sometimes put other priorities (like the environment, worker health, and public safety) ahead of the bottom line.
How do we stop corporations from controlling the political process and buying off politicians? Stop allowing corporations to finance political campaigns or hire lobbyists. If corporations have extra money, they should give it back to investors in the form of dividends, or invest it in R&D.
/rant.
