and it basically seems like a bunch of plutocratic platitudes

(but maybe i'm wrong)

water is good for the poor when they have clean and fresh stuff to drink, but sucky when it's full of toxins, or flooding their homes, or filling up one's lungs, e.g.

"globalization is good for the poor" seems at first like a sloppy generalization, but when i realized this guy worked for the world bank, i recognized a standard neo-aristocratic tactic: hide the truth of what you're talking about behind a a bland truism that's hard to disagree with.

of course i want people in impoverished countries to have healthy water, medicine, cultural and intellectual connection to the wider world. and sometimes it happens.

but all too often companies EXPLOIT developing nations in the absolute worst sense of that word.

they strip mine, for example, taking the people's wealth (and often having the people subsidize it with their own tax dollars funneled through corrupt governments); to do so they destroy vegatation, and then topsoil erodes and flows into streams, killing fish and everything else.

and then the company leaves and the people--who were promised "opportunity," "prosperity," (insert your own bland euphemism for matrial wealth)--are even more screwed then they were before the kindly companies showed up to "share progress."

as a general rule, companies aren't into building economies or making smart long-term investments and they sure as s%*t don't care about human beings or have moral consciences.

and i like the idea of free enterprise. but these bozos are standing inside the cookie jar alwasy telling working people to "play fair". it's absurd.

Sounds like an alarmist title, but it's actually a level-headed critique from a guy with M.B.A. and Ph.D. from Stanford Business School.

He's since written several more, including The Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community.

Korten's worked a lot with NGOs (non-governmental organizations) to help developing nations develop in ways that are good for them rather than manifestation of neo-Imperialism/Colonialism.

There are plenty of innovative ways that business smarts and free enterprise can work for people/communities and be healthy and moral (micro-lending for example).

So I highly recommend checking Korten out:

http://www.davidkorten.org/home

http://davidkorten.org/books

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Korten

and this a good doc:

http://www.thecorporation.com/

I like your PowerGrace formulation! My favorite so far was old what's his name with the crazy leg scissors on the pommel horse...

She's super smart, articulate, and always hones right in on the meat of the issues. Oh sweet logic coupled with the emotional intelligence to argue points forcefully but not get caught up in sniping. Being foxy and charismatic don't hurt none either.

thanks! i felt it with you

a pic might help tho

But just for fun I wanted to say that hope and experience needn't stand in opposition to one another.

I think Winona LaDuke has some fine ideas, for instance, but a little pragmatism never hurts when putting good ideas into practice...

Besides, I like Biden's blue collar/international affairs cred, and his straight talk about what an important time this is for our nation; and his willingness to call McCain out on his lies about war, the economy, and what it really means to be a patriotic citizen...

(or, how to protect your intellectual property before you hand it over to Salon ;)

sometimes i type in a word processing document and then cut and paste. can spell check that way too.

Slogan: Keating 5 + Bridge To Nowhere: Graft You Can Believe In!

[Theme: Talking Heads sing "We're On a Road to NOwhere..."

[Voice Over:] "Would you like to live in an authoritarian police state marked by torture and governmental lawlessness?

Would you like to change the system our Founders designed (checks and balances, rule of law) to and imperial presidency? If so, McCain/Palin is your choice!

"Or maybe this is too much to think about? Why you don't we play People Magazine-style personality politics, wave the flag a lot, and pretend we're a patriot? That's right little sheep, come on over to the dark side..."

____________________

fill in your own images

When everything's a commodity and the bottom is the only possible consideration, and like 4 dudes and a goat own the whole broadcasting club (over public airwaves, recall), then human creativity and the transcendant power of art end up on the cutting room floor.

Not that there aren't any good shows. But really.

Yes! Who would be in charge if McCain were to win? Who's in charge now, for that matter?

When Bush the Younger was running, Ralph Nader called him "a giant corporation disguised as a human being."

One might also call it a war on civilized, democratic culture.

http://www.borndigital.com/psix.htm

"ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin told ministry students at her former church that the United States sent troops to fight in the Iraq war on a 'task that is from God.'

In an address last June, the Republican vice presidential candidate also urged ministry students to pray for a plan to build a $30 billion natural gas pipeline in the state, calling it 'God's will.'"

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080903/ap_on_el_pr/cvn_palin_iraq_war

Are we in the Twilight Zone or what?

which might survive the filtering of the lizard brain in folks:

McCain Transition Head Lobbied for Freddie Mac Before Takeover

http://news.yahoo.com/s/bloomberg/20080923/pl_bloomberg/aqioor9klone

fox, henhouse indeed