Which has hurt America more: Middle East or corporate terrorism?

[yurbud]

It might sound extremist to call what corporations do to us terrorism, but think about the effects over the last decade or so.

Energy deregulation and privatization led to rolling blackouts and blackmail of the state for billions here in California through artificial scarcity, and blackouts in the Northeast through failing to maintain the infrastructure.

The privatization of water in other countries have led to similar blackmail, with prices rising to as much as a quarter of people's income in Bolivia.

Corporate corruption of our political process means our tax dollars go to developing new drugs which are then priced out of the reach of taxpayers who need them and health insurance whose cost skyrockets while the companies figure out ever more creative ways to withhold service, all without any meaningful oversight from Congress.

Corporate corruption of our foreign policy has led to trade agreements that not only steal jobs from Americans, but harm people in the countries on the other end, and only benefit the corporations that pushed for the deals. The effect on agriculture in other countries is especially devastating with farmers in India committing suicide because they can't figure out how to support their family anymore.

The greatest terrorism is the oil industry. The have suppressed alternatives to their product, increasing our dependence on it, and used our foreign policy to support governments that do business on terms the oil companies like, and overthrow or invade the ones that don't. We provide the tax dollars for the covert ops and wars in the Middle East, and pay the price in our troops lives and reputation in the world. They collect the profits and demand more. Soon the number of our troops who have died in Iraq will surpass those who died on 9/11, but both could easily be laid at the feet of decades of polciy that screwed the people in the Middle East so oil companies could profit.

Perhaps more chilling than the war itself is seeing the model of chaos and artificial scarcity to drive up prices spreading from oil to water to eventually food. Here in the US, agriculture is being consolidated just as media and petroleum and defense have been.

I am not against capitalism, but corporations have shown again and again that when they become more powerful than governments they have no qualms about stripping government protection from the people, robbing them, killing them, and if they could figure out a way to sell the dead bodies, they would do that too.

If someone calls you anti-American for criticizing the Bushies, remind them that you like democracy so much, that you hate to see it being abused and crippled by a handful of businesses for private gain.

[Virginia Dare]

1. The chemicals and poisons that are spewed...

wantonly into the environment kill vastly more people in this country than any terrorist ever will.

[sweetheart]

2. "or"?

These are the same thing. The very terrorism of DU, these computers, the plastic of your keyboard
keys made from processed oil, probably from the persian gulf, and the corporate terrorism has come
full circle, and is wholly integrated with imperial petrol militarism. This militarism has screwed
up the middle east and made enemies in a place where 'we' otherwise have no business, and so it goes.

So what has killed more people, poverty, ignorance and the short lifespans of past centuries or
the industry of persons dedicated towards transforming that? There has been a religious blessing
carried by the western persons, one that carries the equality of all persons in slavery. Yes it
is equality, but yes it is slavery, however much you don't feel owned, just don't bite the hand.

[orwell]

3. Media terrorism...

...as enabled by powerful elite interests.

[WHAT]

4. Corporate Corruption...

is the biggest terrorism we face today. It is a wasting disease.

I am sure...