Water for profit (or, we're all screwed)

Companies proclaim water the next oil in a rush to turn resources into profit
Mammoth companies are trying to collect water that all life needs and charge for it as they would for other natural resources

What’s insane is that any government would let them do it. I wouldn’t be surprised if those companies are working to see if they can find some way to patent oxygen and charge each of us for breathing.
Occam

What's insane is that any government would let them do it. I wouldn't be surprised if those companies are working to see if they can find some way to patent oxygen and charge each of us for breathing. Occam
That's next. If a profit can be made someone will find a way to corner the market.

This is a good example of the stupidity of people pushing for privatization of government services.
Occam

Companies proclaim water the next oil in a rush to turn resources into profit Mammoth companies are trying to collect water that all life needs and charge for it as they would for other natural resources http://www.theguardian.com/money/2014/jul/27/water-nestle-drink-charge-privatize-companies-stocks?CMP=ema_565
Wow, that's really scary. :(
This is a good example of the stupidity of people pushing for privatization of government services. Occam
Did someone say deregulation? Hmmmmm, a key plank in the Republican Party's platform. To hell with water, how about hog tying the FDA so we can all eat cheap, tainted meat? Cap't Jack
Companies proclaim water the next oil in a rush to turn resources into profit Mammoth companies are trying to collect water that all life needs and charge for it as they would for other natural resources http://www.theguardian.com/money/2014/jul/27/water-nestle-drink-charge-privatize-companies-stocks?CMP=ema_565 "… Sure, I’ve grown up surrounded by bottled mineral water – Evian, Volvic, Perrier, Pellegrino and even more chi-chi brands – but that has always existed alongside a robust municipal water system that delivers clean water to whatever home I'm occupying. All it takes is turning a tap. The cost of that water is fractions of a penny compared to designer bottled water. This summer, however, myriad business forces are combining to remind us that fresh water isn’t necessarily or automatically a free resource. It could all too easily end up becoming just another economic commodity. At the forefront of this firestorm is Peter Brabeck, chairman and former CEO of Nestle. In his view, citizens don’t have an automatic right to more than the water they require for mere “survival", unless they can afford to pay for it. For context, the World Health Organization sets such “survival" consumption levels at a minimum of 20 liters a day for basic hygiene and food hygiene – higher, if you add laundry and bathing. If you’re reading this in the United States, the odds are that flushing your toilet consumes 50 liters of water a day. ...
AND THE BEAT GOES ON . . . . . . . . . . . . .
http://truth-out.org/archive/component/k2/item/84703:water-for-sale-thirst-for-profit-corporate-control-of-water-in-latin-america Water for Sale; Thirst for Profit: Corporate Control of Water in Latin America Saturday, 20 June 2009 11:03 By Lisa BoscovEllen, The Council on Hemispheric Affairs | http://www.commondreams.org/views/2009/06/20/thirst-profit-corporate-control-water-latin-america

If anyone wants to really sink their teeth into it :

http://depts.washington.edu/chid/intersections_Spring_2012/Thomas_Coleman_Water_Conflicts_in_Latin_America_and_Water_Law.pdf intersections A Journal of the Comparative History of Ideas program University of Washington, Seattle Volume 12, Number 2 (Spring 2012) Thomas Coleman, “Who Owns the Water? An Analysis of Water Conflicts in Latin American and Modern Water Law," intersections 12, no. 2 (2012): 1-19. Abstract "Water is the world’s most important natural resource. Some would say it is our most important commodity whose allocation should be governed by pricing mechanisms and market transactions. Yet water is unlike any other resource in its mobility, its form and its centrality to the maintenance of human life and human communities. Water’s physical, conceptual and social plasticity precludes easy categorizations, creates uncertainty regarding its handling and poses critical questions regarding use and management. During the past three decades, international economic institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have sought to confront such questions by forcing privatization policies on developing nations in accordance with their neoliberal economic philosophies. These policies privatize state water services — generally transferring the rights to large multinational corporations (MNC’s) — and ultimately transform water from a public good into a private, economic asset with corresponding private property rights. Lower and middle-class groups have often suffered as a result of these policies and have risen up in opposition to the MNC’s and their governments claiming an international right to water. I analyze three water conflicts in Latin America in order elucidate the convergence of coinciding systems of water law: an international legal framework of water as a human right and domestic systems of water as a property right. Specifically, I examine water conflicts in Bolivia, Argentina, and Chile within the context of diverse economic responses to the legal challenges posed by water’s uniqueness as a resource. I draw conclusions about analyses of social conflicts, current conceptions of law and global economic theory, as well as present implications regarding the state of water law. …" http://depts.washington.edu/chid/intersections_Spring_2012/Thomas_Coleman_Water_Conflicts_in_Latin_America_and_Water_Law.pdf Who Owns the Water? By Thomas Coleman .

I was in the supermarket last week and I noticed that you could buy soda cheaper than water in the cooler section.
I didn’t check out the warm prices.

The United Corporate States of America

The United Corporate States of America
Profits Über Alles !
What's insane is that any government would let them do it. I wouldn't be surprised if those companies are working to see if they can find some way to patent oxygen and charge each of us for breathing. Occam
It's only insane if you buy into the myth that America is still a democracy and ISN'T a Fascist/Corporatist LLC (limited liability corporation). If you start with that viewpoint (USA LLC) then so much starts to make sense. Of course no one in power is going to come out and say it. As a matter of fact just the opposite - they'll wave the flag and thump the bible even more.
Companies proclaim water the next oil in a rush to turn resources into profit Mammoth companies are trying to collect water that all life needs and charge for it as they would for other natural resources http://www.theguardian.com/money/2014/jul/27/water-nestle-drink-charge-privatize-companies-stocks?CMP=ema_565
Yes, and we would have to adjust, sonner thanlater. Ludwik Kowalski (see Wikipedia)
Companies proclaim water the next oil in a rush to turn resources into profit Mammoth companies are trying to collect water that all life needs and charge for it as they would for other natural resources http://www.theguardian.com/money/2014/jul/27/water-nestle-drink-charge-privatize-companies-stocks?CMP=ema_565
Yes, and we would have to adjust, sonner thanlater. Ludwik Kowalski (see Wikipedia) We would, water being a necessity for life, but that doesn't make it right. Why should a necessary resource like water be turned into a profit making operation? Aren't all humans entitled to water? Most of us don't mind paying for it to be brought to us, but we object to people making a profit on it, which will lead to gouging and runaway profits, sooner or later. It always does. Lois

People form groups to work together to supply common needs. Gradually those groups grow into nations, and some citizens are specialized to supply those needs, that is, they are assigned the role of government. Water is an essential common need so it’s an obligation of government to supply it to all citizens. When the members of government start satisfying the needs of a few, such as corporations, rather than of all the citizens, the government has to be replaced either by votes or by revolution, or the country dies, sometimes slowly, and other times by being taken over by another nation.
Occam

People form groups to work together to supply common needs. Gradually those groups grow into nations, and some citizens are specialized to supply those needs, that is, they are assigned the role of government. Water is an essential common need so it's an obligation of government to supply it to all citizens. When the members of government start satisfying the needs of a few, such as corporations, rather than of all the citizens, the government has to be replaced either by votes or by revolution, or the country dies, sometimes slowly, and other times by being taken over by another nation. Occam
I think we are there Occam