[lbo-talk] Reagan US Treasury Asst. Sec'y, WSJ editor Paul Craig Roberts: "Karl Marx was right."

B. docile_body at yahoo.com
Mon Jun 23 09:17:47 PDT 2008


[From the "conservative populist" (that's what WIkipedia sez) _Toronto Sun_ paper. -B.]

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http://www.torontosun.com/Money/2008/06/22/5952466-sun.html

Next Great Depression? Greed and high oil prices could spark meltdown

By LINDA LEATHERDALE

[...]

Paul Craig Roberts, former assistant secretary to the U.S. Treasury during the Reagan administration and now associate editor at The Wall Street Journal, writes that "something is wrong here" when GDP grows while household incomes fall, or "Karl Marx was right that capitalism works to concentrate income in the hands of a few capitalists."

Roberts points out that while people lose jobs and homes, life savings go up in smoke and energy prices nail the coffin shut -- the top 20 earners among private equity and hedge fund managers earned an average of $657 million US last year, with four earning more than $1 billion, while the top 20 CEOs of publicly held companies took home an average $36.4 million.

Energy brass are among this high-paid elite, with a blatant example of greed when former Exxon CEO Lee Raymond, who was paid $52 million a year, walked out the door with a retirement package worth $400 million.

And if you check out insider trading info, you'll find energy CEOs and executives are cashing out big time.

In my capitalist world, wealth is not hoarded by a greedy few, while hard-working, middle-class citizens get slaughtered.

End of conversation.



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