We Are the World

I’m borrowing my topic header from Noam Chomsky. He uses it to refer to the United States and its allies (Britain, Israel and a few smattering countries) exclaiming such nonsense as “The World condemns country 'X' for its current policy regarding ‘Y.’” Of course, they aren’t speaking for the “World.” They are condemning country “X” for policies running counter to the interests of the U.S and its minority allies. Most of the “world” could either care less about “Y” or might be inclined to the opposite of the U.S. and its remarkably few allies’ opinion.

As far as I’m concerned, the financial institutions also view themselves as “The World” and nothing (or nobody) else matters. Take a look at the eighteen or so billion dollar “bonuses” that the financial institutions gave themselves last year in spite of the disaster the executives led this country into. President Obama called the bonuses “irresponsible.” I beg to differ. I call it arrogance. They don’t even think or care that it should matter what they did. Of course, once there is a major outcry, the Public Relations Departments (and various Spinners in favor of the corporations) start to do damage control.

I love this spin, as an example: Something to the effect that salaries are more tied in with bonuses in the financial sector than the industrial side of the work force. Give me a break. For my entire life, I’ve been under the impression that a “bonus” given at the end of the year represented a job well done. Not for running a company into the ground and needing taxpayer bailout money.

How about Citigroup signing off for a fifty million dollar corporate jet? Even after its multi-billion dollar bailout. It took a phone call from the White House (“We are not amused”) for Citigroup to “decide” to pass on the jet. One more time, this is not “irresponsibility.” It’s arrogance, plain and simple.

Finally, John Thain, former CEO of Merrill Lynch, spent over a million dollars for office “redecoration” and to hand out millions of dollars of bonuses a month earlier than usual in order to get the money out before Bank of America took over the corporation. He knew exactly what he was doing. He was gaming the system so his fellow corporate executives could get their millions before he relinquished control to BofA. Arrogance. Not irresponsibility.

What really scares me is what we are not seeing. I bet there are many such instances of arrogance and frivolous spending that is unseen. Recall that AIG tried to cover their "retreat" (spending hundreds of thousands of dollars) in Arizona after they got their bailout. What other corporations are hiding egregious spending such as this? It will be interesting to see what else these execs are doing behind our backs. Hopefully, we will be able to find out, though I believe most of the shenanigans will slip by.

These guys don’t give a frak about the U.S. or its people, many of whom are leading desperate lives. It’s about greed and the conception that they are “The World.” Until we can oust every one of these money-grubbing egoists and bring in those who think in terms that all of us are a part of this great country and all citizens should benefit from the resources that this great country has, we will have an ever widening (arrogant) upper and (exploited) lower class system.