Today's number: 12

That number represents the top 12 Corporations that not only don't pay taxes, and actually get a refund check from the IRS. So, lets look at a few of these fuckers and how they keep all their money and take some of our money in the form of tax rebates by using a new report put out by PublicCampaign.Org.

Twelve large American corporations have been identified by news reports, nonprofit organizations, and elected officials as paying little or no federal income taxes. Collectively, these one dozen corporate tax dodgers have benefited dramatically – in tax loopholes, bailouts, and subsidies – from the more than $1 billion dollars they have invested into influencing Washington. As Americans pay their taxes this month, it is important to understand that our political system lets these corporations off the hook while the rest of us foot the bill.

Ah yes...loopholes and lobbying, why it's the American Way people! First one on the OIL list is ExxonMobil:

Quick Facts on ExxonMobil
Campaign Contributions: Total Over 10 Years (2001-2010), $5.7 million
Lobbying Expenditures: Total Over 10 Years (2001-2010), $138 million
Government Contracts: $840 million in 2008; $6.8 billion from 2000-2008
Profits in 2009: $19 billion
Taxes Paid for 2009: $0
Tax Rebate for 2009: $156 million

Well, I guess that nice little tax rebate probably paid for most of their lobbying, with a few million left over to hand  out to their top execs. Now, lets look at the top bank that royally fucked us over AND got a lovely parting gift in the form of Bailout Funds to boot ...Bank of America:

Quick Facts on Bank of America
Campaign Contributions: Total Over 10 Years (2001-2010), $11 million
Lobbying Expenditures: Total Over 10 Years (2001-2010), $24 million
Bailout Funds: $20 billion to save itself, $25 billion to buy Merrill Lynch, $118 in loan guarantees
Profits in 2010: $4.4 billion
Tax Refund for 2010: $1.9 billion

Gee, I really think BofA should be the top dog in screwing us over as they got a tax refund and bailout funds as well. The third group is known as the Transportation group. Their top carpetbaggin fuck is....drumroll please...Boeing:

Quick Facts on Boeing
Campaign Contributions: Total Over 10 Years (2001-2010), $10 million
Lobbying Expenditures: Total Over 10 Years (2001-2010), $115 million
Government Contracts: $24 billion in 2008; $169 billion from 2000-2008. Recently received $35 billion contract from Pentagon.
Taxes Paid in 2010: $0
Tax Refund in 2010: $124 million

All those nice government contracts, zero paid in taxes and a beautiful tax refund to boot. What more could they ask for? Next is the Telecom and Technology groups:

Quick Facts on Verizon
Campaign Contributions: Total Over 10 Years (2001-2010), $12 million
Lobbying Expenditures: Total Over 10 Years (2001-2010), $131 million
Government Contracts: $488 million in 2008; $5.1 billion from 2000-2008
Profits in 2010: $12 billion
Taxes Paid for Last 2 Years: $0

Verizon's CEO must be very very happy, wouldn't you think? After all, they fucked us on lots of different levels.Their campaign contributions round out to roughly 1.2 million a year.

Shared sacrifice my brown ass. None of these batshit bastards share, they just take and take and then pay off all those lovely Congress Critters. I guess you could say they share with their bought and paid for Congress Critters, they sure as hell aren't sharing with us, the taxpayers.

Obama said yesterday that he wants to tax the rich...he needs to start with taxing The Corporatocracy, and shit-canning all those loopholes they use to fuck us over..all the while, with a smile on their faces and cute commercials about how they give back by helping Main Street.

Fed Court dismisses MetroPCS, Verizon suit over new net neutrality rules.

From Jurist:

The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on Monday granted a motion by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to dismiss a challenge to the new net neutrality rules. Verizon and MetroPCS filed an appeal challenging the new net neutrality rules that allow the government to regulate Internet traffic to preserve the Internet as a free and open platform of communication. The court dismissed the appeal for improper timing because the challenged rulemaking document has yet to be published in the Federal Register and is not a licensing decision with respect to the specific parties as required by 47 CFR § 1.4(b)(1). The court said it would be subject to judicial review once it is published in the Federal Register. Verizon spokesperson Ed McFadden said that the notices of appeal were filed because the FCC's rules governing timing of appeals were unclear and the company did not want to lose its right to appeal. Verizon plans to file a second appeal when the rules are published in the Federal Register. 

Verizon and MetroPCS filed the challenges in January out of concern over the broad authority the new rules would grant the FCC. The FCC has long been trying to exert more control over Internet regulation. Last year, US Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) introduced legislation intended to block the FCC from implementing its National Broadband Plan. The Freedom for Consumer Choice Act would remove the FCC's ability to declare the actions of a communications provider illegal unless there was a clear showing that the practice causes harm to consumers and will not be corrected by market forces. A month earlier, the FCC opened a new proceeding to identify the legal approach that will best support its efforts to develop universal access to "high quality" Internet broadband services. A previous court ruling found that the FCC lacks the power to enforce net neutrality. Net neutrality is thought by supporters to be essential to the goal of an open flow of information over the Internet regardless of the amount of revenue generated by the information.

Of course DeMint tried to undermine the FCC's authority, I would expect nothing less from that corporate lackey.

Personal update...still tryng to rehab ye olde back after my surgery two weeks ago. I am not spending much time online as sitting is the worst possible thing for my spine, according to my Doc and my back also lets me know it too. As a lovely parting gift I now have an 8 inch scar up my back and wearing that friggin huge back brace (for 3 months) is no picnic.