Hippie stunned that laws aren't just for other people.

[Seth]

This doesn't mean get rid of big corporations, it means a careful examination of the methods they use to exert undue influence, and careful legislation (enacted by a rational, centre-left government) to rein them in...

No real problem for me there, except the whole "centre-left government" thing. I prefer to put the constraints on the legislature, where the constraint belongs, so that it cannot enshrine such undue influence in the law in the first place.

My philosophy for Washington government is fairly simple: First, build a wall around DC and only allow legislators and government employees to live there. Everyone else has to be out by dark. Politicians would be required to take a vow of poverty upon being elected, and all their assets would be placed in a blind trust, outside their control. The government would issue everything to the legislator, from clothing to housing. They would live in standardized, furnished apartments of suitable size, and would be under military discipline. They would report to work every day at 8 am, and would leave work at 5 pm, and would punch a time clock. They would eat government food in a government cafeteria. They would be forbidden from possession cash of any kind in any amount whatsoever. They would be issued a Congressional debit card, which would be, by law, legal tender for them everywhere. They would wear a GPS locator at all times when outside the DC enclave, except when on vacation. Their movements, and their expenditures would be tracked and available in real-time on the Internet to all citizens. Every conversation that they have, and everything they do while on duty as an elected representative would be video and audio recorded and available on the Internet. It would be a felony for an elected representative to speak to anyone about government matters without that conversation being recorded, automatically transcribed and made available to the public on demand. No representative would serve more than one term in office, and would be forbidden from serving in ANY OTHER government job or office, federal, state or local, after that term has expired. They would be required to be audited after their term in office, and if they have more money or assets than can be verified and explained by the operations of the blind trust and their congressional salary, they go directly to federal prison for 25 years. Any act of corruption in office they are convicted of would bring an automatic death penalty.

Now, this might dissuade people from running for office, leaving many seats vacant and Congress unable to form a quorum and therefore unable to act, but that's okay, "he who governs least, governs best."

[Seth]

Especially now, with global "free trade" if a government is too hard on a corporation it'll pack up and leave to somewhere friendlier. Taking jobs and capital with it.

That is a fair point, it is a difficult issue for national governments to deal with.

And that's a good thing, too, as it's the only thing keeping government overregulation in check.

The durability and strength of capitalism and the free markets are demonstrated by just how much government over regulation it actually takes before corporations will fold their tents and flee.