There is a simple reason why corporations do not have a right to free speech. They are not real people. There has been an argument dating back to the 1800s that this made up thing is somehow equal to a person. But people own these corporations and dictate what they do. So a person who own or controls a corporation has their own speech rights and also the rights of corporation. If they have multiple corporations, they have multiple rights. So why does an owner of a corporation have more speech rights than you?

What Supreme Court, and why? Is this the Supreme Court that granted Florida something like an hour and a half for a recount that might have made Al Gore president, thus effectively destroying the constitutional notion that voters are entitled to having their votes properly counted? Is that Supreme Court still operating? I stopped caring or paying attention after that decision. Anyway, I'm glad to see they're back and considering vital issues in what apparently still passes for a constitutional democracy. Peter Edler, member Swedish Writers Union, Stockholm

The corporations must be castrated. They have hijacked the 14th amendment, which was intended to protect the rights of real people, not "artificial persons". They have no business being involved in politics, other than to provide information. Since even a perfect court case challenging this perversion of the 14th amendment would be squashed by a 5/4 court, a new constitutional amendment is needed that clearly defines and limits corporate free speech, including prohibitions on campaign contributions and other political expenditures. They could still send reports to congress, and congress can always subpoena corporate officers when they need information from them for making regulations. Of course, the bi-corporate congress would never support such an amendment. That would leave the only option as an Article V convention, still a very difficult way to amend the constitution. It has never been done before. Meanwhile, campaign finance reform may be the best that we can get. Corporate "free speech" would still be a right, and corporate propaganda in the media would not be affected. That's why I think that this right, itself, must be destroyed if the nation is not to further devolve into economic fascism.

Corporations are not citizens. Corporations can't vote in elections. They can't collect Social Security when they reach 65, nor can they enroll in Medicare. What kind of "person" does all that describe? Resident aliens. It's proper that the influence of resident aliens on our elections be limited by law.