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"I hope we shall... crush in its birth the aristocracy of our moneyed corporations which dare already to challenge our government in a trial of strength, and bid defiance to the laws of our country."

-- Thomas Jefferson, Dead Racist

The US Supreme Court recently struck down certain provisions in the McCain-Feingold Act pertaining to “electioneering communications.” The decision involved the extent to which corporations may lay claim to free speech rights, and since the ruling, debates have been cropping up all over the internets regarding its legitimacy. I would now like to offer my most humble opinion on the matter.

The first thing worth noting is the relatively small impact this case will have on upcoming elections. The Supreme Court did not doom us all to an inevitable corporate-apocalypse, at least with this ruling anyway. As Politico’s Jeanne Cummings writes, summarizing the opinion of several experts, the main effect of the Court’s decision will be “a shifting of cash that’s already in the system away from so-called 527 groups… For decades, [corporations have] expressed their views through trade associations that can shield the involvement of their members because they don’t disclose membership lists.” Making the same point, Salon columnist Glenn Greenwald comments:

By Scott Williams

On Nov. 19, thousands of students, workers and faculty on campuses across the University of California system protested and blockaded a meeting of the U.C. Regents, where the regents approved 32 percent tuition and fee increases, furloughs of campus workers and continued budget cuts. Several days of huge protests, seen throughout the media, ended with nearly 60 arrests and showed the potential of opposition to the “business as usual” attacks on jobs and education by the U.C. administrators.

On Nov. 20, protests intensified as six buildings across the U.C. system were occupied by students. Students demanded the recall of fired housekeepers, more money from the state of California for education, and many more extensive demands based around their right to education, jobs and affordable housing.

At the University of Illinois, graduate student workers voted to strike on Nov. 16. Just two days later, after thousands of workers participated on picket lines and hundreds of classes were cancelled, the 2,600 graduate students won tuition coverage and wage increases.