Can consumers change the corporation?
By Sal Cirnigliaro
There is no doubt corporations have brought many boons to our society, from cheap and readily available technologies to employment for the masses. The profit motivation of business has accelerated the industrial age into the new millennia at a staggering pace, and for some it isn’t easy to see the negative effects of a system that has given us medicines and comforts that certainly seem to improve our lives.
However, many consumers don’t know corporations have been structured, through a series of legal decisions, to have a particularly disturbing characteristic: they are required, by law, to put the interests of their investors ahead of everything else, even the public good!
Ethos is a powerful new documentary that sets out to examine the logical outcomes of a system that places the bottom line ahead of everything else.
The downside of this system can be distilled down to one driving phenomenon: consumerism. The many lines that spiral out from this one aspect of our society are the octopus that ensnares us in both subtle and powerful ways. Hosted by twice Oscar nominated actor and activist Woody Harrelson, Ethos examines the damaging effects this has on our environment, democracy and personal liberty.
To make more money, which they are legally bound to do, companies have to sell more products. To sell more products they must consume more resources. To get those dwindling resources and maintain control over supply, the simple logic goes, companies must invade other countries.
To sell products corporate marketers must convince the consumer they are a failure (in the worst case) unless they have the latest widget, leading many into debt.
In order to ensure they are not legislated against or made to clean up pollution at the corporation’s expense, they donate money to political leaders to gain favor. It is even more advantageous if the politician is actually ‘your man’ to begin with.
When we privatize the military, we are left with corporations that make incredible amounts of money whenever there is war. These are often the same corporations that will profit from the consumer resources they will derive from the war.
Owning the mainstream media can keep a lid on what is really happening in our world; and thus, the fourth estate becomes tainted.
Following the effects of the money trail, logically, it is easy to see why our planet is poisoned, why we fight endless wars, why our democracy does not serve the people, and why a poor man who is never able to live the golden dream that is dangled like a carrot before him will steal from his neighbor.
All of this from the seemingly simple desire to make a buck!
Yet ironically, in a consumer society, the consumer is all-powerful. When we recognize the effects of our behavior and start using our purchasing power wisely, we can change everything.
Understanding the responsibility we all share for driving the engine of consumerism is the object of this new film—and understanding how we can build and shape the corporations of the new millennia by supporting those who do business is a socially and environmentally responsible way will hopefully be the outcome.
About Sal Cirnigliaro
Sal Cirnigliaro works for the nonprofit Media for Action that co-produced ETHOS.
You can now buy Ethos the DVD on Create Space @ https://www.createspace.com/300813.
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