Forget about corporate personhood.
Forget about Super Natural Corporate Powers (courtesy of SCOTUS, inc.).
Forget about Citizen's United (courtesy of SCOTUS, inc.).
Forget about employee vs. employer rights.
Forget about "Your gay violates mah religious freedom, Part Deux."
Forget about contraception, the Pope, the Bishops, the snake handlers.
Hell, while we're at it, forget about the pie!
(OK, not going to forget about the pie. We'll need that later).
All of this is a sideshow to the ensuing carnival of unintended consequences that will be unleashed should our venerated SCOTUS, inc.--or more precisely, Justice Kennedy, inc.--decide to grant supernatural powers to every corporation in America.
So says trial lawyer extraordinaire and Ring of Fire radio host Mike Papantonio (appearing yesterday on the Ed Schultz radio show) who says such a ruling would be good news for anyone damaged by corporate malfeasance. For Hobby Lobby's super Jesus Powers would not only mark the end of Corporate Personhood. It would end Corporate Indemnity. Or as Mike Papantonio says, it would completely alter corporate law on such a grand scale, "It would pierce the corporate veil," and allow law suits to proceed against the owners of a corporation for the illegal or negligent acts of the corporation.
That's right cowboy. The saloon door swings both ways. And sometimes it smacks you in the face. Doh!
It means that not only BP gets sued and prosecuted for dumping millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. Tony Hayward and All Of These Folks get sued and prosecuted along with a boatload of other individuals who would otherwise skate. Gee. That might make the next corporation pay for that new extra 10,000 leagues beneath the sea redundant valve. Ya think?
But why believe me? I've never even played a lawyer on television. OK. I did play a lawyer once in high school as part of a mock trial competition, but that was so long ago OJ hadn't even bought that pair of gloves yet. (Oh wait....)
Well, Mr. Papantonio has but one question: Where are the amicus briefs? Gobs were filed in Citizens United by every Big Corporate Governance entity from the Chamber of Commerce to Americans for Saving Cute Kittens from Liberal Scum. Inc. But Hobby Lobby?
Because, "They are terrified by this case."
[For those of us who don't do law, an amicus brief is basically an opinion offered by someone who is not a party to a case but has an interest in its outcome enough to pay some lawyer thousands of dollars to make the argument to the SCOTUS and add it to the case record. ]
According to Mr. Papantonio, Citizens United has already breached the veil and test cases are imminent challenging the separation of corporation from owner based on that steaming pile of, uh, jurisprudence. Add supernatural powers and suddenly "There's no distinction between the owner of a corporation and the corporate entity and then all of a sudden the protection...this corporate veil protection...that says you can't sue...the owner of the corporation no matter how bad their conduct is..." goes poof!
Mr Papantonio argues that the lack of amicus briefs is the corporate world's way of telegraphing to its fully owned subsidiary majority on the SCOTUS, inc., to Have fun with your God fit, but don't you dare rule in favor of these morans. Which places this, for me, on the kabuki shelf.
Thanks Mike!
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