dirt diggers digest

August 24, 2012 - The Securities and Exchange Commission stood up to intense pressure from the likes of ExxonMobil and the American Petroleum Institute to approve rules that will shine a light on dealings between some of the world's biggest corporations and the poor countries from which they extract vast amounts of wealth.

August 6, 2012 - The number of workplaces with egregiously bad safety records has doubled in the past year. OSHA's effort to focus on these employers is laudable -- but is it enough?

July 30, 2012 - In debating what it takes to succeed in business, President Obama and Mitt Romney talk as if we were still in an early 19th Century economy of small enterprises. But with megacorporations dominating American commerce, it's time to talk about tightening state corporation laws -- or replacing them entirely with a federal chartering system.

June 1, 2012 - The campaign calling on companies to sever ties with the American Legislative Exchange Council is one of the most successful corporate accountability initiatives in history, but it now faces the challenge of persuading those unfazed by consumer unrest.

May 21, 2012 - The bipartisan decision to extend the life of the Export-Import Bank of the United States -- which some conservatives have derisively dubbed "Boeing's Bank" -- shows that corporatists retain the upper hand in mainstream U.S. politics.

April 27, 2012 - Wal-Mart has been accused of bribery in Mexico, but its behavior is far from unique: Many major corporations have been charged under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, a U.S. law passed in response to an oft-forgotten aspect of the Watergate scandal of the 1970s.

March 23, 2012 - A bill originally sponsored by ethics-challenged Congressman Stephen Fincher of Tennessee is being hailed as helping small businesses and workers, but watchdogs warn that it will erode transparency and pave the way for more corporate skullduggery.