Corporate Crimes, Backdoor Bailouts, and the Death of Freedom

📖 Vulture Capitalism: Corporate Crimes, Backdoor Bailouts, and the Death of Freedom by Grace Blakeley (2024) Grace Blakeley's book, Vulture Capitalism, argues that modern society is defined by a system of pervasive unfreedom where states and corporations act as allies in centralized planning. Contrary to the belief that capitalism equals a free market, Blakeley asserts that unaccountable private institutions and governments cooperate to prioritize corporate sovereignty and profit over democratic control. She uses the Boeing 737 MAX disasters as a primary case study to illustrate how financialization and a culture of extreme cost-cutting lead to catastrophic outcomes when regulators are weakened. The text suggests that the traditional debate between Keynesian state management and Hayekian neoliberalism fails to offer true liberty because both rely on top-down control. Ultimately, the author advocates for a democratic socialist alternative that redistributes power to individuals and promotes collective decision-making.