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Politics : View from the Center and Left -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: epicure who wrote (129630)	1/29/2010 2:58:35 PM
From: TimF	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 541958

Given that corporations were conceived of as artificial entities and do not have the technical capacity to “speak,” If they have no ability to speak than their freedom of speech isn't a problem. The real ability to speak (and the right of speech) is for the people who make up the company. Any restriction of "corporate rights" is a restriction of their rights. Just as corporate taxes are paid for by individuals not the corporation as such. (Sure it cuts the check, but the cost falls on the employees, and/or the customers, and/or the shareholders, and/or the owners, employees and customers of suppliers, all of whom are people); the restriction of corporate speech, restricts a subset of the ability of individuals to speak (the ability of them to speak through a particular type of collective organization.

To: epicure who wrote (129630)	1/29/2010 7:16:52 PM
From: Bridge Player	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 541958

When corporations use general treasury funds to praise or attack a particular candidate for office, it is the shareholders, as the residual claimants, who are effectively footing the bill. Those shareholders who disagree with the corporation’s electoral message may find their financial investments being used to undermine their political convictions. That is a very interesting comment. I wonder what Justice Stevens would think about some members of unions, which often "praise or attack a particular candidate for office", having their union dues "used to undermine their political convictions".