Most of the time, corporations claim that they are people, as Little Lord Willard proclaimed during his failed bid to become President. However, there are times when corporations agree they aren’t people. One is when their officers claim immunity from responsibility for corporate crime. The other, and the focus of this article, is every April 15, or the equivalent in their corporate fiscal year.
Corporations are quick to claim “corporate personhood” and their First Amendment rights when it comes to their ability to donate to political candidates, influence elections, and lobby or when it comes to advertising their products, especially those deemed dangerous or socially destructive. But on tax day, corporations are quite content with a tax code full of perks and privileges for corporations that are not available to living, breathing human beings.
- When corporations break the law, they get a tax break…
- When corporations fall on hard times, the tax code helps makes them whole…
- Many corporations get to choose where in the world to report their income, allowing them to choose a nation with low or no taxes…
- Superstorm Sandy devastated millions of American families, but corporations got to deduct the full value of their losses from their taxes…
- If you are an American citizen working abroad you pay American taxes on your foreign earnings; if you are an American corporation you can indefinitely delay paying U.S. taxes on income you earn abroad…
As many people work hard to make corporations less human on election day, perhaps it is time to make them more human on tax day.
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I have given you the headings of the article’s five points, but the bulk of the good material is in the supporting text for each point, so I recommend that you click through to read it. I concede that, on tax day, corporations should be people, but regardless we must remember this:
11 Responses to “When Corporations Agree They Aren’t People”
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Don't get me started!!! I'm trying to have a nice time in Baltimore with my family this week. They are not people!
UGH! Condolences!
We must communicate and fix the SCOTUS error… 🙂
http://youtu.be/hYIC0eZYEtI
Thanks for the Carlin vid. Good one!
Thank you for the Carlin video Richard. I always liked George Carlin and his ability to make sense of the seemingly non-sensical.
Various notable Presidents of the US have warned against letting corporations get too strong from the Roosevelts onwards (and probably some before for all I know!). Patently they were right, but sadly didn't manage to do much to control them.
Tool true Pat. The first i remember was IKE.
I just LOVE what Elizabeth Waren said:
Amen, Nameless!
"As many people work hard to make corporations less human on election day, perhaps it is time to make them more human on tax day."
AMEN!!!!!
Thanks Lynn.