This is An Awesome Post
by jhwygirl
Subject: AIG
Some of the best:
AIG is not equipped to be able to balance the ethical considerations involved in paying huge executive bonuses. Although a “person” under the law, there’s no person called AIG who can undertake this type of a priori moralizing. Paying the bonuses was the only way this corporate “person” could get a sound night’s sleep. It could rest assured that it was satisfying its marching orders, its prime directive. It’s really a simple “life,” being a corporation-person. No complicated morality issues, no fear of death by natural causes, but certainly a fear of death by dissolution, or bankruptcy. Every part of those articles of incorporation and bylaws are designed to avoid this type of death. And it’s avoided by making shareholders happy, by maximizing profits. The only consideration running through the corporation’s “mind” is how can “I” do these things?
Over at Left in the West.
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4&20 blackbirds 
March 27, 2009 at 10:24 am
yes, thanks j-girl. it’s a good post, and you and JC had good comments. but i have a quick question: when will Democrats start calling on Obama to fire his economic team? the ruse continues with Obama’s blessing, and the shiny veneer is starting to dull, but there’s still this reluctance to concede Obama is making a HUGE mistake by letting the wolves continue to oversee the national chicken coop. maybe there’s a sense that criticizing Obama plays into Republican positions. that shouldn’t stop folks concerned with the direction of this country to voice those concerns.
no more personhood for corporations sounds great, really progressive, and therefore impossible with the current batch of sycophants in DC.
Then there’s Obama’s new Afghanistan strategy, which is just another looming disaster for this country. when will democrats wake up?
March 27, 2009 at 10:39 am
There’s a good article from Atlantic Monthly. here’s a snippet:
March 27, 2009 at 4:18 pm
i believe that obama is more of a politician than many like to give him credit for ( or vilify him for) he is in tune with the great majority of americans who do not like to see radical moves on the part of a president. he is leading america away from the greedheads and the warmongers but in small incremental degrees. this is a huge ship and if you were to come too hard to starboard more people would object than if you led them gently and gradually there, which might cause a backlash on his policies.
i hate to say it but the best analogy is sheepherding. if you have ever tried to herd a flock of sheep gradually where you want them to go, you must be very patient and not get them overly excited or alarmed or they will stampede the wrong direction. i think president obama is doing an excellent job of gently leading this country away from the cliff, but any sudden moves could send them to their collective deaths. so we must use a little patience.
it is excruciating i know. i too, would prefer that the troops come home immediately and that we provide universal health coverage for everyone immediately and that we take over the banks and institute immediate control over wall street but the fact that the only real opposition that appears to be screaming at him seems to come from the polar opposites of the political spectrum. this gives me some hope that obama is on the right track and that slowly but surely we are going to come out of this. there is less vilification from the left than the right so that is a good sign that at least the gradual trend is due left, which is where we need to go.
March 27, 2009 at 4:39 pm
pbear, i’ve been pouring over a variety of assessments trying to figure out how fucked we are going to be if Geithner is allowed to keep shoveling our future wealth to his buddies, and it’s looking pretty abysmal. this latest public/private boondoggle is just another obscene scam that could be stopped, but the sentiment you echo of “hush, naysayers, it takes time…” is just enabling the theft. and that’s what it is, plain and simple.
let me put it another way: if a woman came to you saying her husband has been beating her and the kids, would you tell her to just be patient, because eventually her spouse will realize he has a problem and seek help, or would you tell her to get the hell out of the situation, and if her life is being threatened, then she has the right to defend herself by any means necessary, even if that means shooting the bastard?
March 27, 2009 at 5:01 pm
that is a crazy analogy liz.
March 27, 2009 at 5:35 pm
maybe bad taste, but not crazy. think about it. our relationship to our government as citizens is being exploited by the behavior of cash-drunk power-hungry gambling addicts; domestic abuse at a massive scale, and apologists for the president are increasingly sounding like codependent enablers, preaching patience while the beatings keep coming.
March 27, 2009 at 6:01 pm
I know this isn’t germane to this post, but I am practically apoplectic. Jim Sadler, one of the good guys ( conservative) on the school board has just won re-election to the school board. So much for the attempt of the lefty loosies on this site to find a wing nut to run against him.
March 27, 2009 at 6:09 pm
useless as usual.
March 27, 2009 at 6:44 pm
No, Sadler did not win reelection. The election isn’t until May. He may be running unopposed, but the bell has yet to ring.
I would say that your apoplexy has gotten the best of you.
March 27, 2009 at 7:05 pm
Since the Supreme Court believes corporations enjoy the freedoms of personhood, do they not also bear the responsibilities borne by other citizens?
In this national emergency, I suggest we draft the boards of directors of all the failed financial institutions, all firms involved in health care, the energy companies… and have them all go to boot camp and then follow the lawful orders of a military commander.
Of course some corporate bigwigs will protest that their companies are not U.S. citizens because the majority of their company’s stockholders are foreign nationals.
And therein lies the false argument for unregulated corporate free speech.
March 27, 2009 at 8:59 pm
Given that the entire economic situation was created by the Republican “let the market sort it out”, deregulation and defective regulation, and “trickle down economics”, I cannot believe the Republicans have any criticism of the AIG bonuses. Aren’t these bonuses sort of “pay” for work poorly performed? If so, why not raise the pay to GM, Bear Sterns, and Lehman Bros. executives? Certainly if we pay them enough, it will “trickle down” to the rest of us.
As an alternitive, why don’t we give a bonuses to the clerical workers and janitors at AIG and let it “trickle up” to senior management.
March 27, 2009 at 9:11 pm
J. Ashe: Given that the entire economic situation was created by the Republican…
NO, it was not created entirely by Republicans. Christ! this willful ignorance drives me crazy.
GLASS-STEAGALL WAS SIGNED INTO LAW BY BILL CLINTON.
why? because the financial sector paid for it. very simple.
March 28, 2009 at 12:03 am
problembear has a point, so i apologize.
March 27, 2009 at 10:30 pm
might want to reduce the crazy meds just a tad there liz…i don’t think J. Ashe deserved such a rude response. i kind of liked the fresh perspective on AIG bonuses to everyone on the bottom. republicans did in fact control congress during clinton’s tenure and while clinton was much too amiable toward wall street financiers the drum beat of the republican party during the past 28 years was to deregulate everything- let the markets rule….too many democrats bought into it along with, i might add usually the majority of american electorate (with the exception of the stolen 2000 election) but doubtful if gore would have been much better than clinton in wall street regard anyway. for sure, any of them would have handled everything better than bush. i despise politics but felt angry enough about bush to get active late in life. to say that clinton caused this would ignore the incredible negligence and unbelievable incompetance of george w bush and his entire administration. i don’t think you mean to give them a pass in your extremely impolite response to J. Ashe. at least i hope you don’t. otherwise i will need to do some serious evaluation of your agenda here….
March 27, 2009 at 10:55 pm
marginalize my clearly stated opinions by questioning my mental state? nice.
i’m sure J. can respond directly to me if i’ve been unduly rude. we’re all adults here, right?
besides, you’ve been known to go all growly on plenty of folks, so please spare me the disingenuous lecturing.
i’m just trying to drive home this strange concept that neither side of the isle gets a free pass when it comes to the economic malaise that’s stricken the entire global economy.
if that’s crazy, then i better get medicated, or maybe i should try smoking the HOPIUM that’s all the rage these days.
maybe, if i smoked HOPIUM, i could believe the bullshit reasoning we’re escalating the AfPak “theatre”–’cause the terrorists in the caves are still trying to kill us, right? instead of more plausible reasons, like pipelines and geopolitical positioning.
i apologize if i upset or depress anyone, that’s not my intention. i’ll try to find more tactful ways of phrasing my contentious opinions, i promise.
but be warned: my promise is only as good as a politicians’.
March 27, 2009 at 11:29 pm
i come down with full force on folks who deserve it liz, not innocent bystanders like J. Ashe. your response was over the top to someone who leans left. if the agenda is to draw folks to change the status quo then it behooves the speaker to at least welcome potential supporters rather than toss arrogant and spite-filled, ego driven grenades at them.
if the agenda is to disrupt a fairly left leaning blog with constant nihilistic and vituperative verbal artillery which tends to drive away those who might support us then i think you are most effective and i question it.
my suspicions about your motives expand in direct relation to the vehemence of your comments. just sayin’….
March 27, 2009 at 11:50 pm
sorry, i didn’t realize there was a left-leaning code i’m suppose to adhere to when commenting.
March 27, 2009 at 11:53 pm
and if that’s the case, maybe posting guidelines would be helpful. for an independent you seem to champion an unhealthy level of conformity.
March 28, 2009 at 12:14 am
Mike Whitney–
March 28, 2009 at 12:49 am
Lizard, I support your freedom to sort that shit out. That was a rational response to naivety, imho.
March 28, 2009 at 9:28 am
thanks, i think. but beware, support for my nihilist agenda may get you reprimanded.
March 28, 2009 at 10:05 am
this article looks at the destructive tendencies of globalized capitalism.
March 28, 2009 at 11:29 am
and finally, here is Pepe Escobar talking about Obama being held hostage by the PPPIP (public private partnership investment program)
what happens at the G20 summit will be critical to how the world moves forward. alternatives to the dollar as the global reserve currency will be discussed. this is a dangerous situation being made worse by Geithner’s cronyism and Obama’s reluctance to stand up to the people who helped him wage a successful, half billion dollar campaign for the presidency.
he won that campaign with soaring rhetoric about hope and change. now is his chance to show he’s not just another duplicitous politician beholden to the out-of-control banksters gambling away our future.
March 28, 2009 at 12:06 pm
Lizard, take a look at this article, “The Quiet Coup” in The Atlantic by Simon Johnson. Johnson is a former chief economist t the IMF, and has a great sideline view of global economic markets, and positions our current economic crisis in context.
A few lowlights:
In short, when the finance industry moves to a point where it captures 41% of all domestic corporate profits, our economic system becomes vulnerable to collapse,which it has. Johnson lays out the reasoning why, unless the oligarchs are forced to cough up much of their riches, and we get strong restructuring and regulation, the economy will keep heading south.
Great reading for an understanding of how national economies boom and bust in the global market, and how powerful oligarchs and political forces rise and fall together.
March 28, 2009 at 5:29 pm
thanks JC–that was the first link i posted.
the problem is there is now enough good analysis out there that to say Obama doesn’t know what needs to happen simply doesn’t work anymore. he knows, and he’s not doing it, and his economic team is prolonging and worsening the situation. it makes me sick. all the good work people do locally and in the state and across this country won’t matter if Obama refuses to turn off the corporate vacuum and address the Federal Reserve’s unique, opaque relationship with the govt.
for me, disappointment over the many terrible appointments is beginning to turn into panic. it’s going to be very difficult to break the O-spell because a lot of people are deeply invested in hoping there would be some positive action backing up the rhetoric, but when it comes to the two most important areas–the economy and foreign policy–we’re being treated with a rebranding of Bush’s policy.
i’ve been catching all kinds of hell for my “nihilistic” cynicism, as evident by pbear’s responses, but if a “left-leaning” blog like this isn’t an appropriate venue to voice these concerns, then where am i suppose to go? is what i am saying in this little thread really that crazy?
March 28, 2009 at 10:38 pm
I’d say some people may not dig the tone. I like the gist of your ideas, not far from my own.
Look, I like to get snarky as much as the next guy. But it doesn’t always get people to listen to your ideas, when they have to get past the attitude. Me, if it isn’t directed at me, or mean right wing tripe, I usually let it roll.
I think pbear likes to keep his cave all snug in a rug sometimes. It’s spring time you know. Bears get grouchy until they’ve been out and about a bit. ;-)
March 28, 2009 at 11:56 pm
i get it, style trumps content. and i’m not part of the in-crowd here, so i understand the paranoia about my “agenda.”
j-girl recently expressed (and i’m paraphrasing) that this blog is about issues, not party politics.
but there is a fair amount of sniping and snarking along party lines that goes on here, which is too bad because that combative divisiveness is a tremendous energy sink that people keep pouring themselves into, trolls and bloggers alike.
i almost think it would have been better if McCain won the presidency. what’s happening would still be happening, but it would be easier to rally opposition.
there have been and will be major protests around the world leading up to the G20 summit. will we be in the streets any time soon? doubtful. why? why aren’t we more pissed off?
March 29, 2009 at 1:23 am
No, I wouldn’t say style trumps content. But the tone about how we talk about issues makes a difference.
I’m as guilty as any for taking ideological pokes at people, but it isn’t necessarily party oriented.
As to protests, I think that you’ll start to see more and more of it as people sort out who Obama the campaigner was, and Obama the prez is. If the issue is important enough to stand up for, it shouldn’t matter who the figure head is. I’ve spent plenty of time in my life protesting democrats. Going to do some more…
March 29, 2009 at 12:22 am
Ian Welsh:
March 29, 2009 at 10:16 am
Real News Network interviewing Noam Chomsky about the economy. he says some interesting things about labor, unions, wages, and Obama’s symbolic appearance recently at a Caterpillar plant to appeal to the working class. Caterpillar machines are currently helping Israel reek destruction in the occupied territories, and is a company that, during Reagan’s reign, brought in scabs to bust a strike. thanks, prez.