And here's another thing that’s really ticking me off …
Outrage is all the rage these days in political and economic discourse as we muddle through all-too-interesting times.
It's perfectly natural, of course. A whole lot of folks are mourning the loss of something – their jobs, their homes, college savings for their kids. A blast of hard times has been particularly sobering following a generation of relatively easy money.
People have to park their outrage somewhere. Otherwise, it will eat them up.
So thank you, AIG.
The flap over bonus payments to employees at a failed company that is being kept afloat only because of $173 billion in federal largess has become the public dumping ground for our outrage.
AIG offers an even better target than convicted Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff, who previously offered a convenient face of Wall Street evil.
Why? Madoff generally preyed on individual victims who simply got caught up in the tawdry greater foolishness that is common in the endless pursuit of money. Madoff was truly exceptional only in the longevity and scale of his $50 billion scheme before he got caught.
To read the complete column, visit www.kansascity.com.
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