In early June I was asked to participate in a drug study sponsored by Bayer. I tentatively agreed and began to research just who Bayer was. I knew they made aspirin, but that’s all I knew. Turns out that Bayer AG is a German corporation founded in 1863. The current Bayer corporation is a result of the breakup of I.G. Farben, a large chemical conglomerate, after World War II. I.G. Farben manufactured Zyklon B, the chemical used in the Nazi death chambers, during the War. The company also used surviving Auschwitz Jews as forced laborers and designed the ovens used to incinerate the corpses in the death camps. Some reports indicate that Bayer, while a unit of I.G. Farben, may have played a role in Dr. Josef Mengele‘s human experiments. I immediately refused to participate in any studies sponsored by or involving Bayer, based on the corporation’s history.
The rest of June wasn’t a picnic. I started to see an alternative healer specializing in Chinese medicine and acupuncture. Unfortunately, I’m still too sick for acupuncture or any other kind of body work, but I’m convinced he can help me regain some control over my condition. The original goal was to boost my energy level. That goal was reached within a week or so. The current goal is to reduce my dialysis sessions to once a week within the next month.
During a dialysis session in mid-June I had a reaction to an antibiotic. My blood pressure dropped from 170/90 to 120/30 in less than three minutes, and I didn’t think I was going to make it. My vision was narrowing, I found it difficult to breathe, and I was itching all over like stinky socks. About a week later, one of the dialysis technicians found a hole in my catheter. The right port sucked air and made funny noises when they pulled from it. A day later an interventional radiologist removed the catheter. From here on out they’ll have to use my fistula for dialysis.
It’s difficult for me to fathom why we allow corporations like Bayer to exist. Corporations, after all, are merely constructed fictions and exist only because we allow it. As constructed fictions, corporations are ungrounded and therefore incapable of responsibility. If each corporate shareholder were held personally responsible for the actions of the corporation, the financial markets would be immediately and dramatically transformed. Fewer shares would be traded, obviously, but more importantly, investors would take the time to research and carefully investigate the companies in which they invest. The criteria used to evaluate investments would certainly expand.
At the same time we should make it easier for citizens to revoke the charter of irresponsible corporations. The law needs to be rewritten to automatically revoke the charter when a corporation repeatedly and willfully causes harm to citizens or the biosphere.
The basis of the problem is found in a single court ruling: Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad. In this 1886 dispute, the U.S. Supreme Court found that a private corporation was a “natural person” under the Constitution and enjoyed the same protections as a citizen under the Bill of Rights. Corporations from that point forward were granted all of the rights and freedoms of a private citizen, yet none of the responsibilities.
If this isn’t what we want, it’s time for each of us to start living out loud, demanding the changes we want. Let’s start with restricting the rights and enforcing the responsibilities of the corporations.
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