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Let freedom ka-ching...Corporations do everything people do except breathe, die and go to jail for dumping 1.3 million pounds of PCBs in the Hudson River.
Stephen Colbert
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Interpretation

What this quote means

The quote critiques corporate power and its impact on freedom and the environment.

Stephen Colbert's quote highlights the contradiction in how corporations operate with immense freedom while often evading responsibility for their actions, particularly in relation to environmental harm. It suggests that despite their human-like capabilities, corporations lack accountability for damaging actions that affect the society and environment, making a poignant statement about the freedom that enables this behavior.

Themes

FreedomCorporationsEnvironmentAccountabilityResponsibility

In practice

Example use cases

In a discussion about corporate responsibility at a conference.

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