Urban Gangs could learn a thing or two from the bourgeois

For years BP has done its best to obscure its actual name, British Petroleum.  In much of its advertising campaigns, alongside the acronym BP it has the words, Beyond Petroleum, stressing its commitment to a safe and clean environment and alternatives to fossil fuels.  At some point the owners of the corporation made the decision to obscure the fact that it is essentially a foreign corporation, a decision probably made during a period of high unemployment in the US or after a spate of accidents or both, as a means to avoid the effects of protectionist/nationalist sentiment.  Like most corporations it is most likely owned by global capitalists, but these institutions are very secretive.

We often hear on the news about the perils of gang activity among working class youth.  Raids are made in various working class communities and hundreds of people are rounded up and whisked off to jail.  This is evidence of the dedication the state has to making us safe, rounding up our youth, that society abandons. They are getting "dope dealers" off the streets as well, the media tells us. Given that most of these youth don't own airplanes or have pilots licenses likely, they are not the folks bringing the stuff in to the country.  It is hard to believe that a country that was able to keep the planes of two hostile nations, (Japan and Germany) out of its airspace during a world war can't prevent drug smuggling.

There's no doubt that gang activity is dangerous, violent and anti-social in many ways, but belonging to a gang is also an act of self defense is it not when you grow up in the midst of social and economic blight. The Capitalist class understands well the advantages of gang affiliation; they are the biggest, most violent and corrupt gang there is. The bourgeois gang also has many branches, the Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Manufacturers and countless other branches that organize and advance the interests of its activities; these branches are all the various tentacles of its center, the state.

So, given the absence of any real mass movement to counter this bourgeois gang activity, many young people will be drawn to the established street gangs and organizations that they might feel give them a sense of security, power and protection.  When a more political alternative arises, many of these youth will have better options.

The other good deal for the bourgeois gang that owns the corporations is that a corporation has the same rights as a person.  The major publication of the bourgeois gang, the Wall Street Journal, reports on the consequences for BP given the recent oil catastrophe in the gulf.  In response to the mood of anger and hatred of the energy industry due to the spill, the US government "has launched a criminal probe" says the paper. The problem is that it is very difficult to prove criminal liability as you have to show that "the defendant knowingly flouted the law". 

But even if it can be proved that the "defendant" broke the law, the "defendant" is BP, a corporation.  "Exxon" spent millions as a result of the Exxon Valdez spill, says the paper.  "BP has had several run ins with the feds" the paper adds.  "BP pleaded guilty to a felony violation of workplace safety rules" in another case, the paper continues. So in all but extremely rare cases, when they are absolutely forced to, punishment for the individuals making the decisions is avoided.  Isn't that cool?

So while I would appeal to the members of various street gangs, the Crips, Bloods and countless others in our inner cities to abandon their present direction and direct their audacity, courage and incredible energy in a political direction against the capitalist gang that rules society, I would advise them to form corporations.  In this way, none of them would end up in Pelican bay as so many have and they would be free from prosecution just like the CEO'S of BP, Halliburton, Exxon and others.  They shouldn't feel guilty about this as efficient killers, even mass murderers, like Donald Rumsfeld and Henry Kissinger do no time for their crimes.

Then we will read in the papers that "The East Side Warriors Inc. paid a $100,000 fine yesterday to settle accusations by the DA. that they sold drugs on the streets of their community."  This way you can avoid going to jail like the CEO's.  Of course, it will mean you'll have to have a solid dues collection and treasury but its better than Pelican Bay. This, I hope will give you some breathing space and time to consider the alternatives to street violence that involves workers against workers and the distribution of drugs that the capitalist gangs bring in to the country in order to destroy our youth, eliminating the capitalist gang entirely.