Have you ever wondered how corporations got their power? How they managed to co-opt the legal rights of persons? How they continue to grow, and in the process shape everything from the very public to the very private—from global politics, to environmental policy, to the french fry that you take into mouth, chew, and swallow to create the very cells of your body?
“Gangs of America: the Rise of Corporate Power and the Disabling of Democracy,” by Ted Nace, is the first comprehensive “people’s history of the corporation” from medieval times to the present, and does a really great job of educating even while it outrages. If you want to know more about the historical basis for current corporate misconduct and crimes against humanity, I highly recommend it. And the really cool thing is that while it will be in the bookstores next month, it is up online, and free to download now. That’s right. Free. This is not a corporate model.
Meanwhile, I’m checking out for a while. I’m going on a silent meditation retreat called a “sesshin,” which means a week without language. After all the touring, I need to reboot the brain. Check back at the end of the month for a report.