Disappeared News

If it's true that corporations run our government, then it may be time for them to unite and demand regime change.

According to an MSNBC report,

Farmers of all types of specialty crops, from almonds to roses, have seen the immigrant labor supply they depend on dry up over the past year.

. . .

Other industries that depend on immigrant labor, such as landscaping and construction, "are also concerned about the overall availability of labor given demographic trends," he said, adding: "But agriculture is the warning sign, if you will, of structural changes in the economy."

The problem is now reaching crisis proportions, food growers say. As much as 30 percent of the year's pear crop was lost in Northern California, growers estimate. More than one-third of Florida's Valencia orange crop went unharvested, Regelbrugge said. In New York, apples are rotting on the trees, because workers who once picked the fruit have fled frequent raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, said Maureen Marshall, an apple grower in Elba.

The problem is the hatred for immigrants that the Republican Party has fostered and turned into restrictive legislation.

According to articles in the NY Times and elsewhere, tourism is down:

San Francisco's tourist industry, the lifeblood of its economy, is in dire straits. Even before Sept. 11, the dot-com bust had put a damper on business travel, causing hotel occupancy to drop 11 percent in the first eight months of the year from the same period last year. But since Sept. 11, tourism in San Francisco, as in every destination that depends on air travelers, has been seriously affected.

It's no longer a pleasure to fly to or within the United States. The recent crackdown on liquids and gels was only the last straw.

The high price of gasoline Bushites have bestowed on small and large businesses throughout the country so that their oil company buddies can prosper is hurting the economy in umpteen ways.

So if corporations indeed run Washington (and last night's Bill Moyers documentary confirms that they do:

Once upon a time the House of Representatives was known as "the people's house." No more. It belongs to K Street now. That's the address of the lobbyists who swarm all over Capitol Hill. There are 65 lobbyists for every member of Congress. They spend $200 million per month wining, dining and seducing federal officials. Per month!

... so if they really run things, when are they going to get together and decide that this administration is really hurting their business?

CEOs of America, Unite!