The Fascist State Of America Is Upon Us

[skunkape]

I am not happy with this developement.

Analysis: Winners, losers in Supreme Court ruling - Yahoo! News
<input id="gwProxy" type="hidden"><!--Session data--><input onclick="jsCall();" id="jsProxy" type="hidden">

 

[jpw.in.wi]

Section 203 of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002, better known as the McCain-Feingold Act, makes any broadcast of “electioneering communications” paid for by a corporation’s general treasury a federal crime. The law defines “electioneering communications” as any broadcast within 60 days before a primary election or 30 days before a general election that refers to a clearly identified candidate for federal office and targets the electorate.


Wisconsin Right To Life--which it is hard to argue is a "corporation"--has been leading the fight against this for years, because its issue ads, advocating for the rights of the unborn, were at one time considered illegal under the above regulations. And we call this America?!

If you ask me, it's precisely the sort of authority to control the political speech of free citizens that McCain-Feingold asserted that is fascistic.

This ruling will result in more speech, not less, and as always it'll be up to the electorate to do their homework and "separate the signal from the noise". That's the individual responsibility of anyone living in a free, democratic society. If one can't handle that, one should move somewhere less free.

Yes, we'll have to put up with more political ads for a few months, but the answer to that problem is simple: pick up the remote and turn off the TV!

 

[EQ42]

The corporate takeover of the American government is now complete.
"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the merger of state and corporate power." -- Benito Mussolini

 

[jpw.in.wi]

The corporate takeover of the American government is now complete.
"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the merger of state and corporate power." -- Benito Mussolini

Believe me, I understand the concern over corporate influence on our elected officials, but let's say some of us decide to form an interest group called "People Against the Corporate Takeover of American Government", and we put together issue adds that tell the electorate to call Senator So-and-so and tell him we're his boss, not the corporate lobbyists.

Then John McCain and Russ Feingold step in and tell us that they think our ads are fine if they air 31 days before the election, but after midnight and until the day after Super Tuesday, TV stations would be committing a federal crime if they broadcast the very same ads. Our freedom of speech will be taken away during that "blackout period".

How is that just? And how is rolling back such an unconstitutional law a step towards fascism?

 

[EQ42]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/doug-kendall/citizens-united-the-probl_b_431989.html

During 2008 alone, Exxon Mobil Corporation generated profits of $45 billion. With a diversion of even two percent of those profits to the political process, this one company could have outspent both presidential candidates and fundamentally changed the dynamic of the 2008 election.

As overwhelmingly demonstrated by Justice John Paul Stevens' breathtaking dissent -- read aloud from the bench and joined by Justices Ginsburg, Breyer, and Sotomayor -- today's ruling is startlingly activist and plainly contrary to constitutional text and history. Two centuries ago, the Supreme Court under Chief Justice Marshall first recognized that corporations are artificial creatures of the State, subject to government oversight to ensure they do not abuse the special privileges granted to them. Corporations cannot vote in elections, stand for election, or serve as elected officials, but the Court today ruled they can overwhelm the political process using profits generated by the special privileges granted to corporations alone. In a profoundly wrong interpretation of the First Amendment, the Court granted corporations the right to drown out the voices of individual Americans in our Nation's elections.

Citizens United blows away any notion that conservative judges, who profess to be "originalists" and "umpires," are in fact faithful to our Constitution's text and history or bound by reasoned precedent.

 

[Plant Life]

Believe me, I understand the concern over corporate influence on our elected officials, but let's say some of us decide to form an interest group called "People Against the Corporate Takeover of American Government", and we put together issue adds that tell the electorate to call Senator So-and-so and tell him we're his boss, not the corporate lobbyists.

Then John McCain and Russ Feingold step in and tell us that they think our ads are fine if they air 31 days before the election, but after midnight and until the day after Super Tuesday, TV stations would be committing a federal crime if they broadcast the very same ads. Our freedom of speech will be taken away during that "blackout period".

How is that just? And how is rolling back such an unconstitutional law a step towards fascism?

This hypothetical "People Against the Corporate Takeover of American Government" scenario makes no sense, it's a red herring and is much different than what's happening in reality .
If you think that Corporate Propaganda is the same as "free speech" then you must be selling something.

 

[Red]

A result of recent decision can be found here: Murray Hill Inc. | Murray Hill Incorporated is Running for Congress
"Until now, corporations only influenced politics with high-paid lobbyists and backroom deals. But today, thanks to an enlightened Supreme Court, corporations now have all the rights the founding fathers meant for us. It was their dream to build the best democracy money can buy. That's why Murray Hill Incorporated is taking democracy's next step — running for Congress. Join us and build a vision for the future we can all be proud of. Vote Murray Hill Incorporated for Congress!"


I love it, political commentary with a sense of humor.

 

[Schuyler]

I don't think this is just a 'corporate' issue. It affects, for example, unions, who will now be able to channel as much as they want to left wing candidates. It also affects organizations such as NOW and, just in an attempt to be egalitarian here, the NRA. Corporations, by and large are affected by stockholder opinions, which will have the effect of slowing them down. Many corporations also have the public goodwill to pay attention to, especially those like Proctor & Gamble, for example, that sell directly to the public. NGOs and issue-oriented organizations won't have this built-in speed bump. I don't think we can claim his is a move toward right wing fascism or left wing socialism. Both have organizations and groups that will be affected and will use their new found freedom to advance their own agendas.