Pay to Play
Not talking about sports
“If it costs to be the boss then I guess I gotta pay.”
-Dwayne Michael Carter II aka Lil Wayne
The past few weeks, an odd thing has been happening with legacy media organizations and large corporations. Following the unfortunate and dangerous election of the Technicolor Tyrant, corporate contributions to his campaign and affiliated organizations have surged, raising questions about where the line between political pragmatism and ethical compromise should be drawn. It started with companies like Meta and Amazon making million dollar donations to the Trump inauguration fund.
Granted, that is like us normal people giving up the equivalent of half a penny but the context is clear. They want to be on the side of dear leader and are willing to signal that with money. It is bribery. That is what it is and you cannot tell me different. This was quickly followed by other companies especially those in the crypto space (the bros) and companies like OpenAI who want to possibly curry favor as they push for automated systems to take over more than they already have. Because screw the workers right…
Not to be outdone, ABC recently settled for $15 million in a defamation suit after telling the truth on air.
The ABC Settlement: Appeasement or Accountability?
ABC’s $15 million settlement is framed as resolving lingering disputes tied to Trump’s frequent accusations of media bias. However, its timing—just as Trump prepares for his second term—has raised eyebrows. Is this a genuine attempt to settle old grievances, or is it a calculated act of appeasement to curry favor with an administration known for its hostility toward dissenting media? Either way, the message is clear: with Trump back in the White House, corporate entities are positioning themselves to avoid conflict and protect their bottom lines.
I hope ABC, in the apology they have to give as part of the settlement, says something to the tune of:
Hey— we are sorry we called him a rapist after the judge stated and clarified that he was found liable for rape. Our bad.
And just so we are clear…he DID and the judge also said so.
Moving on.
Actually let me clarify one thing. This $15 million is NOT going to the presidential library as reports stated. That sounds too…presidential and normal.
The money will go to a Trump museum because…of course. And library implies books and we know they LOOOOOOVEEE books.
Here we go…
Corporate America’s post-victory alignment with Trump mirrors the behavior of German companies during Hitler’s consolidation of power.
In the 1930s, major corporations made strategic financial contributions to the Nazi regime, hoping to insulate themselves from political retribution and capitalize on economic stability. These companies were not necessarily ideologically aligned but were willing to trade moral responsibility for perceived security.
Today’s scenario feels disturbingly similar and pretty scary. For companies to endorse this trajectory with post-victory contributions suggests a prioritization of profit and influence over democratic values.
But not just that… this is also just plain dangerous. I don’t want to play the alarmist, I am a realist who happens to be a cynic. But money does speak loudly when it comes to people like president-elect Tang.
The two things he is not above are flattery and bribery and he sees this as a chance to get both. Don’t believe me? His pal Apartheid Clyde and his company Tesla are hoping this bribery and flattery allows them to get rid of some car crash reporting requirements that currently exist.
Cool…cool cool cool.
Seems like the easier route would be to make cars that don’t crash that often…or when they do don’t have the highest fatality rate of any car on the market…but I don’t own a car company so what do I know?
Gofundme for democracy?
While the citrus celebrity assumes the presidency, maybe we can figure out a way to get more money funneled to him to do something good? Maybe something to force him to care about housing, healthcare, groceries, the stuff they pretended to care about in the election.
It seems the legacy media has listened to Lil Wayne and decided to pay… guess we have to scrounge up some change too.