IN GOOD COMPANY

Nowadays, I often hear the phrase “good company” in relation to where I work. I don’t disagree, but I have to take issue with the phrase. What constitutes a “good company,” and in what context is it good?

Certainly a comparative description of companies would place the one for which I work in high regard. Much of what’s offered there is not offered at other places of employment. But my mind doesn’t stop at the surface (except when it comes to women and their looks). I’m always thinking a little further past what is presented to my strikingly handsome face.

Indulge me as I examine and dissect the phrase “good company.” Aww, c’mon! It won’t be boring, I promise. There might be full frontal nudity…eh? Eh? Rudy, this is where you drop trou.

PULL ‘EM BACK UP!!! DEAR FATHER IN HELL, CONCEAL THAT HORROR!!!

If one is to take a close look at the phrase, one must also take into account its larger, broader meaning. In other words, what are we really saying with that phrase? Are we saying the company is inherently good, or are we saying it is good when considering the conduct of other companies?

What frightens me is that some of you probably don’t see a difference between the two. “Gotta work to eat and pay da bills.” That’s the American mantra. Why question it, people say. It’s the way it is. It’s the way it’s gotta be.

Is it? I’m not so sure. People who make those comments tend to be woefully ignorant of history. They also tend to grow angry when they hear the word “why.” One of the supreme ironies of living in the United States is that while the country claims to have been formed in the name of freedom of choice, it is quite possibly the most conformist of the “First World Nations.” In fact, independent thought is generally frowned upon here and seen as trouble-making, Thank the Puritans and Pilgrims for that delightful brand of rigid social control. It filters down to this day and causes other countries to laugh at us and call us hypocrites.

In all fairness to the Global Corporate power structure, their way is not only not the only way, it is most definitely not the natural one. It is, actually, an artificial construct designed to maximize profit for a select few, give the appearance of “filtering down” to those who do as they’re told, and to ensconce itself in the public psyche to the point where it becomes an unquestionable fact of life.

I don’t have to tell most of you that when someone holds all the cards, they have full control of how the game is played. Corporations are so good at controlling public perception that most people can’t even imagine a time before their existence. Do you think they know corporations, by definition, are illegal? Doubtful.

It’s a given that they probably don’t know corporations not only have more rights than average citizens, they also have the virtue of individual protection under the law. That’s right. Legally speaking, corporations are people with the same rights we are told we have. And in case you see nothing wrong with that, how would you feel if you knew they used the anti-slavery amendment to justify their “person-hood.” Maybe you’re of the mind-set that considers that “good business.”

The grim specter of capitalism will always find a way, and sadly, it will also always find mindless adherents to justify its methods. In the name of commerce, all things are possible…for a select few.

Let’s take a walk back in time for a moment. We’ll go back to a time of kings and religious crusades. Europe will be our example. Let’s say you and I are living in England during the reign of a particularly benevolent ruler. We have traveled across most of Western Europe and seen the horrible conditions the other people are living in. When someone asks us about our king, we will most likely say, “We have a good king. He cares for the people and doesn’t let them starve!”

“It is a foregone conclusion that this “good king” still imposes exorbitant tariffs on the citizenry, prevents average people from owning property, punishes those who speak out and enforces bizarre laws that make life difficult. Still, in relative terms he is better than the alternative.

When I hear “good company,” that analogy comes to mind. At one point in our history, we thought a country ruled by kings was the only possible form of governance. Even though Plato had created a Democratic model centuries before, nobody except the ruling class knew about it. At some point, some truck driver or parking lot attendant stumbled upon the writings of Plato and was all like, “HEY! What the fudge? We don’t gotta have no kings no more?” I’m not for sure about the guy’s occupation, but I do know he employed a triple negative, the first in recorded herstory.

I don’t know the rest of the story, but I seem to remember some after school special where the kings were slowly replaced by democratic forms of government. How are corporations any different? They’re not. In many ways, they mimic those kings of old. They control our perceptions, they constantly reinforce their greatness and domination, and they make (most of) us think there is no other way to live. They also tend to have so-called individuals who extol their virtues without question, much like a blind patriot or the slave who’s given the big, important job of keeping the other slaves in line.

Corporations, by their very nature, are illegal. Until the late 1800’s, the definition of a corporation was a loosely conglomerated guild of companies brought together to achieve a specific goal for the common good and then disband once it was accomplished. Sadly, somebody figured out how much money could be made from keeping the corporation going and pushed all sorts of legislation through Congress. Suddenly the public good gave way to corporate interest and workers rights became non-existent until the advent of labor unions, which themselves began to mimic corporations and become equally corrupt and dysfunctional. Fortunately, the news media remained objective and never allowed corporations to…oh, yeah.

My theory is that the entire planet is actually run by three companies, headed ultimately by men so wealthy and so exclusive that most of us will never know who the H_ they are. They and their companies have more rights than people. But it’s the only way to maintain this modern world we live in where we’re all so happy and fulfilled.

When I say the place I work is a “good company,” I am speaking in relative terms. I am not saying it with the implication that companies are inherently good and necessary. I am reaching into the toilet, pulling out the golden turd, and saying, “See? This one’s much prettier than the others!”

Perhaps someone besides me will look around one day and say, “Hey! What the fudge? We don’t gotta have no more corporations no more?” Wouldn’t that be nice?

Unfortunately, unlike the kings of old, corporations can permeate our every living moment with their propaganda. Don’t expect any significant revolutions any time soon. Loathe as I am to admit it, I think it’s too late. At this point, we might have to resign ourselves to seeking out those “good companies,” knowing deep inside that there’s nothing good about any of them~