Should there be a formal separation of Corporation and State that is similar to the separation of Church and State, in our Constitution? This is a subject I am thinking about a lot lately. It occurred to me while I was listening to President Bill Clinton's speech at the 2003 Fortune Brainstorm conference in Aspen last week...

Imagine what our nation would be like if there were no Separation of Church and State? This basic principle has ensured that our American democracy has remained unbiased toward any particular religion; it has also protected religions from getting overly involved in politics. When our Constitution was formulated it made sense to add in this protection, because the Church was one of the main political forces of the time and posed a very real threat to democracy. But when our Constitution was designed corporations had not emerged as a major political force. For this reason no protections were added to the Constitution against manipulation from corporate interests.

However today we live in a very different world, a world of giant global corporations with billions of dollars to lobby with. Is the integrity of our democracy threatened by the influence of corporate special interests? Are our national decision-makers being influenced by corporate entities? And if so, is this really democratic; are We The People really being represented fairly in this process? It may be time to introduce the notion of a formal Separation of Corporation and State to protect our democracy from being overrun by corporate influence. I have written a full article on this subject which, if it doesn't get published elsewhere, I will post to this Bog.