Great piece.

The swine-flu bonanza was certainly a triumph for the GlaxoSmithKlein marketing team, but they were ably assisted by decades of government softening-up.

As well as the instant and personal fear GSK were able to generate - the "I'm gonna die" reaction - they also exploited the fear of any government that they would be saddled with the blame if things went wrong.

"Government Shame: Millions Die As Minister Stands Idle"

A word in your ear, minister. It could be the end of your career, if you don't buy megatons of my medication.

No politician who values their lifetime gold card and cushiony pension is going to let that happen, are they?

It's a natural extension of the blame culture. The abdication of responsibility for personal decisions to the nearest authority figure. All wrapped up in the increasing threat of litigation.

We are becoming a bunch of sad sacks, aren't we.

Dear oh dear, even more criticism of the Capitalist system. Without it we would all starve, be unemployed, and be in rags. Not one alternative system has suceeded in history. Sure companies make mistakes, sure they get it wrong. True, that they seek to maximise the profits. As a director, it is their minimum legal obligation. Greed is not good, but growth is. True, too that they seek to very activeley influence everywhere they can to ensure their policies written and unwritten are inplemented, but we all do this every day . Seek to influence our surroundings for our own benefit. It is just that when you have more money to do this you are more succesful at it.
THe alternative is that the drugs we all rely on every day are never invented, because if pharmacy companies are not ENORMOUSLY rich and successful, the cannot spend billions on developing any drug in the first place. Clearly not a good option.

I agree with Pericles. It is a great piece.

However, my main concern is that corporate manipulation used to be overt and only occasionally exposed by courageous whistleblowers or investigators. Most of whom paid a huge personal price as corporate revenge was exacted.

Now corporations exert total dominance of the media, political parties and the banking and legal systems. They act with an arrogant swagger knowing that at last they are untouchable. They are not concerned that any rational mind can easily see the evil that they do.

Will anyone be held to account for:

1. The swine flu vaccine scam. Who rated improving health statistics as a level 6 pandemic?

2. The media suppression of the vast majority of scientists who have debunked the child like case for CO2 effecting global temperature rather than the other way around. Who suppressed a 30,000 signature a petition by senior scientists in the USA?

3. The case for war in Iraq. Who made all the money and where is the audit?

4. The subprime scandal. Who made all the money and why were they then given $trillions to spend - mainly on themselves?

All were known as obvious cons in advance. Maybe it is time for retrospective legislation that targets these monsters. Unfortunately principled politicians are in short supply and normally blitzed by the media before they can enact change.

Sorry to be so pessimistic. Does anyone out there have any ideas how we can make positive progress?

Well said Mendoc.

Remember the three rules of politics;
1 Do what you have to to get into power.
2 Do what you have to to stay in power.
3 Treat all forms of criticism as subversive.
We will have enormous problems getting into power people outside the two party system. It takes a few years but each form of third party power fails. Independants cannot raise enought money either, you need a party structure to succeed, and in OZ this will not occur soon. Then there is the view that the great unwashed are all well off and therefore there is no need to challenge the system, and the larger the middle class is and the smaller the lower social economic numbers are the less there is to scream about anything. Ad in a solid social infrastructure to give the poor enough money to eat, smoke, drink and watch TV and the job is done !! All under control again, no worries.

"The liberals and conservatives and Libertarians who lament totalitarianism are phoneys and hypocrites. . . You find the same sort of hierarchy and discipline in an office or factory as you do in a prison or a monastery. . . A worker is a part-time slave. The boss says when to show up, when to leave, and what to do in the meantime. He tells you how much work to do and how fast. He is free to carry his control to humiliating extremes, regulating, if he feels like it, the clothes you wear or how often you go to the bathroom. With a few exceptions he can fire you for any reason, or no reason. He has you spied on by snitches and supervisors, he amasses a dossier on every employee. Talking back is called 'insubordination,' just as if a worker is a naughty child, and it not only gets you fired, it disqualifies you for unemployment compensation. . .The demeaning system of domination I've described rules over half the waking hours of a majority of women and the vast majority of men for decades, for most of their lifespans. For certain purposes it's not too misleading to call our system democracy or capitalism or -- better still -- industrialism, but its real names are factory fascism and office oligarchy. Anybody who says these people are 'free' is lying or stupid." [The Abolition of Work and other essays, p. 21]

Capitalism is the problem. It wont change until people decide not to subjugate themselves to it and take back the freedom and power that has been taken from us. People need to see that it is only their actions that allow the current system to continue. Their trust in the rich and powerful who set themselves up as our masters and superiors allows them to exploit and degrade you. They rely on your acquiescence for their rule and if you withdraw it and refuse to do their bidding it is over. Its all in your heads. You have been brainwashed. Take back your freedom! No one else can!

>>THe alternative is that the drugs we all rely on every day are never invented.<<

Let's get a few things straight. We don't, or at least shouldn't, all rely on drugs. How many drugs are routinely prescribed because we think they *might* improve our condition? How many times have you taken a medication and it *not* done what was claimed on the back of the packet? Many times, I reckon, which proves that the advertising companies have won. They've done this by sowing fear in the minds of many people ... that if they don't buy the company's drugs, their health will suffer. The lie in this is that the companies would have you believe their product is the only thing that can save you. The truth is that many maladies can be kept at bay by a good and balanced diet and a balance of work, rest and play. The companies need not have much part to play in your health at all. It's mostly in your own hands.