Wall Street

[MMI]

A year ago, you'd have held such overpaid managers as the epitome of America's work ethic and the heros of capitalism who fully deserved every cent they made.

What's happened?

Forgive me, everyone, please. I was under the misapprehension that the ability to make vast fortunes if you were skillful, or lucky, or able to use your own situation to your advantage, was what the free-enterprise culture was all about.

I withdraw my previous comment.

[Ragoczy]

Forgive me, everyone, please. I was under the misapprehension that the ability to make vast fortunes if you were skillful, or lucky, or able to use your own situation to your advantage, was what the free-enterprise culture was all about.

I withdraw my previous comment.

It's about entrepreneurship and succeeding or failing on one's own merits. Middle-management and CEOs who've never built a company of their own are unfortunate by-products.

[Thorne]

It's about entrepreneurship and succeeding or failing on one's own merits. Middle-management and CEOs who've never built a company of their own are unfortunate by-products.

Exactly!

You aren't wrong, MMI. Not at all. But what you're saying doesn't apply to these kinds of people. Even the sports stars I noted in my last post can't be totally to blame, I suppose. If the teams are willing to pay those salaries, and the fans are willing to pay the prices to see the games, I suppose that's a free market.

But a career manager, with no real idea of how to build a business, comes in and makes wholesale changes, mostly for the sake of change, then gives himself elaborate bonuses and leaves just before the bottom falls out, is not someone to look up to. He's a parasite. Unfortunately, other middle-managers who want to be just like him will make his path easier. And we pay the price.

[leo9]

But a career manager, with no real idea of how to build a business, comes in and makes wholesale changes, mostly for the sake of change, then gives himself elaborate bonuses and leaves just before the bottom falls out, is not someone to look up to. He's a parasite. Unfortunately, other middle-managers who want to be just like him will make his path easier. And we pay the price.

In this country we call them "seagulls". Fly in, crap on everyone below, and fly out again.

[Thorne]

In this country we call them "seagulls". Fly in, crap on everyone below, and fly out again.

LOL! I like that! And they're noisy, to boot!

[leo9]

Forgive me, everyone, please. I was under the misapprehension that the ability to make vast fortunes if you were skillful, or lucky, or able to use your own situation to your advantage, was what the free-enterprise culture was all about.

It was supposed to be about doing all of the above honestly and without legalised fraud. Which is what the selling of toxic securities always was, though no politician dares to say so because they legalised it.

Take away all the controls and regulations, and the vast fortunes are made by criminals. That's why "small government" never works for long (only for as long as it takes for the honest businessmen to be pushed aside), but has a powerful and well funded lobby.

[Ragoczy]

Take away all the controls and regulations, and the vast fortunes are made by criminals. That's why "small government" never works for long (only for as long as it takes for the honest businessmen to be pushed aside), but has a powerful and well funded lobby.

That isn't what I or anyone I know means by "small government". Government's proper role is to protect the individual.

By "small government", what's typically meant is keeping government programs small and ensuring people have the opportunity to be self-reliant rather than reliant on government.