Most everyone in the political class of America shifted their populist outrage engines back into gear for bonus season on Wall Street, which JP Morgan kicked off this morning with their ’09 earnings statement. Folks have the right to be fed up with an industry that benefited wildly from working folks but extravagantly reward the people working for them, even as Americans wait for payback of their lifeline. I’m happy to see even elected officials get mad, as long as they really follow through on taxing the bastards.
But I see no reason to stop there. Many industries and companies enjoy the fruits of government largess, or occupy near-monopolistic positions in our economy, and they should all be subject to similar scrutiny.
Location shopping for local government tax breaks is virtually an industry of its own, and executive compensation should be curbed for companies receiving deep discounts on taxes that pay for local services like police, fire and water. Even Barack Obama publicly considered a windfall tax on oil and gas companies, the direct beneficiaries of public works projects to ensure the flow of oil around the country, and the flow of people via carbon-fueled vehicles. Any number of industrial farming companies take people’s money in the form of ag subsidies which also happen to devastate the rest of the world – they should be taxed heavily as well. The list goes on.
The point is this: Americans still haven’t reckoned fully with the realities of wealth and welfare in this country, and while reining in bonuses on Wall Street is certainly a good idea, the disease goes much deeper, and we have a long ways to go before we can establish a equitable way of maintaining people’s wellbeing in America.
