Corporatocracy

It’s official. We live in a Corporatocracy. The recent 5 to 4 Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United v. FEC is a dangerous expansion of “corporate personhood.” I haven’t seen any convincing evidence supporting the ruling. I see no benefit from (and large problems with) the expansions of the already questionable doctrine of corporate personhood. There is a reason that there have historically been limits placed on the “rights” of corporations. I highly recommend reading Stevens dissenting opinion for an excellent (and well sourced) history of this concept. Stevens’ opinion is the most convincing argument I have seen on the subject. Basically, any corporate ‘rights’ are simply a convenience granted by the legislature (on behalf of the people), and are distinct from the inherent rights of citizens. Since corporations are not citizens, corporate ‘speech’ can be limited to avoid corruption.

Since there are already so many loopholes, this ruling may not make much of a practical difference. But, still, it is a dangerous continuation of ‘corporate personhood’ toward corporate sovereignty.