Bailed-Out Companies Owe Executives Billions

[No DUplicitous DUpe]

Bailed-Out Companies Owe Executives Billions (posted with permission)
http://saneramblings.com/phpBB/viewforum.php?f=1

As U.S. taxpayers, you and I are running the biggest corporate bailout in history, as we rescue grossly mismanaged collapsing giants such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, AIG and others.

The costs and obligations are already approaching a trillion dollars, money we are forced to borrow, as our country is so deeply in debt, we are by far the biggest debtor nation in the world.

Our debts are huge and growing so fast, they endanger vital programs such as Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, none of which are financially secure.

On Halloween, The Wall Street Journal broke a scary story, "Banks Owe Billions to Executives." http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122542331644887249.html

In it, they inform us that these firms have contractual obligations to pay billions of dollars in deffered compensation and special pensions to their executives who ran them to the brink of bankruptcy.

In most cases the company financial statements did not disclose these obligations to the shareholders. They were hidden so well The Journal had financial experts search for them and question the companies to confirm them.

This is at a time when millions of people are losing their jobs, their homes and their retirement savings. Some of those unfortunate people are the rank and file employees of the companies being bailed-out.

In bailing-out these deeply troubled companies, we as taxpayers should insist those executive contracts be renegotiated for without us, those companies could not afford to meet these massive obligations. Renegotiating contracts in business is commonly done and given the horrific results these executives delivered, appropriate here.

Or instead these executives could voluntarily contribute some of this money to share in the costs to the taxpayers of bailing-out their companies. It would help to restore the credibility of the financial system and in some cases may even soothe their consciences.

To all of us, this is a reminder of how greed can distort one's values and cause a person to take foolish risks with other people's money and then claim in compensation what should not be rightfully his. None of us should fool ourselves, we are all susceptible to these temptations.

[Romulox]

1. When the Democrats and Republicans team up against the American people, there's NOTHING we can do

:puke:

[kentuck]

2. It seems to me...

that when your company goes under, they owe the CEO nothing. In fact, it may be the reverse?

[Romulox]

5. It gets better than that. They are using the bailout money to pay "dividends" to "investors"

(When they extend any help to poor people, they call it welfare, however.)

[No DUplicitous DUpe]

6. That is an excellent point. nt

[Cleita]

10. At least all that should be given to them is their pink slip and

whatever salary is due them up to that time just like we would get if we were fired for incompetence or worse. I would also add a lawsuit to investigate them for criminal activities too.

[aquart]

3. Void those contracts NOW.

[AndyA]

4. What a country we live in!

These "Executives" DO NOT DESERVE ANY BONUSES!

They ran their companies into the ground. A business failure so severe that the Federal Government had to step in and save them with taxpayer money! These Executives should be STRIPPED of all bonuses, incentives, benefits, stock options, etc., for their FAILURE to run the companies in a profitable manner.

That's the way it works in America. At least, for most Americans. No exceptions for these people! NO BONUSES, they've done nothing to deserve them!

[LiberalEsto]

7. Obligations, my ass

Maybe the companies have these obligations, but you and I, the American taxpaying public, do not have any obligation to bail out the CEOs.

If the companies don't have money to meet their "contractual obligations" to the jerks that ran them into the groups, that's too damned bad.

I can't fathom why there weren't stipulations written firmly into the bailout money prohibiting the use of American taxpayers' money for executive salaries.

[NashVegas]

8. Bail Yourselves Out, Assholes

[Romulox]

9. The bill has already been sent to your grandkids. nt