Robin Boles

Call out box:

Shape our Future: What is a Climate Action Plan discussion with UWRF Sustainability Department. Tuesday, March 25, 6:30-7:30 pm.

Save the Date: Earth Fest 2025, Saturday April 26, 12 - 4. UWRF University Center. Visit hopeforearth.org/earthfest for more information. 

Earth Fest Pre-event: Smokeytown drum circle. Saturday April 26, 11 - 12. UWRF University Center.

Allow me to step onto my soapbox for a moment…

America is in the midst of an identity crisis. Who are we, and what do we stand for?

In times past, discussions of our identity centered around the subtle distinctions between a democracy and a republic. We asked ourselves: Are we a democracy where laws are determined by the people, or are we a republic where laws are determined by the elected representatives of said people? 

But decades of shifting legislation have moved well beyond this discussion and shaped us into a country where laws are made by corporations, a corporatocracy. Now, we teeter on the edge of becoming an oligarchy where power is funneled to a select few with the most money.

The Supreme Court ruling in 2010 in favor of Citizens United vs. the Federal Elections Commission overturned a long-standing federal ban on corporate spending in elections. The decision opened the door for political action committees, or Super-PACs as they are known, to provide an unfiltered stream of corporate spending and influence on elections.

It is no surprise that the three wealthiest men in the nation stood behind Donald Trump during his inauguration. It was thanks to them and the hundreds of millions of dollars they donated to his campaign that he got elected. Rest assured it will be them that he serves – not the American people.

Profits provide the funds for corporations to gain control of our governing bodies. Corporations pay lobbyists to push for laws that provide loopholes for large corporations and create obstacles for small businesses.

We’ve all heard the phrase, “It’s easier to ask forgiveness than permission.” With the amount of money at corporations’ disposal, this is especially true. In anticipation of legal consequences, they work the expense of fees and fines directly into their product costs, so the consumer pays for them to break the rules and buy their way out. Family farmers and small businesses don’t have endless funds available to pay the fees and fines or attorneys required to fight the system

In November 2024, America made its choice: Profit over people! We effectively voted to hand over our country to corporate ideals and values, which are not built to take humans into consideration. Many functions of government do not generate a fiscal return, so how will we reconcile this business application to our governing needs?

Air traffic controllers do not generate revenue on an income statement, but they do keep airplanes from colliding in the air, and it turns out they are necessary for protecting lives. Veterans Affairs administrators do not drive profits, but they play an essential role in helping to care for those who sacrificed their health and well-being to protect our freedom. For most of us, safety, health, and freedom are priceless; however, corporations routinely devalue what we hold most dear in order to line their own pockets.

To step into Washington and apply a corporate model of efficiency to a system not designed to generate profits is like stepping into the kitchen to repair an engine. You’ll probably find some tools you can adapt and maybe get by, but you’re going to make a mess of the kitchen, break some stuff, and your engine fix will likely be temporary.

Further, businesses that fail, close, then people go get that product or service elsewhere – from another business. Governments cannot close the doors and walk away. We can’t simply visit the yellow pages or Google to find another government to manage our needs.

And our government services address real needs like roads, schools, justice, healthcare, national defense and all kinds of other essential functions on which our citizens depend. If these services are eliminated based on whether they generate a profit, we’re going to run into some big problems.

What does this have to do with sustainability? Everything!

We know corporations have successfully launched a propaganda campaign, diverting attention away from their own destructive practices and placing the onus of mitigating climate change on individuals. They imply that by merely addressing our own minor habits, like the use of plastic straws, we might stem the tide of environmental damage — damage for which these corporations are chiefly responsible. Meanwhile, they persist in producing and aggressively marketing goods that directly harm our well-being and the health of our planet.

Is this the type of model we want for our government? How can we expect to make any progress toward sustainability under such a framework? Corporations are already backing off their commitments to sustainability after the recent executive orders.

Since the election, there has been an exodus from climate initiatives in the corporate arena. A mass desertion of the pledges, goals, and systems that would do the work required to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, promote and facilitate the transition to alternative energy, and reduce waste and pollution.

Accounting for only about 5% of the global population, the United States consumes approximately 25% of the world’s resources, second only behind China which makes up about 17% of the global population.

This is us. We are responsible for consuming 25% of the world’s resources. For what? Plastic toys, bottled water, fast food, fast fashion, home décor, disposable dishes, short-distance air travel, beef and dairy, individually wrapped snacks… The list goes on and on.

But the simple truth is that we don’t need most of what they’re selling. Corporations have made it clear that unless we hold them accountable, they will continue to do as they please. Unfortunately, they have made it a reality, and now it actually is up to us as individuals to make hard choices and sacrifice convenience for the sake of our planet.

Keep your hard-earned money in your community. Support local businesses. Reuse and repurpose. Don’t buy disposables. Mend your clothes. Shop second-hand. Carpool.

Deny corporations their profits.

Reach out to your representatives. Tell them we don’t want billionaires telling them and other government employees how to do their jobs.

In closing, I’ll quote a champion for the working class, Bernie Sanders, “Do we want a government of the people, by the people, for the people? Or do we want a government of the billionaires, by the billionaires, for the billionaires?”

You decide.