2008 Ends Here comes 2009

My final thoughts for 2008.
On Executive pay and parachutes. I would love to see a salary cap but that is really nothing that could be made into law. We have a hard enough time passing minimum wage laws that provides for a living above the poverty line how could we pass a law that restricts how much a person can earn.
What we can do is change the climate that promotes these excessive packages.
First reinstate the tax cuts for the rich. Next add more tax penalties and tax these large packages and salaries , close loopholes and limits on tax shelters. If you make so much that after giving to charities and paying all your bills, all your Yacht or private plane and crew expenses and your three mansions, you still have to shelter your left over money or find some way to avoid paying taxes you just make to much period...
3rd Provide tax breaks to companies who instead of supporting and paying these excessive executive packages and salaries divert or use these funds back into the company to further cover expenses including healthcare, pensions or retirement plans and employee salaries. I am amazed that the Airlines and Auto Industry as well as others complain that they have to cover all these pensions or provide insurance and are struggling to cover their funding but at the same time funds are there to pay the executives those needed millions they are so short on.

We have created and allowed the climate of greed to run rampant. Taxing the greed is probably the best way to curb it. White collar crimes also need to be prosecuted. They are doing just as much if not more to destroy the economy. Just because someone is rich, a sports figure, celebrety or politician should not give them any more priveledges that the middle classs have.
Bailouts... We as taxpayers are footing the bailout. If the banks that took the money don't want to open credit. Take the money back. They have no problem being part of the problem that caused this mess and continue to escalate it by ramping up interest rates to credit card holders, (The next sub prime bubble to burst).
If they only want to take the money but don't want to be part of the solution, take the money back and let them fail. People want to refinance and consolidate and get back on foot. The banks are preventing this and maintaining the environment to cause more failures and defaults to happen.
I Hope this next years sessions and the shift in controls can start doing things to shift us back into the great world leader and great economy that created this country.

Greed Oink Part 2

Ok, so the help package to bail out the Big 3 Auto companies did not pass. Why must the UAW see a cut in pay to save the companies with this bailout. Oh I forgot they are only blue collar middle class.
The Wall Street bailout did not require any cut in pay for those workers or the CEOs.

Tell me why in a bailout package telling the UAW workers they have to take a cut in pay is there a pay provision, which would give federal judges a raise of almost $5,000, Members of Congress, however, who presently make $169,300 a year, will automatically receive a raise of almost $5,000 on Jan. 1. But they are not cutting their pay either. Funny how this barely made it in the news and was never really mentioned together with the bailout not passing.


Here is a noble idea. Have congress make it into law that every worker in the US get a 2.8% COLA raise every year just like they automatically get or vote themselves to receive every year. While at it, give everyone the same health and benefit packages they get as well. And raise the minimum wage. Do all that and unions can deal with workplace issues and grievances.

Double standards keep getting in the way of getting our country and Economy on track. We still have to protect the rich folks. Now we have the Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC Pyramid scam that bilked up to $50 Bln and he may only have to do several years and pay a couple million in fines. Here we go again I see another bailout coming to recover another $50 Bln lost to greedy CEOs and White Collar rip offs.

GREED --- OINK

I am so tired of the bashing of middle class america, the american worker and Unions being as the reason for all this economic mess. The unions have driven the wages for workers since they came in. Non unionized workers recieve benefits to stay competetive with unionized workers. Without them we all would still be working in sweat shops and jobs like those before unions came into play. They have benefited everyone though many would like to argue against unions.

Unfortunately for most of the american work force they are also employed by publicly held companies. The main objective of a publicly held company is to pay profits to the stock holders.
The biggest wrench that is constantly complained about is having to pay fror health insurance and pensions. If they did not have to pay these there would be much more profits. But where do profits go to? It seems that they all go to the stockholders dividends and CEOs and not back into the company to reduce costs or to pay the health care and pensions.

The big banks keep on increasing interest rates knowing full well that it may cause a customer to default. Last I heard they have been pushing increases to 34%APR just because you pay the minimum amounts. And the banks CEOs take in some of the highest compensation packages.
Health Care Companies may make enough profits to give the CEO 42 million that could be invested into the company for lower costs for the customer. Com on Banks stop the greed grab and be a real bank.

It is interesting Forbes Special Report on CEO compensation that was published in may 2007 states
"The chief executives of America's 500 biggest companies got a collective 38% pay raise last year, to $7.5 billion. That's an average $15.2 million apiece."

So Don't give me that bullshit story you can't afford to pay your workers a salary, Healthcare or retirement package. Show everyone that Reaganomics and the Trickle down Theory works.
Instead of hoarding this $7.5 Billion why don't you see what happens when CEO's go back to a realistic pay and invest this excess back into the company, healthcare and pensions.

I bet there would still be profits to the pay the dividends, The workers will have money to spend
Healthcare would be more affordable and it would stimulate the economy.

There is so much the companies can do and the government need not do anything. It all comes down to greed and corrupt practices or are they willing to clean up their act and share their glutttony on their own.

Many companies spend so much lobbying to protect their pricing and bad practices instead of making changes that benefit society.

Big 3 bailout you are included and part of the problem. How much can your Executive compensation packages go to save your companies? How much have you been spending to lobby against improving gas mileage, 12 Million in the past year? What world do you live in thinking the future depends on $45,000, 10 mpg Hummers. We need affordable, economical, safe family cars. We need to be looking at alternative fuels and break ties with the oil industry. Can you do it? I hope so if you want to be bailed out.

Government - You have your part to play in all this too.
Close the loop holes, Make it more profitable to keep the manufacturing and business on USA soil. Maybe Coorporate taxes could be less if all the loopholes were plugged up and offshoring was penalized. And quite working and being bought out by big busiess and lobbyist and work for and listen to the voters. Lets start seeing things trickle Up.

A good source of information on the CEO Pay .
The AFL CIO 2008 Executive PayWatch