Summary - Selection 33

At the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima or Why Political Questions Are Not All Economic by Mark Sagoff

Sagoff has written a brief excerpt about corporate "big wigs" vs. "the people." Using the town of Lewiston, New York as an example, Sagoff explains a bit about the site that people live on which radioactive wastes had been buried. There were cases of leukemia found in children, and many other health risks were noted or feared. A response to their concerns involved money--would they choose to live in Lewiston with knowledge of the wastes if it were a free market?

The financial point leads to the rest of Sagoff's article, where he argues that when health and safety are involved, people should not have to pay major amounts of money to get that safety. Using examples as workplaces safety when working around health hazards, he stretches out his point--protection of our culture, history, aesthetics, morals, and health should be publicly shared issues which treat people equally on all levels. If one cannot afford to pay for safety and health then they should not lose their right to have that safety and health where there are no other choices. There should not be a sense of hierarchy between corporations or politicians. Going back the the exampled of Lewiston, New York, the people were given an answer that was meant to bring the corporation "down to their level" when really it seemed to have caused an even greater gap of misunderstanding. They did not want to hear that the corporation was "just people serving people," as it was almost belittling them and their concerns.

Sagoff believes that people should come together as communities or even as a nation instead of acting as individuals. Public law is important, but even more so are the people that it concerns.