Trying to live on 500K/yr in NYC

Written By: - Date published: 4:15 pm, February 9th, 2009 - 9 comments
Categories: International - Tags: ,

President Obama wants to set US$500,000 as the top pay for banking executives whose firms accept government bailout money. From Boing-Boing:

The lead story in today’s New York Times Styles section is all about the tremendous difficulties that executives at bankrupt companies receiving public bailouts will face if their salaries are capped at only $500,000. For example, many of these people might have to give up necessities like armed chauffeurs, twice-annual $16,000 vacations, and $4,000,000 summer homes. It’s really heartbreaking.

Full NYT story.

9 comments on “Trying to live on 500K/yr in NYC ”

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  1. vto 1
    9 February 2009 at 4:28 pm

    ha ha classic. It’s always the same story isn’t it. For most it doesn’t matter how much you earn it is never enough. I’ll bet even Larry Ellison and al those Russian oligarch types lust for more too.

    It’s a long way to the top and even further back down…

  2. Quoth the Raven 2
    9 February 2009 at 4:35 pm

    Of course this is all a PR exercise from Obama. It doesn’t affect banks which got money from the first bailout and it doesn’t apply to all banks that receive money from the government only the “most distressed” the others can get around it by declaring to their shareholders that they’re going to exceed the cap. Obama what an agent of change, enemy of excess, blah blah blah…

  3. gingercrush 3
    9 February 2009 at 4:35 pm

    Yes pretty ugly. Just as ugly as the amount of greenhouse gases Al Gore puts into the world each year. With his hiring of private jets etc etc. Or Bono who doesn’t pay taxes and people advocating for the poor yet expecting to be paid 2 million to do speeches. Yes those executives are disgusting human beings and surely shouldn’t even have jobs considering how bad they managed those companies. But I don’t exactly admire the rich left either.

  4. Felix 4
    9 February 2009 at 4:57 pm

    What do you know about Bono not paying taxes?

    Not that I put it past the smug bastard, I just hadn’t heard it before. Gotta link?

  5. gingercrush 5
    9 February 2009 at 5:02 pm

    Felix just google taxes and Bono. I’m not a leftie but honestly how do you people on the left feel about some of these people that may share the same views as you and yet I imagine have little in common with you?

  6. Quoth the Raven 6
    9 February 2009 at 5:17 pm

    Ginger – There’s no need for us to express opinions about every idiot who thinks he’s on the left, just like you don’t have to express an opinion about every idiot on the right. You could add Bob Geldof to that list as well. Al Gore was a democrat hardly on the left is it. I’d say as Bill Clinton’s VP he was positively on the right. I personally think very little of those people.

  7. Kerry 7
    9 February 2009 at 5:22 pm

    these companies are more then happy to take the bailout money to keep them afloat then they do as they are told….if they dont like it they can walk, but I’d say they will have problems getting work as these guys/girls are responsible for the mess the companies are in anyway….spin or not good bloody job!

  8. Felix 8
    9 February 2009 at 5:32 pm

    gc,
    You might as well ask me how I feel about Brad Pitt’s views as we share the same good looks and charm.

    I don’t really think of myself as a lefty anyway but I think that’s quite usual. Most people see their own views as sensible central point with everyone else’s radiating out in all directions to varying degrees of insanity. Labels like left and right only make sense in comparing differing views – and even then…

    edit: Oh and Bono and his taxes – what a tool.

  9. Bruce 9
    10 February 2009 at 11:03 pm

    Ok then, put it down to $50 k and see the type of people you get in.

    You guys have got to understand this has been a failure of legislation rather than a failure of banks. The SEC have not done their job, Greenspan held interest rates at 1% for 3 years, and banks are a competitive industry. If they didnt fight for business, they would have been out of business. Oh and then dont forget consumers who cant do basic arithmetic in their head and when the going gets tough, they walk away from their homes – oh yes, thats in legislation too in the USA, they can just send the keys back to the bank when their in negative equity without any repercussions! Keep on blaming the banks….

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