One of the fundamental goals of those working for greater democracy, equity and sustainability around the globe is to get the hands of large corporate actors out of the public coffer. The problem is a vicious and insidious one, as it results in more riches procured by already powerful corporations, which then allow these corporations to lobby their host governments for even more financial advantages.

Yet the problem persists and is accelerating with globalization: the rich keep getting richer (see IPS report, Executive Excess 2002), the gap widening to a chasm between rich and poor. CEO salaries have risen by 571% percent over the past decade, relative to much smaller raises for the average worker of 3%, and despite layoffs and stock market losses. Corporate mergers are proceeding to ridiculous heights, particularly in the energy sector. For more on mergers, visit Merger Watch.

Corporations have also seen a steady decline in the taxes they pay their government hosts (see related article from The Nation). Between 1996 and 1998, 41 large, profitable corporations used special tax breaks to reduce their corporate tax bill to less than zero, receiving outright federal tax rebate checks, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy.

Public money from individual governments and from multilateral institutions, like the World Bank, is bankrolling already powerful multinational corporations. For example, nine out of ten World Bank energy projects benefit corporations based in the powerful G-7 countries (US, Canada, Germany, Japan, Italy, France, and the UK). (For more information on these
corporations, visit http://www.seen.org/pages/ifis/wbstill/append.shtml#st-11.)

For a look at how these corporate subsidies can result in rewarding bad corporate actors for continued human rights abuses, visit: http://www.seen.org/pages/reports/chadcam04_28_00.shtml

For more information on corporations, visit:

Corporate Europe Observatory (http://www.xs4all.nl/~ceo/)

or

CorpWatch (http://www.corpwatch.org).