Gov’t Outrage Friday: House votes to limit executive pay
Going through my RSS feeds, I came across this little gem. For those that don’t care to read, the House of Representatives has passed a bill allowing them to prohibit incentive-based pay packages at large U.S. Financial institutions that encourage “inappropriate risks.”
There’s an old adage about if it walks like a duck, talks like a duck, and looks like a duck, then it’s a duck. Well, this particular duck has “Fascism” written all over it. (For those who are going to jump to the wrong conclusion, I’m referencing the Fascist model of economics where the means of production is still privately owned, but controlled by the Government.)
I know it comes as no surprise that I’m a proponent of free market capitalism. Each time I see something like this happen, it continues to gall me and make me wonder what the hell the House of Representatives is thinking. If this were just a limited item directed only at those institutions that still have outstanding TARP loans, I could stomach it a bit more. This, however, is directed at any financial institution with over $1 Billion in assets.
Do I believe that many of the larger financial institutions made poor decisions in recent years? Absolutely. Ignoring the fact that government pressure and laws attributed to some of it, the simple fact remains these are private institutions with stock holders. They are not extensions of the Federal Government. If these companies feel the need to offer incentive packages to attract top notch talent, that is entirely between them and their stock holders. The Federal Government has zero business sticking its nose into that process.
Obviously, however, the Democrats in the House do not agree with my position. The only saving grace in this situation is the fact it still has to go through the Senate, and it’s unlikely you’re going to see it pass there. My hope is it’ll die a wonderfully ignoble death on the floor of the Senate, and we’ll see nothing more of this. Of course, this wouldn’t be the first time I’d ended up disappointed on this count.
Regardless of what may or may not happen in the Senate, we’re now seeing yet another situation of the Government believing it can meddle and positively impact the economy of the United States. I hold out hope that sooner rather than later they’ll come to the understanding it’s not their job to do so, nor is there much they can do to cause positive impact. However, the masses continue to scream out for the Government to do something, ignoring the past results of meddling from the Federal Bureaucracy.
But hey, it’s bread and circuses that get you re-elected, right? After all, it doesn’t have to actually pass. You just have to be able to go home to your district and roll out the class warfare banner and show how you tried to stick it to those “evil rich folks” and make things better for the “common man.” We’ve all seen to this point how well that particular line plays in the heartland.
Besides, American Idol is starting back up soon, and that’s oh so more interesting than what’s happening in Washington.
What’s the HR number? I can’t find this one.