Bay City, Michigan, a 93 year old Veteran froze to death in his home

Posted by admin on February 11, 2009

£684 or a Man’s Life: The Saddest Story of American Corporate Greed

In Bay City, Michigan, a 93-year-old Veteran froze to death in his home. And no, it wasn’t because of an accidental power outage or a freakish blizzard. Instead, it was because the man had failed to pay his electric bill. In total, this bill was a mere £684, (or $1,000 U.S. dollars).

That’s right– the electric company responsible for this atrocity actually cut power to the man’s home, despite the fact it was freezing outside. The poor guy had to go without heat for four days. During this time, he had clipped some money to his electric bill and hung it on his outside oak doors, in hopes that a utility person would come and collect it. Unfortunately this never happened– at least not in time to save the man’s life.

And, to make matters worse, the man did not go out peacefully. According to the medical examiner, he suffered a slow, painful death as his tissues froze over. Specifically, this means he experienced intense burning sensations along with gangrene and other symptoms associated with advanced hypothermia.

Indeed, this has got to be the worst example of American capitalism ever seen. It is completely abominable that a 93-year-old man would be denied electricity during the dead of winter. Plus, it’s not like he was a bum or a convict; he had served in his country’s Armed Forces. And for over 50 years, he was a responsible citizen, paying his taxes and looking after people in his neighborhood. Yet, he ends up dying a horrific death because the electric company didn’t get their £684, an amount of money that isn’t even enough to cover a month’s rent.

I mean, when are the American people going to wake up and escape their vicious cycle of corporate greed and consumerism? True, the average American probably doesn’t support what the electric company did, yet how many of them double-cross people to get ahead at their jobs, (which aren’t stable to begin with)? How many of them take orders from their boss, knowing it’s going to hurt an individual or an organization? How many of them act like fools when there’s a sale at Walmart? The list could go on and on.

Ultimately, if corporate greed is to stop, Americans must fight against the mindset to begin with. Electing the right officials is the first step, but they will only do so much, (since they still benefit from capitalism). Americans must take the next step by living more frugally and maintaining a set of ethics on their own job. They shouldn’t do something unethical just because the boss told them to. Perhaps if this had happened the moment there was even a suggestion at turning off the man’s electricity, this tragedy wouldn’t have happened.