Relive the magic by checking out the preceding posts in this series.
More From Consumerist
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Here Are Your Contestants For The 2013 Worst Company In America Tournament!
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These 8 Remaining Worst Company In America Contenders Sure Are Elite
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Meet The Final 4 Contenders For Worst Company In America 2013
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EA Makes Worst Company In America History, Wins Title For Second Year In A Row!
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Meet Your Worst Company In America Not-So-Sweet 16!
Throughout this competition, it just blows my mind that the annoying doucebaggery of the RIAA would even be put on the same level as Halliburton, which is putting countless lives at risk every day for the sake of profits.
That is evil is the truest sense of the word.
I’m sure that if the RIAA were given a chance, they’d gladly trade others’ lives for a little bit of money.
I don’t get it. RIAA isn’t a company. Its a lobbying organization. You don’t -buy- anything from the RIAA. They are idiots yes – but not a company.
Secondly – how do you judge Halliburton? Has anyone here ever purchased or had to deal with them in any capacity? Or are we just going after them because of their ties to cheney and via perceptions on how they run their company? Btw – the devision that everyone is blaming for them is KBR and was spin off of Halliburton a while ago. In a difficult operating environment they’ve made money for their shareholders and having no personal dealings with them – i can’t comment on how they treat their customers.
Absolutely they would. Next thing ya know, the RIAA will be hiring insurgents to avenge their lost profits.
I……CAN’T……CHOOSE…!!!!!! Gahhhh…!
Clearly you can’t vote for Halliburton, since they’re moving to Dubai…
I heard Halliburton moved to Dubai just so they wouldn’t win this tournament.
@Theseus: word.
As mentioned in a previous post, HQ is moving but they’re still incorporated in Delaware.
They’re as American as a rotten, greedy, soulless apple pie.
Can one of the idio..err persons voting for the RIAA over Halliburton please stop by and explain yourself?
I’m speaking for myself here, but I’ve never even heard of Halliburton’s actions.
Whereas the RIAA is everywhere lately.
I’m not going to vote (uninformed), but, well, mabye you have an idea now.
@jeblis: I was about to ask the opposite question. what does halliburton actually do that makes it evil? The RIAA has sued stroke victims, dead people, people without computers, and relatives of alleged ‘infringers’ that don’t live under the same roof. They raise rates to unreasonable levels and are ruthlessly extorting money from what might otherwise be paying customers.
The main problem with Halliburton is that they put profits over the safety of their employees. Also with their no-bid contracts they are fleecing the American taxpayer out of billions of dollars )$8 billion in contracts in Iraq in 2003 alone) for substandard work.
Our tax dollars go to Halliburton for their no bid contracts. We have no choice in the matter. If there is no legal basis for the claim, RIAA is unable to collect. There are artists that choose to give their music for free download. It IS stealing to download copywrited material without the owners consent. Their tactics may not be the best, but it least they can be defended in court.
How about it selling expired food at a tremendous mark-up to soldiers? Is that evil enough for you?
“The recorded interviewer asked, “Are you saying that Halliburton deliberately falsified the number of meals they prepared and then submitted false claims for reimbursement and that they did this to make up for past amounts auditors had disallowed?” Mayberry firmly answered “yes.” He said that serving expired food rations was “an everyday occurrence, sometimes every meal.”"
Mostly though, we hate Halliburton because of its war profiteering.
http://www.halliburtonwatch.org/
I still think Monsanto should’ve been up there though.
@kcskater: What hasn’t Halliburton done? Plundered worker’s pensions. Hired mercs to enforce company policy. Left drivers unarmed and tasked to operate convoys in war zones. Stripped areas of natural resources and left ecological disasters behind.
Never mind the massive war profiteering they engaged in on a daily basis these days. The RIAA may be suing a few people but Halliburton is costing Americans money right now— their no-bid contracts in Iraq are not insignificant.
Halliburton has former ties to Dick Cheney. For many people that’s enough to make them the worst company EVER!!!
This is really tough, because Halliburton is not the one screwing random innocent Americans out of their life savings.
@Parsnip:
No, it’s not; it’s copyright infringement. The RIAA refers to it as stealing because that makes it sound worse.
@Xkeeper:
That’s because they’re in cahoots with the White House. The Republicans’ tame corporate media won’t cover them.
Halliburton’s tactics may be questionable, but:
a) Their worst offenses (no bid contracts, private war mongering) are really the fault of our government.
b) Unlike the RIAA, they actually produce something of value. (Even if they overcharge for it.)
c) From a purely business standpoint (ie. making money for shareholders) they’re amazing. The RIAA is actually hurting the businesses they are supposed to represent.
Halliburton may be evil, but at least they’re good at it.
I voted for Halliburton. They’re so evil that they’re actually profiting on bloodshed, as opposed to the RIAA, which probably wishes it could. Plus, Halliburton had to most their headquarters to Dubai, which only goes to show the lengths they’re willing to go to continue doing their evil business out of the prying eyes of journalists and government.
On the other hand, Haliburton is providing many services that others can’t/won’t. And why shouldn’t they charge a lot money to operate in a combat zone? Many companies out there are paying folks $500-$1000 a DAY to provide services out there. Companies like SAIC, Blackwater, Triple Canopy, oil companies, telecommunications companies, civil engineers, ad naseum. That money doesn’t come out of the companie’s pocket–that’s contract money from the government. And in response to the comment about unarmed civilians working over there…you just said it: CIVILIANS. There is no international law that I know of that allows private foreign nationals to carry firearms in their country. It’s a legal issue. That’s why they are accompanied by US military or operators from the aforementioned companies. I’m not necessarily defending these guys–the no bid contracts thing sucks, but look at the big picture. They’ve been fined and called to task for overcharging and other transgressions. It’s dangerous work…they deserve to be compensated for it. Disclaimer: I am US military and have been over there numerous times and have this stuff going down. Frankly, I’m jealous…I wish I got paid like those guys did–for doing the same exact work.
This is definitely a case of evil apples vs. evil oranges.
I voted for the RIAA because I hope this contest will get some additional media attention and start turning the larger wave of public opinion against the RIAA and their BS activities. As consumers, we may be able to change the recording industry from OUR side.
Everyone in the universe already has Halliburton burned into their minds, and we can’t do sh#t about it, they will never be a nice company.
But the Recording Industry, making a fortune off of things we love and consume everyday, and then blaming COMSUMERS for all thier problems.. they need a huge kick in the face.
I voted for the RIAA. Yes, Halliburton is evil, but they’re just doing what companies are supposed to do – lowering costs and raising revenues. The reason we allow incorporation is so that we can make decisions devoid of human conscience. If we punish Halliburton for doing exactly that, then we send the wrong message.
The RIAA, on the other hand, is doing what good companies should not be doing – directly attacking their own customers. That, to my mind, makes them the “worst” company.
K
the move to dubai has nothing to do with journalists & bad rep & everything to do with the jebel ali free zone (JAFZ). this is just a business move to increase value for shareholders.
halliburton doesn’t care whether or not you like them…they have maneuvered themselves into a position between conglomerations & government officials which ensures their survival & profitability despite public opinion.
i voted for haliburton, but in truth my blame lies with our government. they are a collective of corrupt, self-serving, two-faced bastards & their misdoings over the past few decades make halliburton look like the nature conservancy.
Haliburton is generally disliked because of politics. RIAA is generally disliked because of consumer issues. If you want to vote on politics, that’s fine, but this is a consumer blog, not a political blog!
to bastarre – & you should (get paid what they get paid). it’s criminal that companies like blackwater are raking in millions for security details & our average soldier is making
imho, it should work more like police work. here in connecticut, cops are required to sit behind utility trucks, contractors, whatever while their working on a public road. the cops are paid a premium by the contractors & if that money is coming out of a government contract, the cost needs to be included in the bid.
my point is, if you are u.s. military standing next to blackwater mercs protecting a halliburton operation, you should be making just as much as the merc & halliburton should be required to pay your salary out of their contract money.
& thanks for everything.
RIAA isn’t even a company. They are a trade association that represents the recording studios. When they sue innocent people they are doing so at the behest of their trade members. Put the record companies in this competition, in fact Sony was in and lost in an earlier round. Haliburton all the way!
The NPR thing tipped it for me.
wow,
you Americans are class acts.
Here you have one company that steals from taxpayers and for the sake of profit margins provides the cheapest service possible to your troops.
Then you have a company that seeks to defend the property (albeit misguidedly) of its members.
And you choose RIAA because you want free music?
Little do you know that the money wasted in Iraq (and by that i mean just that money that has gone unaccounted for) divided by the number of tax payers is greater than what you would spend on all of the music if you bought it legally.
But then again, i am talking about a population who for the most part cannot even locate Iraq on a map.
*sigh*
Haliburton is hands down worst, they screw the tax payers and our troops. They continue to do so even after being caught.
Hard to choose.
However, the RIAA is part of a pretty evil movement (with the MPAA, WIPO, etc.–the MAFIAA) to enslave (through impoverishment) Americans by making them pay for trivial things–like *listening to music*.
Musicians should have no guarantee of wealth because of something they *once* performed. Everyone should have enough music background to enrich themselves (or at least enough to get our math scores up), and successful musicians should make money by *performing*. People should get paid to work, not for *having once* worked.
As a nation, we’ve pissed away too much on entertainment, and now that’s all we do. No one here builds anything of value. We bitch about paying schoolteachers another $20 a year in property taxes while we spend many, many times that on iTunes or coffee or movies or sporting events, making us too stupid not to let companies like Halliburton walk by and “privatize” (read: “plunder”) our government.
And the blood-red logo with the slogan “release the energy” and the Cheney connection is decidedly vampiric. Drinking the blood of “insignificants” so you don’t have to.
Looks like the RIAA is going to win, you would think Halliburton has a leg up since they are in the business of death, but I guess staying out of the way of the RIAA’s lawyers is more important.
@nakmario: nice flame. can you hold that up for a moment? i need a light. we can find iraq just fine. it’s all those piddly countries that don’t really matter in the grand scheme of things that we have trouble locating – you know, mexico, canada, basically any country that has a whole lot of nothing that we want. i would’ve chose “foreign nationals taking advantage of loose tax laws & great opportunity by living here without becoming an american”, but that wasn’t an option.
Seriously, I’m appalled that people consider RIAA to be more evil than Haliburton.
To my mind, the people who run Halliburton should be in prison on felony charges for their war profiteering; RIAA needs to be neutered, but not jailed. I vote Halliburton.
Argh, why do I get an error when I try to vote? I haven’t been able to vote on FF or IE since like the first round! What gives?!
@Theseus:
Couldn’t agree more. Again, I’ll say it: The RIAA represents an industry that releases products none of which is essential to our life (CDs, that is; music, of course, is essential to living). Let it go, they are a business. They get huffy when you steal from them, and whether it’s justified or not, downloading copyright protected music is illegal.
First Exxon, and now Halliburton, represent true problems to our economy, our domestic politics and foreign policy.
That, to me, is not good customer service. Besides, the RIAA does offer GREAT customer service. It’s just that their customers are all record companies.
@nakmario
Lets look at your propsed numbers shall we. To date roughly 1 trillion dollars has been spent on Iraq in 3+ years. thats $1,000,000,000,000.00. Now divide by 300 million, thats 300,000,000 divide by an average cost of 15 bucks because new cds are 20 and older ones are 15 and way old stuff is around 10. you could buy a grand total of 222.222222 CD per person in the US. You wouldn’t exactly be able to buy every single artist at your local chain music store.
I’m with those voting based on consumer issues rather than political ones.
This whole poll has just become such a joke. This isn’t about which company is worse, or has caused more harm, or is more damaging to our economy and way of life, or is more poorly run, it’s just which one has attracted the most nerd rage.
You people who have voted RIAA over Monsanto, Exxon, and Halliburton are the most pathetically narrow minded people this country has to offer, you deserve to have people like the RIAA pissing you off, just for your lack of perspective.
Personally I blame The Consumerist for shredding my last few remnants of respect for the level of education on the internet, mostly because they named this poll incorrectly. They should have given it a name that would have told educated and informed people to steer clear of it all together. Instead of calling it “What is the worst company in America?” They should have called it:
“Hey Net Nerds! Come vent you nerd-rage in this pointless poll that will distract you from pathetically shallow existence for a few seconds!”
As a US taxpayer, I’m a customer of Halliburton. I’m definitely appalled at the way they’ve run their company.
Yeah, the RIAA are a bunch of douche-nozzles, but no one’s taken a bullet for them.
It’s one thing to commercialize music, it’s another to profit from war. Although, I will agree that a greater responsibility lies with our government, which elected to run this war in such an irresponsible manner.
I guess this poll comes down to which part of the US Government do you hate most. The part that made the DMCA a law, or the part that’s “running” the war in Iraq. Maybe next year we can just put in the US Government as a choice, and they’d win in a landslide. I think it’s fair, isn’t the guy in charge supposed to be the CEO president?
@Theseus: Word. It’s truly amazing.
“Can one of the idio..err persons voting for the RIAA over Halliburton please stop by and explain yourself?”
How is one an idiot for actually voting based on shitty company policies or how it affects one personally rather than political ideology? Halliburton doesn’t affect me in any way, shape, or form – the RIAA does. Maybe you braniacs don’t know this, but the war wasn’t fought because of Halliburton – they’re opportunists.
“You people who have voted RIAA over Monsanto, Exxon, and Halliburton are the most pathetically narrow minded people this country has to offer”
Or we’re realists and not little posie sniffers who get mad because of companies pumping oil (or oh no! denying global warming!) or building all the facilities in a war-torn nation. And for most of us, Halliburton doesn’t affect us (besides the empty moral outrage, which is directed at the wrong target). You’re far more narrow minded than I shall ever be, friend.
“First Exxon, and now Halliburton, represent true problems to our economy, our domestic politics and foreign policy.”
No, they don’t. If any of you think the war (a war I never supported and still do not support) was about oil (originally I mean, not when the companies moved in afterwards) than you shouldn’t be commenting on politics.
@mac-phisto: I love you. You are the very next person I marry; I promise.
@mac-phisto: I meant for this comment.
@Americana:
Your naiveté is breath taking. You sir are proof that these companies marketing dollars, and paid apologists are money well spent. And here I thought their talking points were so clumsy, obtuse, and transparent that no one could be stupid enough to actually fall for them, let alone repeat them. On that (and only that) you have proven me wrong.
If your world view works for you, then by all means stay shallow, selfish, and ignorant. But if you want to stay that way, whatever you do, don’t use the vast research abilities of the internet to look into even a single thing of what you just spouted in your post. Don’t question it for a second, and don’t think too deep. Keep taking everything the apologists say at face value. After all, why would they lie?