Evening star., 1934-09-25
Corporations Are the
"Sacred Cows" of US.

To the Editor OF The Star:
Without finding necessity Of proof
we Americans admit that we are the
most advanced and enlightened people
on earth. We have our Declaration
of Independence and our Constitution,
won by the blood of Revolutionary
patriots. Ours is a rich land and we
have government of the people, by
the people, for the people We need
no kings, potentateS or dictatorS 10
govern us.
In certain Asiatic countries the peo-
pie are backward and ignorantly be-
lieVe that COWS are sacred and must
not be molested even in defense OF
person or property. We Americans
cannot be fooled that way. We know
that cows, being neither sacred nor
human, have no human rights or lib
critics, but are mere property. to be
used by mankind. No, sir! We have
no sacred COWS here, but We do have
corporations.
Corporations are interesting and
peculiar things. They have no bodies
nor souls, no flesh nor blood. but are
things Of paper and ink. They can
not vote, serve on jurieS or in the
Army, hold political Office, be jailed
or shot. They are pools Of wealth
owned and operated by humans
Shares in them are bought and sold
| openly in the stock markets. But
| lawyers and the courts tell us that
corporations are persons, though un-
natural or artificial ones, spoken OF
as 1T" The admittedly legal fiction
| that corporations are persons and part
of I'VE the people of the United
| States" has been the corner stone upon
I which there has been based series
OF court decisions and precedentS by
! which corporations have been given
human rights, first the equal of and
! then superior to those OF feSh-and
blood human kind.
Time and again laws such as child
labor and 8-hour laws have been en-
acted by progressive representatives
of the people. only TO be set aside by
the courts upon pleas OF corporation
| lawyers that the constitutional rights
OF corporations had been violated
AS if the Constitution mentioned
corporations, or gave them such
rights. or any one had legal power.
without amendment. to thrust into
the Constitution what Is not there.
The sacred COW and the corporation
both lack rights in the courts If the
Constitution is TO be relied upon, but
without even the flesh and blood Of
| the sacred COW, We have permitted
! fictitious persons, actually property,
to use the courts, reach across State
borders and set aside the natural. en-
doWed and Inallenable rights OF the
real human people. which human
rights are set forth in the Declaration
of Independence. established by the
American Revolution and guaranteed
in plain ordS III the Constitution.
No, sir Americans cannot be fooled.
We cannot be led to believe in such
| supernatural things as sacred COWS
or wooden idols.
We have had our manipulation OF
corporations by tlnanclers to avoid
personal liability or criminal penalty
in the process Of personal enrichment
at the expense OF the people. We
have had their mergers and consoh-
dationS, stock dividends, holding com
panies. unlimited bond issues. huge
salaries and bonuses for officers, then
bankruptcy and reorganization. We
have had their child labor. twelve
| hour work days and sweat shop con-
! ditions. while they fought stubbornly
every step Of the way against human
rights and human progress. Then we
had financial collapse. the cries for
! help from the predepression brain
trust, cash doles for corporations, but
| tear gas for revolving and desperate
humans. until the scene became unrea
and grotesque. Then flaw de-
veloped in the dam erected by cor
poration lawyers against human lib
| erty and progress. and long delayed
| reforms rush down upon US in q
flood Amid all the confusion, VT
hear the walls Of bipartisan corpora
! ton lawyers and manipulators, be-
moaning the loss of the old ways
! the Constitution and human liberty.
| Human liberty! Great sacred COWS
| Must history again record that hu-
man liberty is only won by the SWorc
and torch? CHARLES GALE.
!