No permanent life to corporations?

For a few weeks there, on Facebook, my Lefty friends were posting some article about taking away perpetual life from corporations.  I also get mail from Ralph Nader on the same subject.

I don't read this stuff for two reason:

1) It will never happen.  It is a complete waste of time to contemplate such a move.  Corporations are state chartered entities, some state will always create them.  The Marbury-Madison Supreme court decision would never let that power move to the Federal government. The reason corporations are here to stay is that corporations have created the modern world.  Progress is not from science; Russia has science but is a hell hole without private corporations.

Only a few unthinking twits want to go back to 1825 when starvation, disease and disease were daily problems, when child birth meant death and a short lifespan were our lot.

2) Limiting corporations to the lifespan of say, human males, 79 years would do no harm to America, but might do a little harm to Europe and Japan.  Why?

Take a look at my list of top 100 global corporations in 1960 compared to 2008.  In that 48 years only 11 corporations survived at the top. A shortened corporate lifespan would be harmless and irrelevant.  Corporations die at a very high rate and usually some sentimental bones (the name) are bought by a younger corporation.

What about Europe and Japan?  There there is a difference.

Europe and Japan have the few really old corporations on the planet: Siemens, Royal Dutch Shell, Société Générale, Deutsche Post, Nestle, ThyssenKrupp, Mitsui, Matsushita and Sumitomo.  Limit corporate lifespan and you impact Europe and Japan.