Corporate-prostitution

                                                          Is Sweden Disappearing

                                                       by author and writer Réal Laplaine

When I came to Sweden a couple years back, I realized that there was a disease in Sweden, which had already infected America, where I lived for over thirty years, and this disease was, in my opinion, destroying the infrastructure of that country. I called it “corporate prostitution”.

Today in America, you would find it very difficult to buy something that was NOT made in China. Americans are well aware of this, they talk about it, but little to nothing effective is done to resolve the matter.

Many American corporations have sold themselves out, or their manufacturing process, to China, all because China offers a much cheaper work force than paying Americans to produce their products. The PR spin from these companies would sound profoundly "deep", such as, “we support free trade” and other such mantras, but the fact remains that today, what used to be announced as PROUDLY MADE IN AMERICA, is practically nostalgic, because it is largely Produced in China. Pay $150 for your Nike’s – made in China. Pay $2000 for your new LD flat-screen TV – made in China.

I am not against China, great people, great history and culture, but I do draw the line on Communism and supporting a Communist regime.

Years back, one used to be able to walk into IKEA and find Swedish-made products. That’s rare now. They may be designed by Swedes, but much of it is manufactured in China or elsewhere in Asia. I realize that logistically speaking, a company the size of IKEA would have issues supplying the whole world from just Sweden, but that isn’t really my point here. Corporate prostitution is simply this – instead of finding the RIGHT way to do it, these outfits are selling out to China, and whether they like it or not, they are supporting the wrong camp.

Some of the largest corporations in Sweden, backbones of this country for decades, are now largely sold out to China , we’ve all seen it in just recent weeks. That is a LOT of lost corporate strength and power, for a small country such as Sweden.

If the Chinese PRC (Peoples Republic of China) – the core “administrative” government, which is communist, changed, and China became a truly democratic or republic state, then I would say they are on an equal playing field with the rest of us and could be respected on the matter of "free trade". But that is not the case – and the PR twist from China, and one which is being happily resonated by every corporation that sells out to them, is that China is a good place to invest in. Of course it is. They are now, because everyone is piling money into them, one of the cash-richest countries in the world. They can afford to buy out companies. Hell, even the Italian government is now considering a bail-out from China.

But ask yourself this? Do we really want to prostitute ourselves to a regime that holds over 1.6 billion people under a communist thumb? Where freedom of speech is NOT allowed? Where freedom of religion is NOT allowed? Where civil dissention or protests is responded to with force, imprisonment or death? I challenge anyone in the free world, to move their family to China, become a citizen – and tell us what it feels like to be “free” in China.

Do not be fooled by the outward appearance of China or the apparent nature of the beast - communism is oppressive to people and their innate rights. For decades, the world refused to do trade with the USSR (the former Russia) during its communist regime. We all lived under the blanket of fear of nuclear attack from the USSR – bomb shelters exist all over Sweden as proof of that fact. Why? Because communism was suppressive to people and cultures, nobody trusted a communist USSR, and rightly so, it was the world's largest slave camp, tooting a "perfect" ideology, and the only way they kept communism alive was to use force, threat of death and fear to keep its people in line, not to mention fences and an army to patrol the border– which is exactly what the Chinese government uses. When the communist USSR finally folded, and admitted it’s utter failure, the world opened its doors to Russia. So what’s the difference with China, the PRC? The answer unfortunately is MONEY.

Sweden is heading down the same road. This year it was Ericsson, Volvo – next year what? And for a country of only 9 million people, and a MUCH smaller infrastructure than let’s say America, the rate of decline in the Swedish economy cannot be equally measured, since the dynamics in place are far different.

Of course no one can dictate to these private corporations what they should do. But I believe that if you’re going to insert yourself into a country, such as Sweden, and become an important part of its infrastructure and support, then you should also exercise a level of responsibility for that. Possibly the only way to get this ship back on course is for the international community to put some pressure on China, to force it to deal-in at the card table, on the same terms as everyone else. Such as putting a ceiling on how much China can export to the rest of the world, and beyond that, they are not permitted to exceed that figure until they change their political and economic policies related to the people they "represent". In other words, if you want to play ball with the rest of us, then drop the communist manifesto and allow democracy, and then we're happy to let you into the game. Otherwise, sorry. Embargos of this nature have been routinely done to force regimes into line, if they wanted to trade with the rest of the world. Money is a two-sided sword, it can be wielded to effect good, and bad.

Aside from the economic aspect of this, there is the ETHICAL side. What is right for people, for mankind? Are we really going to just sit here and empower the Chinese communist regime to become the most powerful nation in the world? – because that is what we are doing!

We’re so good at seeing our faults in hindsight, but how about some foresight for a change? It doesn’t take a genius or a rocket scientist to see where this is heading. And of course, everyone loves the luxury of cheaper products, and a better life-style, but at what cost? And what world are we leaving as a playing field for our kids, and their kids?

The question is not just rhetorical, it’s not just economical and a matter of keeping the flow of money going, as bankers and corporate leaders would like to say, or making sure our pensions are intact… it is about, are we going to empower the beast, or are we going to do something to get countries, such as Sweden, to stand on its own two feet again and to no longer engage corporate-prostitution because it is easy to do so?

Réal Laplaine is an author and writer. His books include, INTRUSION: A Keeno Action Novel, The Buffalo Kid and Finding Agnetha, all of which are available through various on-line book sellers and independent book outlets. Visit him at his website or blog.

www.reallaplaine.com
www.reallaplaine.wordpress.com