Multi-national Power / by kevin murray

Corporations are in business to make money.  The largest corporations in America are huge and mighty international conglomerates in which they are operating and making money twenty-four hours a day, every day, in countries located all throughout the world.  Corporations typically aren't really interested in what a given sovereign country provides or doesn't provide for its citizens or the nature of their internal politics, except when it comes to their particular business at hand.  Corporations care about themselves, that is their business, and as long as they can continue with business as usual, they are typically satisfied.

 

But what if a given sovereign nation has issues with a multi-national corporation?  The response by the multi-national corporation depends upon the issues at hand.  Whereas, virtually no corporation has much respect for countries that wish to unilaterally renegotiate contracts that have already been set in stone with a previous administration or whatever, these corporations are typically willing to be accommodative if the public hue and cry is loud enough, or public sentiment is vastly negative towards them, or if they fear that failure will seriously threaten their long-term profits.  

 

The problem with these "negotiations" between a country that is negotiating for the benefit of its constituents against a multi-national corporation is that the multi-national is vastly more experienced in all aspects of negotiating, including the art of dirty tricks.  Unfortunately, for smaller countries, they often don't have the infrastructure, the sophistication, good democratic principles or the like, to possibly match their wits against the multi-nationals.  Therefore, the result is often a given and well within the cost of doing business, but what if a country sticks to its principles and stands firm against a multi-national?

 

Perhaps nothing will happen but that is a very long shot.  Nobody likes to be jilted, and when dealing with entities that are the largest, the most powerful, the smartest, the most determined, and the richest corporations that the world has ever known, you typically will not see them go down quietly.  So a few elite people and media within a given country don't want to play ball with a particular corporation, well, that really is no big deal, because if you dig a little deeper there are bound to be other players within the same country that are eager to move up and to make the necessary accommodations to become the new power brokers.

 

In reality, when a multi-national corporation makes an offer to your country, it isn't going to be the type of offer that you are going to be able to readily refuse.  This isn't a negotiation between equals, and these small sovereign nations are almost compelled to go to bed with one or many of the multi-nationals that wish to exploit their country and their resources.   Whereas years ago, tribute was paid by occupied countries to their vanquishers, today only the names have changed as the concept is alive and well.  Pay tribute to the multi-nationals that control the worldwide economy, the access to money and wealth, or suffer the consequences of banishment and darkness.