Unequal Protection: The Rise of Corporate Dominance and the Theft of Human Rights
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*This is a reprint of the paperback edition of the book that was originally published in April 2004. It does not include updated material since 2004, but there will be a new edition out in June 2010.
Was the Boston Tea Party the first WTO-style protest against transnational corporations? Did Supreme Court sell out America’s citizens in the nineteenth century, with consequences lasting to this day? Is there a way for American citizens to recover democracy of, by, and for the people?
Thom Hartmann takes on these most hard questions and tells a startling tale that will forever change your understanding of American history. Amongst a deep past context, Hartmann the describes the history of the Fourteenth Amendment–made at the end of the Civil War to grant basic rights to freed slaves–and how it has been used by lawyers representing corporate interests to extend additional rights to businesses far more frequently than to freed slaves. Prior to 1886, corporations were referred to in U.S. law as “artificial persons.” But in 1886, after a series of cases brought by lawyers representing the expanding railroad interests, the Supreme Court ruled that corporations were “persons” and entitled to the same rights granted to people under the Bill of Rights. Since this ruling, America has lost the officially authorized structures that allowed for people to control corporate behavior.
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Predictable Marxist nonsense wrapped in a clean small package for socialists to like. I have some news for you socialists:
- Economic rights are the greatest “human rights” that people have. The right to the fruit of your labors. The right to keep what you earn. THOSE are your rights.
- Corporations are the essential example of economic rights in action. They are not some evil, mystical entities that exist in a vacuum to ruin us all. They are US. We own them and work for them. They are the essential expression of the essential excellent that is capitalism.
And that is the source fallacy of this book and all others like it: the notion that capitalism is terrible and socialism is the answer. This has been proven incorrect more times than I can count.
Capitalism is the only way to freedom and happiness. Embrace it. And read some Ayn Rand while you’re at it.
Reader’s Rating: 1 / 5
Hartmann has set a record of sorts. It is hard to find a single work which, simultaneously, is illiterate in economics, law, history, and political science. How could a name spend so much time on a theme and still end with so small understanding? Judging from his prior writings, the answer seems to lie in a deeply-rooted lack of sympathy toward modern civilization. Indeed, in “Last Hours,” he tells us basically that the last ten thousand years of human development, starting with the agricultural revolution, were a blunder. In this light, it is not surprising that he shows such bile about the corporate mode of business association. This development in capitalist societies has allowed an astonishing transformation in economic prosperity. There are persons, like the Marxists, who despise capitalism for its failures. And then there are persons, like Hartmann, who despise it for its successes.
If you liked “Triumph of the Will,” you will like Hartmann’s writings. If you didn’t, find something else to read. If the topic of optimal economic organization interests you, I recommend some readings for grownups: anything by Oliver Williamson or Michael Jensen. Both authors have paperback books sold on the Amazon site.
Reader’s Rating: 1 / 5
This book is basically a tirade against the thought of organizing into voluntary cooperative groups for their benefit. This power held by the people threatens the perogatives of ruling elites. It is not surprising that the leader proposes ways for the ruling elites (government) to curb well loved economic power.
For example, the mis-truths about “personhood”. Corporations do not have right to vote; so they are in this aspect and others clearly less than persons. Also, the reason for the officially authorized status has to do with protection for frivolous lawsuits. Reform the officially authorized system, and this would not be necessary. Also overlooked is the fact that the corporation is made of individuals who do have rights of personhood.
The intent of the book is reasonably … (as in appealing to much greater tyrannical control by the rulers; such is necessary to quash well loved economic activity). The leader is alarmed that individuals are allowed to organize into cooperative organizations as corporations, and these organizations let people strive lacking the total control of government tyranny.
That is what the leader really has a problem with: people having too much power at the expense of the rulers.
It is OK for the government to have “new kingdoms” over people’s lives, but not for the people themselves to organize and control things on their own.
The leader is especially fearful of NAFTA and GATT and WTO. After all, these threaten the power of rulers to profit from international trade (via tarriffs and additional means). To him and others, world trade freedom is terrible of course because it lets people trade freely regardless of international limits and the greed of local leaders. In reality, free trade has nothing to do with “corporations”, and has everything to do with individuals building economic decisions lacking regard to silly ancient fashioned things like international limits.
There are examples of shifty logic in the book. For example, the leader laments that the law enforcement statistics only report crimes by individuals and not corporations. Well, duh! A corporation cannot commit a crime lacking the cooperation of individuals, so of course there are no corporate crimes: all the crimes show up as offenses by individuals.
Also missing is a criticism of the least accountable corporation in America. …. At all times during its history, it has in varying ways relied on forced labor. At many times in its history, critics of it have been punished severely. It has engaged in intentional widespread environmental hurt (even ordering many species to be exterminated; no additional American corporation can aver this). It is the least accountable corporation, as we are forced to participate in it (we have to place the country to flee it). This corporation is the United States Government.
The Constitution devotes far much more material to reigning in this entity than it does for relatively-harmless cooperative voluntary business ventures. The Founding Fathers realize, unlike Hartmann, that there is more danger from abuse of power by rulers than there is from the people having their own economic power.
Not worth a read, this book is just another paranoid rant from the Stalinist left that gets shriller and shriller at the thought that the people should be in control as a replacement for of the State.
Reader’s Rating: 1 / 5
By focusing on the “officially authorized personhood” of corporations, Hartmann loads a Frankensteinian abhorrence into the term that distracts from more pressing concerns.
Following his advice and eliminating corporate personhood–Hartmann’s theoretical silver bullet–might really increase the protection for corporations by sinking the capacity to tax or sue them.
Hartmann attributes meanings to cases long since altered, abandoned, or circumscribed. Take “due process” – a key theme. In the 19th century, corps were indeed afforded “substantive due process.” In the 1930s, one application of the notion was rejected (thus permitting the New Deal–after much of it had been tossed out by the Court). In the 1950s/60s, substantive due process became a doctrine for civil rights. Yet Hartmann’s hostile treatment focuses on 19th century cases, challenges the civil rights amendments themselves as corporate ploys, and his suggestion that corporations “benefit” from anti-discrimination laws and due process could thus set back the cause of civil rights for minorities and women and advantage corporations in the process.
Corporations should be subjected to the same scrutiny as any additional human creation, neither idolized nor demonized. Sorry to say, Hartmann’s approach detracts from such an effort and is best avoided as a fake guide.
Reader’s Rating: 2 / 5
Unequal Protection provides a thorough past review of the effects of U.S. corporations being treated as persons since the late 1800s. Its proposal to end corporate personhood is well thought out, but the effects of such a reform are not likely to be as far reaching as envisioned and hoped for by the leader.
Reader’s Rating: 4 / 5