The Golems of Wall Street

In Jewish folklore, a golem was an artificial person created by magic in order to serve the commands of its creator, often used for revenge against enemies. The Golem was considered to be but a shadow of its creator, with no will of its own and often following its instructions too literally. In some stories the golem would turn against its master and sometimes humanity in general.

The golems of Jewish folklore are considered to be mere folktales by most but, in modern times, the idea has been resurrected successfully by big business to protect the owners of the business from the consequences of their actions.

Big business has created a being; soulless, potentially immortal which has been recognized in law to be equivalent to a living breathing person but without many of the legal and moral responsibilities. These creations are called corporations.

Corporations can buy and sell property, sue and be sued, move from one place to another, “marry” (merger), have “children” (subsidiaries), and exercise First Amendment rights of freedom of speech (advertizing and other forms of communication) and freedom of religion (constitute itself a church by the mere filing of a document). The corporation can even commit wrongs in one place, while having the right to be judged according to the more favorable law of the place of its incorporation – a trick no human being can perform. The corporation, unlike flesh and blood people, can also “reincarnate” itself by dissolving in one place and reincorporating in another. And barring bankruptcy (terminal illness) or voluntary or involuntary dissolution (suicide or capital punishment) the corporation is immortal, having perpetual duration according to law.

Further, the raw power of legislatures and courts in the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth centuries, acting at the behest of capitalists, especially in Delaware, established corporations as entities whose investors and directors have no personal liability for corporate breaches of contract, defaults on debts and torts of various kinds, and whose officers and employees can also escape liability if they did not personally authorize or commit a given wrong behind the “corporate veil”. With the rise of the PUBLICLY HELD limited liability corporation, capitalists’ achieved the ability to amass capitol without limitation, operate anywhere in the world and undertake without personal liability ventures that would have been considered immorally reckless during all the centuries of Christendom. Publicly held corporations became the building blocks of vast, interlocking, cross-capitalized , transnational economic structures which, “by leveraging their freedom from the bounds of location… could now dictate the economic policies of governments”

The Church and the Libertarian pp. 24

Corporations are entirely the invention of governments lobbied by capitalists and their lawyers, not the creation of the free market. They were originally created as a form of investor partnership whose activities were restricted to a stated purpose in the corporate charter. They have grown in their power over time to the point where they have unprecedented control over our everyday lives.

In the beginning of the American republic, the dangers of corporations were known and they were carefully controlled in an attempt to keep them from gaining too much power and enslaving the people.

When American colonists declared independence from England in 1776, they also freed themselves from control by English corporations that extracted their wealth and dominated trade. After fighting a revolution to end this exploitation, our country's founders retained a healthy fear of corporate power and wisely limited corporations exclusively to a business role. Corporations were forbidden from attempting to influence elections, public policy, and other realms of civic society.

Initially, the privilege of incorporation was granted selectively to enable activities that benefited the public, such as construction of roads or canals. Enabling shareholders to profit was seen as a means to that end.

For 100 years after the American Revolution, legislators maintained tight controll of the corporate chartering process. Because of widespread public opposition, early legislators granted very few corporate charters, and only after debate. Citizens governed corporations by detailing operating conditions not just in charters but also in state constitutions and state laws. Incorporated businesses were prohibited from taking any action that legislators did not specifically allow.

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But, with the power of money and corrupt politicians, this control over the corporations could not last.

Contests over charter were battles to control labor, resources, community rights, and political sovereignty. More and more frequently, corporations were abusing their charters to become conglomerates and trusts. They converted the nation's resources and treasures into private fortunes, creating factory systems and company towns. Political power began flowing to absentee owners, rather than community-rooted enterprises.

The industrial age forced a nation of farmers to become wage earners, and they became fearful of unemployment--a new fear that corporations quickly learned to exploit. Company towns arose. and blacklists of labor organizers and workers who spoke up for their rights became common.

One of the most severe blows to citizen authority arose out of the 1886 Supreme Court case of Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad. Though the court did not make a ruling on the question of "corporate personhood," thanks to misleading notes of a clerk, the decision subsequently was used as precedent to hold that a corporation was a "natural person."

From that point on, the 14th Amendment, enacted to protect rights of freed slaves, was used routinely to grant corporations constitutional "personhood." Justices have since struck down hundreds of local, state and federal laws enacted to protect people from corporate harm based on this illegitimate premise. Armed with these "rights," corporations increased control over resources, jobs, commerce, politicians, even judges and the law.

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Today, thanks to the misleading notes of that law clerk, corporations have won the right to influence elections, spending their money liberally to ensure that the people in government stay beholden to their corporate masters.

Like the golems of folklore, corporations have developed a mind of their own and have turned against their creators. They seek to enslave mankind with their power and control, all the while crying “socialism” when they receive any criticism of their government-granted preferences and protections from the laws of the land.

Ø If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation and then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around them will deprive the people of all their property until their children will wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered. - President Thomas Jefferson

Huh?.

Yup!.

Reclaim the Republic.

The PIG, ( peoples in greed ) , is in full swing these days. My father always told me that one day the trash cans rusty bottom will soon collapse and all the garbage will come running out. ( The Garbage ) , is all the stuff the top banks want to hide from the people to be in control. CONTROL, by the ELITES ,is the ultimate conquest and always has been.

After seeing how the founders viewed corporations, it becomes doubly apparent why the Supreme Court screwed us over when they gave corporations the right to fund political candidates.

One little SOB law clerk gave them the opening they needed to demand all kinds of rights for themselves they would need to tighten their chains on the American people. I wonder how much they payed off that clerk to change that court decision in their favor.

I hope Satan had a special place in Hell set aside for that little < SNIP> who screwed over this whole country.

With the 1886 Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad case, though the Court did not make a ruling, nor did they hear the argument on the question of corporate personhood, the case was subsequently cited as precedent to hold that a private corporation, property, is the equivalent of a natural person. Based on this illegitimate precedent, Supreme Court Justices went on to strike down hundreds of local, state and federal laws enacted to protect people from corporations.

There's More from this site:

www.globalresearch.ca...

is this all a big money conspiracy that started thousands of years ago ?

was there a "setup" involved in some court cases involving corps ?

I find it interesting how much power the states used to have over corporations.

The states also imposed conditions (some of which remain on the books, though unused) like these:

* Corporate charters (licenses to exist) were granted for a limited time and could be revoked promptly for violating laws.

* Corporations could engage only in activities necessary to fulfill their chartered purpose.

* Corporations could not own stock in other corporations nor own any property that was not essential to fulfilling their chartered purpose.

* Corporations were often terminated if they exceeded their authority or caused public harm.

* Owners and managers were responsible for criminal acts committed on the job.

* Corporations could not make any political or charitable contributions nor spend money to influence law-making.

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People of the early republic knew that corporations were a threat to freedom and limited their powers accordingly. If only the government would grow the balls to bring them under control once again.

Originally posted by FortAnthem

I find it interesting how much power the states used to have over corporations.

The states also imposed conditions (some of which remain on the books, though unused) like these:

* Corporate charters (licenses to exist) were granted for a limited time and could be revoked promptly for violating laws.

* Corporations could engage only in activities necessary to fulfill their chartered purpose.

* Corporations could not own stock in other corporations nor own any property that was not essential to fulfilling their chartered purpose.

* Corporations were often terminated if they exceeded their authority or caused public harm.

* Owners and managers were responsible for criminal acts committed on the job.

* Corporations could not make any political or charitable contributions nor spend money to influence law-making.

Reclaim Democracy

People of the early republic knew that corporations were a threat to freedom and limited their powers accordingly. If only the government would grow the balls to bring them under control once again.

no more my friend!

the States (and Fed) are now "UNDER" the corps ... have been for a long time now.

Example:

just let's see what the Repubs do about healthcare?

the Dems pass it (in favor of all the insurance companies) and the Repubs will "attempt" to repeal some of it, but in reality, the price increases will STAND and we all are the losers!

they will claim some new invented "Legal" problem that will stall the repeals.

more of the agenda to reduce wages and increase prices in general.

its been like this since Roman Times!

the same groups (with no national borders or alegiances) control all the money!