So, this thread seems in part to be another in that long-running series, “The news media don’t report enough on things that confirm my prejudices”. I never get tired of those.
Say it is all unavoidable? Nah. I mean, mega-societies are going to leave a footprint, that much is unavoidable. But we could be a little more specific that the OP. Which corporations are actually out of control? BP seems to fuck up everywhere they go, and I wouldn’t mind seeing them disincorporated as a lesson to us all. IBM? Yah, they make a lot of money and probably have some insulting millionaire enjoying a 3-martini lunch right now on his corporate jet, but is IBM really ‘out of control’ or just successful?
I’d like to see the bright line between ‘out of control’ and not defined in this thread.
That’s ultimately up to the OP, who may or may not come back. But I’d agree that there’s a difference between BP and IBM. Corporations aren’t inherently evil, but IMHO there needs to be more control of those that are. I’m not sure how we control enormous multinationals but I do think that some of them are a real threat to both the environment and our political and economic systems.
A good book on the topic is Who’s Running America which is updated every few years. It lists a lot of the elites in the government, the worlds largest companies, the worlds main media outlets, etc. and makes the case for these elites running the show.
You mean, the case that they do, or the case that they should?
Guys, guys. Let’s not pick on the OP - the suggested debate is pretty clear to me.
Q: Is it accurate to say that the United States of America is primarily controlled - through lobbying, media ownership, and other means of influencing politics and opinion - by large corporations, who don’t care about the little guy and in fact often harm him or her pursuing their respective interests?
And the implied follow-up: if it is true, what could/should be done about it? Should anything be done about it, or maybe it’s better for society as a whole? If it is not true, why not, and why do some people claim that it is?
The case that they do. I haven’t read the current edition but did read the 1989 edition for a macro-econ class.
If corporations really run America…
Where’s my Rollerball?
Yeah, but if someone is running America (or at least a part of it), isn’t one by definition an elite? I mean, even if a self-described mechanic somewhere was making some important issues about Wall Street or something, that would make him more of a Wall Street baron than a grease monkey, right?
I think a lot of people with paranoid tendencies fail to recognize the distinction between making a boogeyman out of a person or organization that seem to have a lot of power vs. the fact that there are a lot of different types of people or organizations who also have a lot of power but have different, and often opposing, interests.
For example, am I to believe that the government is in the pockets of the big automakers, when it is clear that the UAW also has a great deal of influence? They may agree on some things, but they also disagree on a lot.
Burst the capitalist integument! Expropriate the expropriators! Socialize the means of production! Lose inches off your hips, thighs, buttocks and abdomen! 
No. Corporations are just one of many stakeholders who lobby the government in an attempt to pursue their interests.
Given that large corporations are highly visible (because of their marketing efforts), provide many of the products andservices people want and need and that large numbers of people are dependent on them for their livlihood, they seem to weild a disproportionate amount of power.
Of all the political contributions from 1989-2010 the majority came from unions and most of the money went to democratic candidates:
Mega corporations ruling America? Yeah, that’s what the Masons want you to believe.
A topic about who runs america and no one has mentioned the jews yet? I’m impressed.
Sssh… we don’t discuss that. Gentleman’s Agreement.
The Jews run America?!?
I didn’t know that.
shrug could be worse I guess.
Jews run America? Well, that would explain our Middle East foreign policy.
The majority of individual contributions or the largest amount of money?
In any case, it isn’t necessarily just about donations to candidates. It’s also about issue ads. It’s also about astroturf. It’s also about control of the news outlets. Those things may have more influence than donations to candidates.