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Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Cal Thomas :: Townhall.com Columnist
Horsing Around
by Cal Thomas
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When politicians get on their high horses about something, it is almost certain that a considerable amount of horse manure will get spread around.

Such is the case with the giant insurance firm American International Group, Inc. (AIG), which was declared "too big to fail" during the Bush administration.

The Obama administration has denounced bonuses received by top AIG executives. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has been jawboning -- apparently with some success -- to get AIG to re-negotiate some of the $165 million in bonuses. Even House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-MA), who failed to provide proper oversight for some of the entities that got into financial trouble (Frank famously reported in 2003 that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were "fundamentally sound" mortgage lending institutions), went on the "Today" show Monday and ranted about the supposed evils of AIG.

This is all populism, of course, since the amount of money Congress wastes every minute makes whatever earned or unearned money paid to AIG employees, pale by comparison. For politicians to complain about misspent tax dollars is like one of those tabloid honeys lamenting the decline in family values.

This play within a play is ultimately not about AIG, corporate aircraft, fancy resorts and partying executives, all of which have been denounced by President Obama and members of his administration, along with many fulminating members of the media. While some people rail against "greed," some of the less affluent operate according to another of the "seven deadly sins," which is envy.

I don't care how much money someone else makes. I simply want the opportunity to make the same, or more, should I choose to.

Just how much this attitude of envy has sunk in with so many was on display last Monday on Rush Limbaugh's radio program (stay with me non-Rush fans because this is an important point no matter who makes it). A man named Nathan called the show, upset about the AIG executives who received "bailouts with taxpayer money."

After making several points and getting nowhere, Rush asked Nathan how much he would like to make. Nathan said, "$250,000." "What's keeping you from earning that much money?" asked Rush. Continued...
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About The Author
Cal Thomas is co-author (with Bob Beckel) of the book, "Common Ground: How to Stop the Partisan War That is Destroying America".
 
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(13 comments so Far)
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Reply # 1
Date: Mar 18, 2009 - 8:50 PM EST
re: Michael
The issue here is not what you or I would get or lose with AIG exec bonuses. It is an ethical issue: should executives who helped to oversee the ruin of a company receive a sizable bonus for their bad decisions? Certainly that is not the ethos of capitalism, where one is rewarded for good decisions and punished for bad. The fact they are taking tax dollars over bankruptcy and liquidation (with no bonus option I might add) most certainly calls into question the decision of the AIG bonus. Certainly, in my job as a web app programmer, if I consistently put into production bad code that costs the company money in correcting I can expect to not only not get a bonus for bad work but I can also probably expect a pink slip eventually? Why should high execs be held to a different standard? Especially where public money is involved?
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Reply # 2
Date: Mar 18, 2009 - 8:43 PM EST
making money
What Limbaugh did not discuss is that in order to make the fabled $250,000 one must go into tens of thousands of dollars of debt (at least) to finance a college education to even get into the running for positions that pay that much. I can attest: I made the decision to finish my bachelor's degree but had to finance my education on student loans that currently own me for $30,000. Sad to say, the system is balanced for the rich, in that only a rich family can afford out of pocket the outrageous tuitions to afford college education that is now a de-facto requirement for promoting yourself through modern corporate America. The good news: my college education worked in my favor and I was able to obtain a computer programming job but I still have lots to pay back over a good part of my working years. Not disagreeing with Limbaugh (for once! lol) that a good part of your success is determined by your drive but I think it's important to note that the gateways to success (college) factor a lot of deserving people right out of the equation. It used to be a man (or woman) could start at the low levels and work their way up through the company through training and hard work but that is simply not the case with the "global" economy and global style corporatism (for the most part). It also used to be the case that blue collar jobs were sufficient to promote a nice lifestyle for a family but that is also no longer the case for the vast majority. Limbaugh (and Thomas) need to address both sides of this issue.
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