As everyday people freshen up Old Glory for the national birthday, Corporate America is revelling in a Golden Age. A shrinking number of the planet’s biggest businesses — AOL Time Warner, Shell, Nike, Microsoft, McDonald’s — are the money behind presidents, the power that drives global trade rules, the voice of authority on how we live and the way we think. Corporations have all the rights of we, the people, but thousands of times more money to make the system work for them.
As everyday people freshen up Old Glory for the national birthday, Corporate America is revelling in a Golden Age. A shrinking number of the planet’s biggest businesses — AOL Time Warner, Shell, Nike, Microsoft, McDonald’s — are the money behind presidents, the power that drives global trade rules, the voice of authority on how we live and the way we think. Corporations have all the rights of we, the people, but thousands of times more money to make the system work for them.
We call this system “democracy.” But today it looks a lot like corporate rule.
A rebellion is building. Thousands of protesters shake up every global trade conference with calls for less corporate clout and more grassroots power. Now activists have set a date to mark that spirit of resistance — July 4, Independence Day. This year’s Flag Jam will be a blast of symbolic disobedience to get America thinking about the meaning of its original revolution, and its subservience to corporations today. And though we’re aiming at ground zero USA, the question is global. What counts as “independence”? And when will we win it back?
On the Fourth of July, proud citizens will trade the Stars-and-Stripes for today’s Brands-and-Bands — the symbol of all that’s wrong with America. Some will wave it at the head of parades, or swap it with flags in front of the Wal-Mart or Town Hall, or unfurl it from highway overpasses. Some have even promised to paint it on the sides of their houses.
The flags snapping in the wind are sure to raise sparks. You just don’t mess with the American flag. But many would say it’s been a corporate doormat for years. And many more will look up at the waving corporate logos and think, “Dammit if that ain’t the truth.”
Check out the list of cities where Corporate US flags will wave in the wind.
Author: Culture Jam
News Service: Adbusters
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