BP's, CEO Tony Hayward is stepping down, but he will be receiving a severance package amounting to an estimated $18 million."That's what he gets for presiding over a record oil disaster and massive losses," commented Chris Hayes, Washington editor of The Nation.Hayes went on to note, however, that "Tony Hayward's $18 million payoff is an absolute pittance compared to the kind of cash top CEO's are raking in." He cited a recent Wall Street Journal story which revealed that over the past decade, the two highest-paid CEOs at public companies each took in over a billion dollars in compensation, while others in the top 25 received compensation in the hundreds of millions.
A study recently released by the non-partisan Center on Budget and Policy Priorities which shows that if you're in the bottom 20% of earners, "you're making only 16% more today than you would have in 1979." If you're in the middle fifth, you're making 25% more. "But the top fifth of earners in this country -- they're making 95% more." The income of the very richest among us has shot up by 281% since 1979.
"There's a social pyramid in this country," Hayes commented, "and as you climb it, you encounter a smaller and smaller group of people doing better and better, while everyone at the bottom stays where they were...A select group of people are able to completely immunize themselves from the fate of the rest of the society. Our entire social and economic way of life in this country is broken and unfair and inequitable."
1 comment:
Seeing Tony Haywards,departure being screened on all media news,was a timely reminder of the value of capitalism, its masters, and media friendly subscribers attitude, to the welfare of those who create their wealth the workers.There was mention of the golden parachute for Tony, the mention of the 40% decline in the short term profit of BP,and the expense of the clean up, and further mention to the effects on the enviroment and wild life.And not one memtion of the rig workers who lost their lives.Shameful.
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