economics

Arianna Huffington, the failed gubernatorial candidate in the 2003 California recall campaign, attempts to write a subject to which she has very little actual experience. First, Ms. Huffington's premise is that most corporate executives are greedy and therefore laws need to be enacted to hamstring our managers who wish to exercise the best interest of their shareholders. She does not emphasize how any of her so-called "reforms" will actually benefit long-term shareholders who wish for chief executives to take risks to earn a decent return on their investment. Further, Ms. Huffington fails to emphasize how there are already laws on the books to punish chief executives who have abused the trust positions to which they have been appointed. It is the executive branch's duty to punish those who engange in fraud, something the Bush Administration is already doing. However, we would not hear about that in Ms. Huffington's book, because that would hurt her premise, which is that Bush is in on the fraud too.

Most of the research contained in Ms. Huffington's book is related to stories she has read about, not people or companies she has actually chosen to research on her own. As such, practically anyone who has a modicum of research experience could write a similar book of her type -- without having any documentary evidence to prove the assertions made therein.

One thing that is most lacking in Ms. Huffington's book is the notion that honest chief executives are able to work on behalf of their shareholders and employees. There is a sense that the position of chief executive necessarily entails a sense of greed that will infect the entire operations of the company. In a sense, by stating that all chief executives are guilty, Ms. Huffington is too leniant towards those truly guilty of malefensense. In truth, the system does work: witness the convictions the U.S. Department of Justice has been able to secure on crooked corporate executives. But the capitalistic system itself--a markedly effecient system where sharehoulders can exercise their disapproval of managers at any time--will carry on despite Ms. Huffington's heckling. One could hope the same could be said about our so-called "great" governmental institutions such as Social Security, the public schools, and the post office.

I had heard of this book, and 'on a lark' bought it. Reading this was a real educational event. EVERY AMERICAN should read this.

Mrs. Huffington, gives names of CEO's that have been convicted, ones investigated, outlines what they did to amass their fortunes. Mrs. Huffington (who is a Rhodes Scholar), explains corrupt methods, used by many of these CEO's, in a such plain terms, anyone should be able to understand.

How did you lose your 401K, you pension, why did your job go overseas? Let me quote from the excellent book:

[quote]

"Since the beginning of the new century [2000], over 570 public companies--including most famously Enron, Global Crossing, Adelphia, WorldCom and Kmart--have declared bankruptcy."
"Nearly $9 trillion in market value has been lost on Wall Street. But while the average American has suffered staggering losses in 401(k) and pension value, and many have struggled to stay afloat, the average CEO has added millions to his personal wealth. In corporate America, apparently, nothing succeeds like utter failure."
"At Enron, after tens of billions of dollars vanished--including over $1 billion in employees' pension funds---and over 4,000 employees had been laid off, Enron's "Kenny Boy" Lay strolled out the door with over $100 million."
" In his last three years at Tyco, Dennis Kozolwski received $466.7 million in salary, bonuses, and perks. He did such a bang-up job that since the summer of 2001, Tyco has closed or consolidated 300 plants and laid off 11,000 workers."
"When Bernie Ebbers resigned from WorldCom--claiming he didn't understand that WorldCom was defrauding investors of $7 billion--and received over $44 million in pay; His severance package promised him $1.5 million a year for the rest of his life, and the use of the WorldCom jet for 30 hours a year. And medical benefits. And life insurance. And a desktop computer."

Source-"Pigs At The Trough"-Arianna Huffington;copyright-2003; ISBN 1-4000-4771-4;-page-38-9

Do you wonder why the price of prescription drugs remain high?

[quote]

"The pharmaceutical industry spent a whopping $177 million on lobbying in just the last two years. And of their 623 registered lobbyists, more than half are former members of Congress or former government employees. Which is nice, because if you're a young politician selling off your vote and your integrity, it's easier if there's a seasoned veteran involved who was once in your shoes."
"Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was formerly CEO of drug giant G.D. Searle, and White House Budget Director Mitch Daniels was a senior vice president at Eli Lilly."

Source-"Pigs At The Trough"-Arianna Huffington;copyright-2003; ISBN 1-4000-4771-4;Page-139

Everyone should read this book.

Well researched and cleverly written. It is engrossing, but is almost difficult to read at times as she exposes the details of unbelievable corporate greed.