We should keep our lunch money.

When we discuss keeping  corporations operating in this country, employing lots of Canadians, we all think that our current neo-liberal measures make a lot of sense:  taxes reduced systematically since the 1970's, laws eased, environmental disasters cleaned up or ignored by government, massive mistakes bailed out by governments, obscene remuneration packages and bonuses ignored.  Oh yes!  We must take care of these corporations.  Why, the fabric of society is at risk.  Everything we've worked toward will be lost if we don't help the corporations.  Where will we work?  We all need our cubicles!

Well, that's just the lobbyists talking and the media parroting..  Are we really supposed to listen to lobbyists?  Should we really listen to the media?  Uh, no.  Yes, I understand that businesses could pack up their balls and go to the States, but I bet this simply wouldn't happen.  Other countries (Scandinavian) have proven that reasonable taxes and humane, moral laws do not send businesses running.  Even in our own country, we have seen that banks (under much tighter restrictions than in the States) are still humming along happily with lots and lots of cubicles.

The fact is this:  in pandering to the corporations, we've given our lunch money to the schoolyard bully.  And we all know from childhood that the bully will never be assuaged.  He will want this day's lunch money, and the next day's lunch money, and then, our new pair of running shoes, and then...  Where does it all stop?  Why are we so eager to let this happen?  Could it be that we are, truly, all living in fear?

I think the answer is yes.  The baby boomers en masse are, obviously, entitled, whiny, snotty-nosed wimps.  It's on our watch that this all happened.  We're so scared that we're going to lose these cubicle jobs and the benefit packages that go with them.  And what's the result?  Pretty much what you'd expect on any playground.  We are, of course, getting what we most fear.  The fabric of our society is currently unraveling; the middle class disappearing; there is a war on poverty and the environment.  Fear has sent us down a road to certain failure.

Maybe we need to stand up and give these corporations a bit of a black eye, metaphorically speaking.  Maybe we need get our lunch money back (get taxes back to 1970 levels, make corporations accountable for their own environmental impact, insist on a reasonable minimum wage, heavily tax insane bonus packages).  Why not?  Currently we are standing in the schoolyard with an empty tummy and bare feet.

And, really, what are we risking by taking a stand as a people?  A bunch of cubicle jobs that everybody hates.  Hmmmm.