Corporate Rule

A deep gap is growing between the promises of the new global capitalism and the reality of the social breakdown, inequality, insecurity, spiritual emptiness, and environmental destruction left in its wake. What went wrong, and why?

Beginning in the 1960s, social, economic, and political observers expressed concern over the role of multination-al corporations. As the global economy has evolved, it is the transnational corporation that provokes apprehension. Increasingly, concentrations of economic, social, and political power are being held by a few strong companies. Corporate Rule shows how devastating these effects have been to both the planet and the majority of its inhabitants.

This hard-hitting title examines all aspects of corporate rule and the underlying ideology which serves corporate interests. In particular, it examines its main control mechanisms: trade agreements, the media, and the popular culture, naming corporate rule a form of tyranny no different than the tyrannies of dictators, monarchs, or the church.

Though a searing indictment of an unjust international economic order, it is also a guide to the average person on how to understand and address the enormous challenges of our time. The book argues that the most promising alternative is a world of healthy market economies that function as extensions of healthy local ecosystems to meet the needs of people and communities.

Millions of people are acting to reclaim their political and economic power from these elitist forces, challenging the status quo, saying 'no' to the myth that global capital-ism is not only inevitable, but necessary. At this critical time in history, Model believes that if we truly want to meet our future needs, we must intentionally build a radical new post-corporate world that will sustain our community.

David Model teaches political science at Seneca College, King City, Ontario. He is the author of People Before Profits (Captus Press).