(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Privatize Everything In The Universe? [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2024-11-12 Below are the words to my song, "Privatize Everything in the Universe," written back in 2000. It can also be read as spoken word poetry. What I meant as satire has become reality in the 24 years since I wrote this. The photo here is of Ninawa Huni Kui, President of the Huni Kui People's Federation of the Brazilian Amazon, who represents the international resistance to California's carbon trading program, a cornerstone of the privatization program. Governors Schwarzenegger, Brown and Newsom have pushed through the privatization of California in an array of ways. They've privatized the oceans, fish and conservation throughout the privately funded Marine Life Protection Act (Initiative) to create fake "marine protected areas." They've privatized the water by promoting the Twin Tunnels, and now Delta Tunnel, as part of the neoliberal "Water Portfolio" to ship more water to agribusiness and Southern California water agencies. They've privatized the air, water and life itself through the oil industry written cap-and-trade scam that represents an attack on Indigenous Peoples throughout the planet. They've privatized California government by appointing Big Oil, Big Ag and other Big Money hacks to key positions in the Department of Conservation, and other agencies. The list of successful privatization efforts by California governors and the California Legislature goes on and on and on… The privatization agenda was even more aggressively pushed by the first Trump administration, with Westlands/Big Oil lobbyist David Bernhardt at the helm of the Department of Interior and other agencies captured by the very same corporate interests they're supposed to represent. The Trump administration gutted a biological opinion to protect and restore imperiled Sacramento River salmon populations so that Big Ag could receive more public water. Unfortunately, this “biop” still stands. You can expect more of the same and worse in the incoming Trump administration starting in January 2025, with aggressive attacks on the Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act and other landmark environmental laws. After the election of Donald Trump to his second term as president on November 6, environmental and anti-corporate groups vowed “unprecedented resistance” to his anti-environmental policies on water, land, the climate and fish and wildlife. “Trump 2.0 is going to get twice the fight from the protectors of our planet, wildlife and basic human rights,” said Kierán Suckling, executive director of the Center for Biological Diversity. “We’ve battled Trump from the border wall to the Arctic Wildlife Refuge, and in many cases we’ve won. This country’s bedrock environmental laws stand strong. We’re more prepared than ever to block the disastrous Trump policies we know are coming.” I hope the vow of “unprecedented resistance” becomes a reality. My satirical song has now become objective reality in California, the United States and throughout the world. I meant "Privatize Everything in the Universe" as a humorous warning about the future. Now it is a song documenting the privatization of California and the U.S. Of course, the same thing is taking place at the global level. Privatization ultimately comes down to the maximization of corporate profits while the costs are socialized. Anyway, here's my song: Privatize Everything in the Universe (by Dan Bacher) We’ll privatize the water, we’ll privatize the air We’ll privatize the oceans, we’ll privatize your hair We’ll privatize the world as we sing this verse, we’ll privatize everything in the universe! We’ll privatize fish in the sea, we’ll privatize the whales We’ll privatize sea turtles, we’ll put ‘em up for sale We’ll privatize the world as we sing this verse, we’ll privatize everything in the universe! We’ll privatize the corn and wheat, we’ll privatize all seeds We’ll privatize all life forms, we’ll privatize all weeds We’ll privatize the world as we sing this verse, we’ll privatize everything in the universe! We’ll privatize the prisons, we’ll privatize the schools We’ll privatize the highways, we’ll privatize car pools We’ll privatize the world as we sing this verse, we’ll privatize everything in the universe! We’ll privatize your secret thoughts, we’ll privatize your genes We’ll privatize your emotions, we’ll privatize your schemes We’ll privatize the world as we sing this verse, we’ll privatize everything in the universe! We’ll privatize the sun so bright, we’ll privatize the moon We’ll privatize the Galaxy, we need more living room We’ll privatize the world as we sing this verse, we’ll privatize everything in the universe! We’ll privatize religion, we’ll privatize all souls For our god we’ll appoint, One Big, Bad CEO! We’ll privatize the world as we sing this verse, we’ll privatize everything in the universe! [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/11/12/2285621/-Privatize-Everything-In-The-Universe?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=more_community&pm_medium=web Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/