Taking Back Our Lives in the Age of Corporate Dominance

chapter2The Gift That Keeps On Taking

Ellen Schwartz

how the bottom-line mentality isbottoming out our lives and the planet

Economic globalization is shifting power away from governmentsresponsible for the public good and toward a handful of corporations andfinancial institutions driven by a single imperative—the quest for short-termfinancial gain. This has concentrated massive economic and politicalpower in the hands of an elite few… Faced with pressures to producegreater short-term returns, the world’s largest corporations are downsizingto shed people and functions.… It is becoming increasingly difficult forcorporate managers to manage in the public interest, no matter howstrong their moral values and commitment.

—David Korten, When Corporations ...