“That is pretty draconian — $500,000 is not a lot of money, particularly if there is no bonus,” said James F. Reda, founder and managing director of James F. Reda & Associates, a compensation consulting firm. “And you know these companies that are in trouble are not going to pay much of an annual dividend.”
Mr. Reda said only a handful of big companies pay chief executives and other senior executives $500,000 or less in total compensation. He said such limits will make it hard for the companies to recruit and keep executives, most of whom could earn more money at other firms.
“It would be really tough to get people to staff” companies that are forced to impose these limits, he said. “I don’t think this will work.”
source (h/t to Drdemocrat)
Oh, I don't think it would be that hard ...
For $500K, I won't do anything this guy did, up to and including the bathroom ... stuff, but also, and more usefully, giving bonuses to people who helped my company lose $15 billion.
For $500K, I promise not to ask the government for billions of dollars with no strings attached, then take my peeps here or here or complain like this. ("I have to stand in line" ... so sorry, so sorry. Try actually competing with car manufacturers who want to make better cars, not just bigger cars, and see if that secures your meal ticket.)
For $500K, I promise to live in the reality-based world, where people who earn — sorry, earned — $25,000 a year don't get approved for $300,000 mortgages. (Or where people who don't earn $25 a year get approved for $30,000 mortgages.)
For $500K, I promise to not repeat the mantra "There is such thing as a credit risk" and to have "Sorry, but we don't give $500,000 loans to people with no credit history" memorized by all of my loan officers. (Or whatever they're called. Give me $500K and I'll find out the right term.)
For $500K, I promise to not fight with my every dying breath any regulatory effort that so much as sniffs the street my offices are on, let alone my desk. Regulation is good; it keeps people from screwing other people.
For $500K, I promise to have more market insight than this guy (hint: If a stock is tanking, you might want to get advice on its future from someone who uses facts instead of vocal ferocity).
For $500K, I promise to bear in mind every year that a bonus is for a job well done, not a job for which you clearly showed up most days, at least physically if not mentally or academically.
Now, I know all of this seems fairly pedestrian. I promised to not do a bunch of really idiotic things. I'm basically saying I'll take your money and, er, continue to do my day job while being paid to not do a bunch of stupid things.
But here's what separates me from those $$$ CEOs and such:
In their day jobs, they killed Wall Street, the U.S. economy, the world economy — and the ability of a white man to successfully run for president. Seriously. Obama tied McCain to Bush and the idiocy on Wall Street, and it worked. Didn't hurt that McCain was on tape saying he didn't really understand economics, but still.
And they did it for a hefty fee.
I, on the other hand, will do nothing risky and collect a sliver of the salaries of those guys who lost so many billions of dollars. Maybe I'll approve some loans, but they'll be safe loans (insofar as there are safe loans), and my company won't lose much — if any — money.
No risk, far less reward, but right now, risk is pretty well tapped out, don't you think?
Oh, and as for that whole "You can't get anybody good for only $500K"?
You can clearly get a bunch of really risky people for a hell of a lot more than $500K. Right now, maybe what we need is some less risky people earning less money.
Just saying.
::waves::
love and kisses,
iampunha
P.S.: Ask my boss how much money I lost us last year. Hint: a lot less than $15 billion.