ALEC, inside the shadow corporate government

[ckaihatsu]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zE-trR3-kB8

[argeiphontes]

Not that I expected any different, but Google now funds ALEC and Heritage Action:
http://truth-out.org/news/item/20491-google-moves-right-by-funding-alec-and-heritage-action

"Don't be evil" :laugh:

[ckaihatsu]

How about 'Don't be overtly evil' -- ?


= D

[adipocere]

"Don't be evil"

That slogan is even more meaningless than most. I mean...it's like Google is telling me not to be evil.
I read an article about a young woman who was very involvled with Occupy and after it fizzled out, she went to work for Google and that was ok with her because it wasn't "an evil corporation." It's depressing to see our social compass spinning around so aimlessly.

[ckaihatsu]

That slogan is even more meaningless than most. I mean...it's like Google is telling me not to be evil.


Right -- "Don't *you* be evil -- we've got our own plans."


= D

[Often incredulous]

Wow... I would think ALEC deserves a little more attention than this, but I'm new here. What do I know? Well, I mean, other than the fact that ALEC is openly eroding workers' rights, civil rights, human rights...

[Ocean Seal]

I think their slogan is "do no evil," but I don't understand why anyone who isn't a tech fetishist ever felt it was true. I really do despise tech fetishist who think that facebook google and all of these other "startup" companies are anything better than what's available on madison avenue.

[Remus Bleys]

That slogan is even more meaningless than most. I mean...it's like Google is telling me not to be evil.
I read an article about a young woman who was very involvled with Occupy and after it fizzled out, she went to work for Google and that was ok with her because it wasn't "an evil corporation." It's depressing to see our social compass spinning around so aimlessly.

Well there is nothing wrong with working for an "evil corporation"

[argeiphontes]

Wow... I would think ALEC deserves a little more attention than this, but I'm new here. What do I know? Well, I mean, other than the fact that ALEC is openly eroding workers' rights, civil rights, human rights...

It does deserve attention, it's something to fight against. Here many of us are not going to be surprised about this kind of state-capitalist relationship. It's fuel for agitation and consciousness building I suppose, depending on how someone theorizes those things.

[ckaihatsu]

Breakingviews - Is Google building the Terminator

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BY1ldS4nYTA


Google buys producer of military robots

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUEN2GQ923E

[Logical seal]

goddamn, Every fucking day, The capitalist assholes are getting stronger and stronger.

Whats worse is...How is this not stoped yet, Its litterly a bunch of buissness suit wearing assholes, 3-5 gunman, Are all it takes for all of this to come crashing down.

Goddamn it...

[Often incredulous]

goddamn, Every fucking day, The capitalist assholes are getting stronger and stronger.

Interesting, but are they? In 1910 it looked like the Romanoffs, Hohenzollerns and Hapsburgs would remain in power for another 300 years. Before 1942 the Nazis seemed unstoppable. We often miss to moments if weakness, and the beginnings of collapse.

Capitalism will collapse when the vast majority of people no longer have hope of ever becoming capitalists, themselves.


Whats worse is...How is this not stoped yet, Its litterly a bunch of buissness suit wearing assholes, 3-5 gunman, Are all it takes for all of this to come crashing down.

Goddamn it...


I doubt your tactical analysis. Capitalism is institutional; by it's very nature the people "on top" are not actually steering the ship. They are far more like passengers than they seem. Take out a few and little will change.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk (http://tapatalk.com/m?id=1)

[Klaatu]

December 18, 2013 at 1:00 am
LABOR VOICES
What is ALEC, and why should you care?

Karla Swift

Last Thursday, the Michigan Legislature adjourned for 2013. Before they did, they passed some deeply troubling bills that do not reflect the values of working families in our state. Whether you are concerned about restrictions on critical women’s health care, political spending and transparency, or quality public education — one question is obvious: who comes up with this stuff?

While the bills that sped through our Legislature this year are still being researched and tracked, every day we are learning more about the origins of bad bills from 2011 and 2012, some of which are now law.

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and the State Policy Network (SPN) are corporate-funded, right-wing organizations that push an agenda focused on attacking workers’ rights, blocking access to affordable healthcare, defunding and privatizing public education, suppressing voting rights, lowering taxes for corporations and the ultra-wealthy, cutting essential public spending and destroying the environment.

ALEC is a corporate bill mill. It is not just a lobby or a front group; it is much more powerful than that. Through ALEC, corporate lobbyists and state legislators vote on “model bills,” behind closed doors, without any public input, which often benefit the corporations’ bottom line.

Corporations fund almost all of ALEC’s operations and pay for a seat on ALEC task forces. ALEC and ALEC corporations often pay for legislators to go to lavish resorts to participate in ALEC, but when ALEC or the corporations are not paying for these so-called “scholarships,” the expense is often passed on to the taxpayers. The Center for Media and Democracy has identified at least 39 current or former Michigan legislators who used taxpayer funds to pay ALEC membership dues between 2005 and 2011.

In ALEC board documents recently published by The Guardian, ALEC proposes state chairs — and possibly other legislators — take an oath to ALEC. The oath requires legislators to “put the interests of the organization [ALEC] first” and to be “morally responsible for the health and well being” of ALEC. The proposed oath also requires legislators to “inform ALEC of any public records/FOIA requests that include ALEC documents,” which suggests ALEC is taking further steps to hide its activities.

The lawmakers of Michigan owe their undivided allegiance to the people of Michigan. Anything else is something dangerous and less than democracy.

Several corporations and special interest groups that are ALEC members and sponsors are headquartered in Michigan, most notably the DeVos family’s Amway Corporation and the Mackinac Center. Dick DeVos even went so far as to identify the Mackinac Center as one of the primary forces behind the push for so-called right to work, which is an ALEC-style law with corporate priorities.

The legality of the Mackinac Center's lobbying operations have been called into question by Congressman Sander Levin and the ACLU.

Yet, Governor Snyder has adopted several Mackinac agenda items as his own priorities, including attacking pensions, rolling back corporate regulations, and privatizing public services.

Every voter in Michigan should ask their legislator: are you a member of ALEC? And reporters have a professional responsibility to raise one simple question every time a new bill is introduced: Is this ALEC model legislation?

Our government should not be a pay-to-play operation. We should be asking more questions about ALEC and legislators have much more explaining to do.

Labor Voices

Labor Voices columns are written on a rotating basis by United Auto Workers President Bob King, Teamsters President James Hoffa, Michigan AFL-CIO President Karla Swift and Michigan Education Association President Steven Cook.Karla Swift is the Michigan state president of the AFL-CIO.

source
http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20131218/OPINION01/312180004