GHADAR (editorial)
The commodification of thirst and the monopolization of hydration
Coke and Pepsi are major players in the transnational capitalist empire. Together, Coke and Pepsi are larger than the combined GDP of 40% of the world’s poorest countries (Coke alone is worth more than the GDP of all but 44 of the world’s largest countries) and are focused on consolidating their power and income. Coke, Pepsi and Cadbury-Schweppes together account for over 90% of the worldwide soda market. Call them Big Soda. Not much different from Big Tobacco, Big Soda sells a product that is hazardous to health, especially for the children it specifically targets; not much different from Big Oil, profits are largely based and derived from the exploitation of a natural resource (water in this case); not much different from Big Oil it employs state and extra-state violence in order to maintain its monopolies; and not much different from Big Tobacco, it is faced with the prospect of dwindling demand for its core products, at least in the United States and Western Europe.
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