Some Companies Paid More to CEOs than to Taxes

From ThinkProgress

Hey, don't pick on those poor CEOs. They're "job creators" don'tcha know?  Thanks to Stupid Monkey Planet for the link.

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REPORT: 25 Corporations Paid More To Their CEO Last Year Than They Paid In Taxes

Last year, as Americans across the country grappled with the widespread effects of the Great Recession, tax dodging by corporations and the wealthy cost the average U.S. taxpayer $434, even as corporate profits soared 81 percent. In fact, according to a new report from the Institute for Policy Studies, “corporate tax dodging has gone so out of control that 25 major U.S. corporations last year paid their chief executives more than they paid Uncle Sam in federal income taxes”. . .

Read more at: ThinkProgress

Michael Moore's New Movie on the Economy

Cute.

Bush On the Side of CEOs' Compensation Packages

Photo from source, Think Progress

Ugh. One of the many problems I've had with the Bush Administration over of these last eight years is the lack of accountability. This is made worse by the rhetoric used to excuse it. Nobody does anything before there's a problem, and then when a problem happens, they say, "now is not the time to point fingers," or "now is not the time to play the blame game."

It was a mantra after the Hurricane Katrina fiasco. Blame game, finger pointing, blame game. I think Jon Stewart did a montage of it at the time. And now that we're in another crisis, this one financial, they're at it again.

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Bush Backs Unlimited Compensation For Disgraced CEOs: Now Is Not The Time For ‘Punitive Measures’

We certainly understand and are sympathetic to the sentiment regarding the pay of CEOs and senior management of these firms, but we have to focus on the problem, and the problem is that we need these firms to participate in the program and sell us this debt. Having punitive measures would provide a disincentive for firms to participate, and that would make the program much less likely to succeed. . .

Read more at: Think Progress

Car Sales Drop to 15-year Low

Image from source, Reuters

This really isn't a shock, is it? I mean, the big automakers have been pushing big SUVs and big cars for an awfully long time. Long after the writing was on the wall, they still don't have a lot of little cars in their lineups.

The Other Half and I were just talking about this recently. What do the CEOs of these companies do to earn their big fat bonuses? Is there no contingency plan for changes in the economy or oil supply (or both, like we're dealing with now)? This has happened before, but it would seem that they've kept with the plan that people would keep wanting big cars and trucks. Not so smart.

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U.S. auto sales hit 15-year low

U.S. auto sales plunged in June to a 15-year low, but a month-end clearance sale helped General Motors Corp (GM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) retain its No. 1 spot and steer clear of the wipeout many had feared, sending its shares higher. . .

Read more at: Reuters