I have just watched CNN and their program about Google and Yahoo selling to the Chinese market. I am absolutely appalled at this turn of events, that these supposedly stalwart companies have traded in their morality and good business ethics, for the almighty dollar! I always thought that North America stood for free speech, the ability to give one's opinions without fear of reprisals, but now this belief has been badly shaken, if not completely destroyed.

Do these companies need the money so badly that they can abandon their principles( supposedly they do have them) and let the American way of life, be held up to ridicule?

How much of their initial business was built on North American money, given by people with faith in their business ethics, only to find now, that their trust was misplaced. The problem is, like the oil companies, they get too big and apply any business practices that they like, knowing that their market share will always be there.

If only we could let these "giants" know how we feel, boycotting them for another source perhaps, or is that just a pipe dream? Can we really do without Google? or Yahoo? There are other search engines, but not as able to satisfy our need for quick information.

It is like everything else that we get up in arms about on a daily basis, we get to the water cooler and discuss how upset we are, we talk about taking action, quite what we don't know, but we feel the need to expound our anger, it makes us feel better. Should we stop shopping at Walmart, stop searching for low prices, go without gasoline or heating oil, stop buying foreign cars, it all sounds very patriotic but is very unrealistic. Living on principles at this point in time, for the average family, is not possible.

When our jobs are so outsourced that we just won't have any, and our lives are affected and those of our children, we will perhaps remember, that at some point, we could have stood up and done something about it.

Human nature being what it is, we will blame someone or something else for our misfortune, never taking the responsibilty for the fact that we could have spoken out, raised our grievances with one voice and said- "we will not stand for this, you are selling out our country, and we won't have it!"

The voices are silent.

About the Author:

Ena Clewes, writer of articles and short stories. Visit her website http://www.pets-1.com.