Rally to Denounce Incorporation of Licensed to Kill, Inc

Rally to Denounce Incorporation of Licensed to Kill, Inc
April 23, 2003

TALKING POINTS

About Licensed to Kill, Inc

Licensed to Kill, Inc is a real tobacco company, approved by the Commonwealth of Virginia State Corporation Commission on March 19, 2003.
Licensed to Kill, Inc's articles of incorporation explicitly state that the company intends to manufacture and market tobacco products in a way that kills over 400,000 Americans and 4.5 million other people worldwide annually.
It cost only $75 to incorporate the company and no questions were asked about its purpose.

Purpose of us chartering Licensed to Kill

Draw attention to the assistance that state governments give to the formation and operation of tobacco companies (Raise question "Isn't there something wrong when the state government of Virginia facilitates the formation and operation of companies whose purpose is to make money while killing millions of people?")
Draw attention to the nature of the industry behind the global epidemic of tobacco-related death and disease, which currently kills 4.9 million people worldwide annually.
Draw attention to the corporate pursuit of profit at the expense of human health.

Why was State of Virginia chosen?

It is not our intent to pick solely on the state of Virginia, as Licensed to Kill could have been incorporated in any of the 50 states.
That said, Virginia is already home to the world's biggest tobacco manufacturer.
The state is very tobacco-friendly. Governor Warner just lured Philip Morris USA to the greater Richmond area with a $30+ million incentive package. And the state has the lowest tobacco taxes in the nation, at 2.5 cents a pack
The state was home to Thomas Jefferson, America's founding father that best understood the danger posed by the pursuit of corporate profit to our democracy and the public interest.

Difference between Licensed to Kill & other tobacco companies

LtK is very upfront about its purpose and it doesn't hide what its business is about behind an altruistic-sounding name.
While LtK "intends" to kill 4.9 million, it will not hurt even a fly. Unfortunately, quite the opposite is true of the rest of the tobacco industry.

Double standard between people and corporations

There is a major double standard between how the government treats the conduct of individuals vs. corporations. People who commit homicide get jail and even the death penalty, but corporations that kill literally thousands and thousands of people get away with murder (and in the case of Virginia, actively lured to relocate their headquarters to the state!)
If a person went to the state and said, "I plan to go out on a shooting rampage and kill 10 people," he would be locked up. Here you have a corporation that explicitly states an intent to kill 4.9 MILLION people worldwide, and no questions are even asked!

Making corporations accountable to public interest

Today, corporations are created by investors and state governments with no obligation to the public interest.
Today, corporations can and do more damage to the public interest in one afternoon than the average individual can do in several lifetimes - the millions of deaths caused by the tobacco industry are but one example, but certainly one of the most extreme examples.
Corporations used to be kept on a much shorter leash, responsive to public interest.

Alternatives

Not proposing that tobacco be illegal. This is not about prohibition. This is about putting controls on corporations so that the profit they earn does not come at the expense of public health.
If tobacco companies want to stay in business they must be liable to compensate their customers for all the damage that they do.
People in this country need to seriously think about the rights we have given corporations, literally to kill us. Fundamental change is necessary. There are many ideas for solutions. Suggest "Critics Corner" of www.licensedtokill.biz