From: Glen D. Sherman |
Dear Sir or Madam; At the prompting of an MSN Money report on CEO overpayment, I am here to urge you to take action to restrict the payment of incentives to CEOs (and other executives) whose performance is not aligned with their rewards. It is greed, nowhere better manifested than in the stipends of CEOs, that has the U.S. economy on the brink of collapse. Sarbanes-Oxley was a step in the right direction, but obviously was not sufficient to prevent the greed of the corporate world's richest and most powerful persons from finding new and creative (albeit unethical) ways to bilk the unsuspecting, lesser informed consumers and suck nearly dry the very life blood out of the U.S. economy. The United States is setting itself up either for an economic collapse of never before seen proportions, or a social revolution akin to that which began on or about July 14, 1789 in Paris, France. As American workers, we can no longer enjoy the benefits of our freedom, as we are slaves to an economy that demands our efforts be given seven days a week and for significantly more than eight hours each day. Far too many of us are working two or three jobs in order to ensure the mortgage can be paid each month. On the other hand, CEOs are benefitting unreasonably from the toil of American workers, and they seem to be living in a detached world of their own where the only objective is to acquire more toys and more money than the other CEOs living on the same street. It is clear in their responses to accusations of venal conduct that the vast majority of them possess no sense of obligation to the employees who support their lavish lifestyles, nor to any code of decency or morality that would challenge their actions when emptying the company's coffers into their own pockets even as hard working, devoted employees are given their pink slips and not much else to go with them. I dare prophesy to you that the American people will not tolerate this behavior indefinitely. If the United States government and its agents do not take action to mitigate the downward spiral of avaricious and unscrupulous conduct in corporate America, I tell you now that there will come a time when the American people will. Soberingly, Glen D. Sherman |