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Farms Charged With Human Trafficking

danarhea

Slayer of the DP Newsbot
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The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has sued a California-based labor contractor, Global Horizons Inc., and farms in Washington and Hawaii, claiming they discriminated against more than 200 Thai workers in what the authorities called the largest human trafficking case in the nation’s agriculture industry. Global Horizons confiscated the workers’ passports and threatened to deport them if they complained about conditions, commission officials said. Named in the suit were the Captain Cook Coffee Company, Del Monte Fresh Produce, the Kauai Coffee Company, Kelena Farms Inc., MacFarms of Hawaii and the Maui Pineapple Company, all in Hawaii, and Valley Fruit Orchards and Green Acre Farms of Washington. The commission also filed a lawsuit in Mississippi against the marine services company Signal International claiming that 500 Indian workers faced discrimination and substandard living conditions in Mississippi and Texas.

For those who say that slavery is a thing of the past, and no longer exists, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those who say that business need not be regulated at all, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those asking why we still need unions, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those who believe that corporations have the right to be considered as "people" under the law, I submit this thread as exhibit "A". There is nothing human in nature with this. It is about as unhuman as can be.

For those who believe that ONLY market solutions are the correct ones, I submit this thread as exhibit "A". Here is a market solution. Do you like what you see?

For those who believe there need be no laws which cripple corporate productivity, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

Finally, for those wondering why, from this day on, I will never again buy a Del Monte product, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

Article is here.
 
I dont care if your super right wing conservative a moderate or a flaming left winger...Everyone knows in their heart of hearts that deregulation leads to someone getting screwed.
Christie de regulated the casino industry in Atlantic City..he was told first thing the casinos would do is fire the higher paid employees and thats exactly what they did.
For those that do not want to believe it...

Table games supervisors laid off at Bally's, Caesars, Harrah's Resort and Showboat casinos

Gov. Chris Christie signed into law Feb. 1 legislation ending minimum staffing requirements at the table games, opening the door for casinos to fire pit bosses and other supervisors on the gaming floor.
For those that dont know table game supervisors <pitboss's> are the highest paid jobs on the casino floor

http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/...cle_3bdb8712-6bb6-11e0-b0cf-001cc4c03286.html
 
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For those who say that slavery is a thing of the past, and no longer exists, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those who say that business need not be regulated at all, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those asking why we still need unions, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those who believe that corporations have the right to be considered as "people" under the law, I submit this thread as exhibit "A". There is nothing human in nature with this. It is about as unhuman as can be.

For those who believe that ONLY market solutions are the correct ones, I submit this thread as exhibit "A". Here is a market solution. Do you like what you see?

For those who believe there need be no laws which cripple corporate productivity, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

Finally, for those wondering why, from this day on, I will never again buy a Del Monte product, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

Article is here.

As sad as this is, I still feel deregulation is the answer. I shouldn't have to pay to police corporations. I should be able to have all lawsuit caps removed and be able to sue corporations for negligence or criminal activity. I should live in an America where consumer awareness and boycotting corporations is the norm towards control.

My guess is there will only be a few thousand who will boycott Del Monte, or even be aware it happened, or care about the worker's plight. In such cases CEO's should be headed to prison. Instead they will be rewarded with bonuses.
 
I think people tend to forget that a very large portion of government "interference" in the free market is a result of either an employee or a consumer being killed, maimed, sickened, or treated inhumanely in the name of a better profit margin.

Of course, a certain demographic here is going to interpret the above sentence as my endorsement of any and all government regulation in all aspects of life, desire for the government to control everything, etc...

As sad as this is, I still feel deregulation is the answer. I shouldn't have to pay to police corporations. I should be able to have all lawsuit caps removed and be able to sue corporations for negligence or criminal activity. I should live in an America where consumer awareness and boycotting corporations is the norm towards control.

My guess is there will only be a few thousand who will boycott Del Monte, or even be aware it happened, or care about the worker's plight. In such cases CEO's should be headed to prison. Instead they will be rewarded with bonuses.

At no point in history have lawsuits been sufficient to actually curb this sort of behavior, and it isn't because there's some artificial barrier to those lawsuits. It's because a giant corporation has way, way more money to spend on lawyers and "expert witnesses" to ensure that anyone who challenges them is bankrupt before they can complete a case. The deck is stacked very, very strongly against the consumer in such an environment. You simply don't have the resources to accomplish that task. Take the Erin Brokovitch case where a lawsuit was actually won against a company basically poisoning the local water supply. It was so unusual and noteworthy that they made a freaking movie about it.
 
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Another problem with trying to sue corporations: You don't have the authority to actually go in and investigate or inspect things, and without legal standards to comply with you are left with the extremely difficult task of proving that a corporation has actually done something wrong. If your drinking water is contaminated, the company is then able to just shrug its shoulders in court and say "we fully complied with all applicable laws. It's not our fault that the city's water treatment system is incapable of removing hexavalent chromium."
 
I dont care if your super right wing conservative a moderate or a flaming left winger...Everyone knows in their heart of hearts that deregulation leads to someone getting screwed.
Christie de regulated the casino industry in Atlantic City..he was told first thing the casinos would do is fire the higher paid employees and thats exactly what they did.
For those that do not want to believe it...

Table games supervisors laid off at Bally's, Caesars, Harrah's Resort and Showboat casinos

Gov. Chris Christie signed into law Feb. 1 legislation ending minimum staffing requirements at the table games, opening the door for casinos to fire pit bosses and other supervisors on the gaming floor.
For those that dont know table game supervisors <pitboss's> are the highest paid jobs on the casino floor

Table games supervisors laid off at Bally's, Caesars, Harrah's Resort and Showboat casinos - pressofAtlanticCity.com: Atlantic City | Pleasantville | Brigantine

Actually deregulation can be the best thing to happen to America if handled properly We spend $$$$ to regulate, inspect, etc. Wouldn't it be nice if government gave me my own protection group to insure I never violated a law or did anything wrong to cause me to get sued, for free? Foster Farms must enjoy a free staff of government inspectors to insure their chickens cause no harm.
 
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For those who say that slavery is a thing of the past, and no longer exists, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those who say that business need not be regulated at all, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those asking why we still need unions, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those who believe that corporations have the right to be considered as "people" under the law, I submit this thread as exhibit "A". There is nothing human in nature with this. It is about as unhuman as can be.

For those who believe that ONLY market solutions are the correct ones, I submit this thread as exhibit "A". Here is a market solution. Do you like what you see?

For those who believe there need be no laws which cripple corporate productivity, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

Finally, for those wondering why, from this day on, I will never again buy a Del Monte product, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

Article is here.

Dan, I'm not a supporter of right wing economic policies by any means but I doubt there are any people on this forum who suggest that business doesn't need to be regulated at all. I don't even think I've seen anybody who supports market decisions in every single scenario except for the fringe Libertarian every now and then. With that done, I think this is a perfect scenario of why there need to be unions. Corporations have a long history of labour oppression. They shouldn't be allowed to get away with things like this.
 
I think people tend to forget that a very large portion of government "interference" in the free market is a result of either an employee or a consumer being killed, maimed, sickened, or treated inhumanely in the name of a better profit margin.

Of course, a certain demographic here is going to interpret the above sentence as my endorsement of any and all government regulation in all aspects of life, desire for the government to control everything, etc...



At no point in history have lawsuits been sufficient to actually curb this sort of behavior, and it isn't because there's some artificial barrier to those lawsuits. It's because a giant corporation has way, way more money to spend on lawyers and "expert witnesses" to ensure that anyone who challenges them is bankrupt before they can complete a case. The deck is stacked very, very strongly against the consumer in such an environment. You simply don't have the resources to accomplish that task. Take the Erin Brokovitch case where a lawsuit was actually won against a company basically poisoning the local water supply. It was so unusual and noteworthy that they made a freaking movie about it.

Sounds like you are complaining about the judicial system that is broke. Maybe we need to investigate judges & start punishments at 20 years in prison, remove caps and give consumers equal rights in justice. Suits are not unusual, and are usually done as class action lawsuits, thousands of them a year. But the system needs to allow the consumers a no-cap recovery, to the point that those Thai workers can sue and take over the corporation for the harm done against them. CEO's only understand $$$, so hit them hard in their pocket books, force the corp into bankruptcy and closing it doors, or turning the keys over to people they have harmed.
 
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Sounds like you are complaining about the judicial system that is broke. Maybe we need to investigate judges & start punishments at 20 years in prison, remove caps and give consumers equal rights in justice. Suits are not unusual, and are usually done as class action lawsuits, thousands of them a year. But the system needs to allow the consumers a no-cap recovery, to the point that those Thai workers can sue and take over the corporation for the harm done against them. CEO's only understand $$$, so hit them hard in their pocket books, force the corp into bankruptcy and closing it doors, or turning the keys over to people they have harmed.

No-cap recoveries only work if you can actually get awarded the amount you sue for. Which is a lot harder to do when you don't have a law on the books to point at and say "Hey look this is what they did wrong." Without those regulations, it all comes down to who can put forth a more convincing case in court, and a big corporation is going to win that one most of the time. The only reason so many lawsuits settle now is because it's just easier, faster, more private, and cheaper to do so, but if you really drive for the big bucks they will go ahead and bury you.

It doesn't matter if your rights are equal. Your resources are not. Your information is not. As far as the justice system changes you're talking about, it's still big government, just shifted to a different avenue.

The mistake you're making is thinking that regulation is always a detriment to your freedom. Often regulation actually ensures your freedom. Inspecting your drinking water ensures your freedom to make an informed decision on whether or not to drink it. Construction safety standards ensures that a construction company has to build a safe building, not just build a crappy building and tell you it's safe. You aren't an engineer, you're horribly unqualified to make that determination. Why can't a private entity handle that? Well, private entities do handle similar tasks often. Some of them do it well, others are just shell companies created for the express purpose of providing a nice-sounding label for a crappy product. There's nothing stopping General Electric from creating "American Electric Safety Inspectors Alliance" and stacking it with their own guys who will, by sheer coincidence, always find GE products to be top-notch.

edit: Hell, Rand Paul went ahead and created his own certification board for ophthalmology. I'm sure his certification with that board went through smoothly.

edit2: This isn't to say I think Rand Paul is unqualified as an ophthalmologist. I have no information about how he keeps up his practice, if at all. The point is that essentially self-certifying is something the free market would love to do and it wont always turn out well.
 
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For those who say that slavery is a thing of the past, and no longer exists, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those who say that business need not be regulated at all, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those asking why we still need unions, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those who believe that corporations have the right to be considered as "people" under the law, I submit this thread as exhibit "A". There is nothing human in nature with this. It is about as unhuman as can be.

For those who believe that ONLY market solutions are the correct ones, I submit this thread as exhibit "A". Here is a market solution. Do you like what you see?

For those who believe there need be no laws which cripple corporate productivity, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

Finally, for those wondering why, from this day on, I will never again buy a Del Monte product, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

Article is here.

Corporations are formed to insulate from liability. Case closed. Corporations are formed to give a certain amount of anonymity to the owners. Case in point-Tell me the names of the owners of the Federal Reserve Corporation. Corporatism = Fascism. I guess it doesn't make any difference because we will all be broke and in the same boat soon. Don't let any Corporations get in the boat!
 
You'd just think that some billionaire would read stuff like this. Make a few calls. And make the problem go away. If they would do stuff like that I wouldn't hate them so much.
 
For those who say that slavery is a thing of the past, and no longer exists, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those who say that business need not be regulated at all, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those asking why we still need unions, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those who believe that corporations have the right to be considered as "people" under the law, I submit this thread as exhibit "A". There is nothing human in nature with this. It is about as unhuman as can be.

For those who believe that ONLY market solutions are the correct ones, I submit this thread as exhibit "A". Here is a market solution. Do you like what you see?

For those who believe there need be no laws which cripple corporate productivity, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

Finally, for those wondering why, from this day on, I will never again buy a Del Monte product, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

Article is here.

This is an example of criminal activity. It's also an indication that what regulation we have is working. They were caught. There is a difference between regulation and over-regulation...that's the thin line we always walk.

This has nothing to do with needing unions -- unless you think we ought to unionize the slave trade.

And re DelMonte? I'm with you.
 
Corporations are formed to insulate from liability.

I was thinking about this the other day, and I agree with you. Since it's such a nice perk, I suggest we consider a special tax on corporations -- having nothing to do with their gross profit and everything to do with their gross income...in addition to corporate income tax, of course.
 
I was thinking about this the other day, and I agree with you. Since it's such a nice perk, I suggest we consider a special tax on corporations -- having nothing to do with their gross profit and everything to do with their gross income...in addition to corporate income tax, of course.

And without loopholes, which, BTW, enabled GE to pay zero taxes this year.
 
For those who say that slavery is a thing of the past, and no longer exists, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those who say that business need not be regulated at all, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those asking why we still need unions, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

For those who believe that corporations have the right to be considered as "people" under the law, I submit this thread as exhibit "A". There is nothing human in nature with this. It is about as unhuman as can be.

For those who believe that ONLY market solutions are the correct ones, I submit this thread as exhibit "A". Here is a market solution. Do you like what you see?

For those who believe there need be no laws which cripple corporate productivity, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

Finally, for those wondering why, from this day on, I will never again buy a Del Monte product, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".

Article is here.

Are you high?

These people broke the laws, it has nothing to do with business regulation.
I feel dumber just reading that nonsense.
 
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I was thinking about this the other day, and I agree with you. Since it's such a nice perk, I suggest we consider a special tax on corporations -- having nothing to do with their gross profit and everything to do with their gross income...in addition to corporate income tax, of course.

Regardless of how you tax a corporation, it is the consumer who pays it with increased prices on products. You might as well pay it directly yourself, and cut corporations out of the government loop of freebies, that you also pay for.
 
Regardless of how you tax a corporation, it is the consumer who pays it with increased prices on products. You might as well pay it directly yourself, and cut corporations out of the government loop of freebies, that you also pay for.

I don't have a problem with that, actually. The market will "speak" as to how much of a tax like that can be passed along and how much will come out of stockholder dividends, expense accounts, CEO salaries, and the myriad expenses that go into a corporation's bottom line. That limitation of liability is huge -- why should corporations not pay a special fee for the privilege?
 
I don't have a problem with that, actually. The market will "speak" as to how much of a tax like that can be passed along and how much will come out of stockholder dividends, expense accounts, CEO salaries, and the myriad expenses that go into a corporation's bottom line. That limitation of liability is huge -- why should corporations not pay a special fee for the privilege?

Problem is Maggie, the stockholder, etc. are not going to experience any loss of profits. We see that in big oil. They just raise prices to cover the tax, or find a loophole to dodge the tax.

You don't tax corporations, in order to get them off the government dole. To make a seperation between corporate & state. This will end lobbyists, end taxpayers paying their way, end corporate wars, raise consumer awareness, take the cap off lawsuits, stop bail outs, bonuses, incentives, and corporate aid of any kind ~ ie. end the free lunch & make them stand on their own two feet, instead of your shoulders. That is a big slice of the budget pie, trillions in fact (iraq). And as corporations become more competitive, this will allow more community sized businesses to thrive, create jobs & tax revenue.
 
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Let me first say that there isn’t much information available on this issue so people need to let the facts unfold before they rush to judgments one way or another.

For those asking why we still need unions, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".
Get real. This has nothing to do with unions.


For those who believe that corporations have the right to be considered as "people" under the law, I submit this thread as exhibit "A". There is nothing human in nature with this. It is about as unhuman as can be.
Again, this story has nothing to do with the corporate personhood debate.


For those who believe that ONLY market solutions are the correct ones, I submit this thread as exhibit "A". Here is a market solution. Do you like what you see?
Get real. Your logic is whack. This is like saying it is a “market solution” to sell babies into prostitution. If it ain’t legal it ain’t a market solution and for you to imply otherwise is dishonest.


For those who believe there need be no laws which cripple corporate productivity, I submit this thread as exhibit "A".
What the hell does this really mean? Do you just make **** up to hype up the drama? I know you don’t tend to your threads so I don’t expect you to bother explaining anything but you are really out there with the “we need an American revolution” crap considering the lack of facts we have at this time.
 
This is an example of criminal activity. It's also an indication that what regulation we have is working. They were caught. There is a difference between regulation and over-regulation...that's the thin line we always walk.

This has nothing to do with needing unions -- unless you think we ought to unionize the slave trade.

And re DelMonte? I'm with you.

I am responding to this because of the reference to "criminal activity" and the facts. If any prosecution of the involved Corporations, it well be at a civil misdemeanor level. If a Corporation is convicted of a felony, it loses its charter. This is reality. It will be a civil prosecution with a large fine and everybody will go home. Special law for the Corporate class. Feel sumpin' slippin'?
 
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