Social Issue: On Conspiracy - America's Movers & Shakers

Conspiracy. Two or more persons who band together to accomplish some goal or objective, frequently of nefarious nature. In the law, co-conspirators are held equally liable of guilty.

After the recent Enron, World.com and Tyco scandals, not to mention the American Red Cross and the World Olympic Committee, or the Jack Abramoff’s, I tried to think of what could reasonably be done to discourage repeats of this kind of anti-social conduct and that was in the possible range.

The first thing I want to do is identify the people who make up the management of the world’s largest companies. I wanted to know the top 5 or 10 - depending on corporate size - people who run each company. Suppose we ask the top 10 managers in all the Fortune 500 list to comply, and the top 5 operators in the second 500 companies in the Fortune 1000. This would make a list of 7,500 men (and a few women) who are the creme de la creme of the business world. People energetic enough, shrewd enough, smart enough, and yes, ruthless enough to sit on top of the world!

As a left-over from the 19th century, we still have a corporate governance scheme that theoretically puts control of each company in the hands of a Board of Directors. Usually from 10 to 30 in number, I would list all of those people. Because a lot of directors serve on more than one board, you would not get a list of from 10,000 to 30,000. For the sake of discussion let us say the total number of directors of the Fortune 1000 companies is 15,000.

It is my thesis that the 22,500 people identified above ought to be licensed, as in a driver’s license or more aptly, as in a pilots license. Or the captain of a large ocean going ship. In other words, it is obvious those people make decision that effect the world, and they authorize things to be done that have impacts that may last for generations. Recall the Niagra Falls, NY, Love Canal?

It is still there. Hooker Chemical Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Occidental Petroleum Company. Remember Al Gore and his father, Albert Gore, Sr. Dr. Armand Hammer was the owner and president of Occidental. Do you recall Prince William Sound? Without assessing blame, the great oil tanker, Exxon Valdez, ran aground and spilled a very large amount of crude oil into the pristine Alaska bay and adjacent waters. like a rehearsal of Katrina in New Orleans, almost everything thing that could be done wrong was.

Exxon was to pay for the clean-up. Hah! Who defines “clean-up?” The bill will total $7 billion, Exxon paid slightly less than $2 billion and has pulled out. A dozen law suits are in court but Exxon can keep those going for decades. And, do you know who is the best “fan” of Exxon in Alaska? Senator Ted Stevens. Him of bridge to nowhere fame. Oh, Exxon, on the advice of its PIO, to avoid future unfriendly demonstrations when the Valdez docks, changed the name to “Exxon Mediterranean.”

I believe each person identified above is engaged in business which in each case is dependant on the good functioning of the United States of America. In fact, these companies cannot exist without the base they enjoy in America. As such of these persons who are living in the lofty regions of grand decisions makers and making, are not only “subjects of interest” but our economic security as a nation depends of the decisions these people make on a daily basis. These companies are so large, as in Wal-Mart, that corporate policies have as much cause and effect on our daily lives as do those made in half the states in Aermica. It is at our peril if we ignore these Captains of Industry who are in fact the dominate persons of our fiscal existence.

Amy manager or director could be penalized for malfeasance by suspension for a period of time, or if the misconduct is especially egregarious, we could revoke their license. Just as we hold this final threat over doctors and lawyers, so also we ought to hold it over the movers and shakers of our society.

Conspiracy? No, just convergence.


References
Much of my commentary relates to Fortune 500 companies. See money.cnn.com...

Also, I’m interested in the richest people in the world. For more on them. See www.forbes.com...

The CIA World Factbook has moved, you may find it now at
www.cia.gov...

You can’t do internet research without using Wikipedia. In this case, I went to see GDP country, by country. See this at
en.wikipedia.org...(PPP)



[edit on 7/24/2006 by donwhite]

Well this an issue that has no winners, many people can not comprehend the magnitude of the involvement of corporate America, they own our government they own our jobs and our lives.

They care only for their own and their sold out politicians only caters to them.