BDashe

As I'm sure you're all aware- I'm not exactly Obama's #1 fan... I'm somewhere around #250,000,000 (in the states anyway). Not gonna lie, I giggled a little largley cuz that came from the prez. I'm glad the guy is human though and hasn't turned completely into a bag of political rhetoric as I was beginning to suspect. Just sucks it took a freaking Leno appearance to get it out. I could never be a politician, if that gets your panties in a bunch, i'd be in serious trouble as a public figure. I'd much rather have a dude in the whitehouse than a stepford husband. edit: a dude that doesn't tax the bejesus out of people, or meddles with aspects of the business world he doesn't have the first clue about, and doesn't spend even more than he taxes... So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

Guess I missed it too bill! ha ha! Sure he has a job to do, but could he potentially adopt the very american political "I can neither confirm nor deny that condoms will help prevent the transmission of HIV/AIDS... but abstinence will!" ? That way he doesn't have to look so moronic to those in the know, or lead his people astray. So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

I think he meant this: "The United States does not have an official language;[2] however, the majority of the population speaks English as a native language (some 82%). The variety of English spoken in the United States is known as American English;96% of the population of the U.S. speaks English "well" or "very well".[3] " also noteworthy, which I found kinda cool: Main language(s): American English (82%), Spanish (10%) **Indigenous language(s)** Navajo, Dakota, Central Alaskan Yup'ik, Cherokee, Western Apache, Piman, Choctaw, Keres, Zuni, Ojibwe I must admit, i do find it annoying to have to select my language when calling an american company, but the corporate side of me says 'they just earned more $$$ that way...' Ahhh, the daily struggles... So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

hmm, that's from the gov;t standpoint. but interesting stuff in there. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123725551430050865.html there is some info on where bailout money is going, and motivations behind the attention to the bonuses. 'The politicians also prefer to talk about AIG's latest bonus payments because they deflect attention from Washington's failure to supervise AIG. The Beltway crowd has been selling the story that AIG failed because it operated in a shadowy unregulated world and cleverly exploited gaps among Washington overseers. Said President Obama yesterday, "This is a corporation that finds itself in financial distress due to recklessness and greed." That's true, but Washington doesn't want you to know that various arms of government approved, enabled and encouraged AIG's disastrous bet on the U.S. housing market.' So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

agreed! however, if there are a few good people in the company that are producing, they should be rewarded. However, this thread is about the guy in the video, not AIG... So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

Yeah that is kinda where I am and why i am posting the questions- see if anyone knows anything in more detail. I mean on the surface it does look ugly and is easy to criticise, quite possibly justifiable. I just wanna know the deets of what all the political wind bags are talking about, they may be right! what doesn't seem right is to keep stirring up this negative press without presenting any evidence to back the claims. As for the workers- unfortunately they are more expendable. I've discussed in detail my thoughts on that topic in other threads, however i'd like to keep this in line with the AIG bonuses and who received them and why. As well as the current administrations logic and details on the reactionary policy about to be passed. All we know is bonuses were paid, I'm curious to the meat of the story which has yet to come out- so I'm asking for peops to keep their eyes peeled cuz i think I'm not the only one who is curious. edit: billyV- I thought that was hysterical too! i was dyin! I think he said it prematurely but it was pretty funny. So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/03/17/aig.bonuses/index.html "Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced on the Senate floor Tuesday that the tax-writing Senate Finance Committee will pursue a legislative fix in such a way that the "recipients of those bonuses will not be able to keep all their money -- and that's an understatement." isn't that what income tax is for? he he he... Also, does anyone know if these proposed taxes will only affect AIG, or will it be country-wide on bonuses as a whole in another 'a few bad eggs ruin it for everybody' kind of deal? The names of the people haven't been released yet, but does anyone have any idea through other avenues what positions may have gotten the bonuses? Also, does anyone know how much AIG gave in bonuses previous years as a comparison? I'm very curious to see how much of that $165M is irresponsible bonusing, and how many (if any) people deserved the bonus based on good performance. I guess it just seems a little weird to get in a big huff over something without knowing all the facts first. We know the company did aweful, but you can still have some successes in there, right? So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

welp, like my 6th grade math teacher used to say- 'there's more than one way to skin a cat' everyone has their own style i guess. So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

There is too much we dont know about the video for your statement to be accurate. You have a point if these guys have been together a long time, if he has been their head the whole time of that long time, maybe he tried a different tactic and it didnt work out so well... sure, you're right in some scenarios, but for all we know he may be doing them a favor by challenging them. maybe they need a little fire in their bellies. I was never in the military, but i've had some SOB's for football coaches and our best records came from guys like this (who is still holding back)- when you please a guy like this it makes you feel 1000x more proud and accomplished than the guy that that gives you a lolli anda kiss every time you successfully wipe your own ass. So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

Good to hear! I know what I will vote, but the fact remains- sales tax is going up, without the option to vote it down, in just over 2 weeks. Maybe I am cynical, but at least I'm not a hippie! ha ha! his words, not mine. I find it VERY difficult to believe with california being SUCH a populous state, with the portion of revenue the state already gains from its citizens, that they need to steal even more from us without completely slashing spending. Personally, I think it is political rhetoric because teh state reps couldn't agree on all the cutting that needs to take place. Call me any name you want, that is my belief just based on what I've seen happen in the corporate world to try to keep companies alive. Why can't the government do the same? They all have their own agendas, and wont back down in order to maintain votes to keep their elected position vs. slashing the cr*p out of the liberal spending tendencies our state has and saving the taxpayers money. Unfortunately that is where our opinions differ, I'll never convince you otherwise, and you wont convince me. We'll go on our merry ways thinking the other is a fool and we're right, or more right. Both solutions can and will work, I just find it makes more sense to leave the people alone and put (rather LEAVE) more money in their pockets vs take it from them. So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

Yes. Terrified, largely because of my beliefs (or lack thereof) As someone else said- I'm more scared not to live

So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

Do you have your own mind? or just google? So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

that's why i voted for him! I think it sucks he folded to the lesser officials that demand their pet projects be completed at the expense of the tax payer. There is no way all this spending needs to take place. Notice how many jobs have been cut recently? stores closing? the government needs to do the same and reset, or put some projects on hold/existing less important projects on hold until we actually have the money. If you have $100 and you want to go to a movie, dinner, and a sunset cruise for 2- but all that adds up to $150, you have to eliminate one of em. You don't hold a gun (being jail time for tax evasion) to your boss' head (the taxpayer) and demand an extra $50. Obviously taxes are necessary, but when youre collecting 20%+ from people at the state level, there has to be a way to reduce your costs, even if some short term sacrifices need to be taken. It doesnt help anyone when it is the already struggling taxpayer having to make even more sacrifices for the government. A democracy should be doing the exact opposite. So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

rant...differing opinion...rant...differing opinion Billv has trained you well, young jedi! So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

No intelligent person with a business mind would run the state or country this way. Oh god that felt so good, i can't wait to hit post and finish my joygasm! I apologize that my opinion differs from yours... edit: +1 georgerussia So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

All CEOs of public companies salaries, contracts, and options are available to the public In nor cal here they list in the paper every year the top 25 highest paid execs in the bay area, broken down by market, and then overall as well. They also rank if they are under or overpaid. Nice comfy feeling having your picture and 7 figure salary posted in the paper... So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

Increasing minimum wage wont matter, because ultimately peopel will still be at the bottom of the barrel and feel entitled to more money because the other guys are getting paid more for what they perceive as easy work. If you want more money, work at a hotel that is unionized as a busser or server in the restaurant- you'll get $15+ per hour plus tips and benefits, and overtime... and once a year you'll STILL walk out because youre working too much at 30 hours per week, and not getting paid enough. Everyone at every level is greedy to a certain extent, and everyone feels entitled to what they make and more- no matter what you pay them. The same argument from the same people would happen if you gave it a year or two, guaranteed. So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

Sounds like Perot's campaign - with no actual substance behind it. CA's budget isn't littered with ten billion dollar useless programs. http://www.ebudget.ca.gov/pdf/BudgetSummary/SummaryCharts.pdf This is the summary statement on the budget - give us something more tangible on how you (or any "real" businessman would fix the problem. Thanks for the "General Fund Expenditures" link buddy. I have a feeling the CA expense budget contains more than 14 lines. Like I would say "Let's cut education" or "Cut all transportation costs" You dont have to be a genius to realize that within all these general groups some trimming could take place. I'm sure the details of each category broken down run in the hundreds of pages, of which I'm not going to go line by line to prove to you we could cut costs, that's what our elected officials are SUPPOSED to be doing. You honestly feel that every dime we're spending is necessary?! Unfortunately, everyone's agenda is more important than everyone else's so all the crap stays in. So when asked what i would do? If the government could be run like a business and people couldn't whine about their save the whales campaign being cut from the budget and i was CEO and chief executive I WOULD CUT SPENDING ON UNNECESSARY PROGRAMS. So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

you talking about the budget problem or the inexperience of the politicians in what they are politiking over? deficit? kill the programs that are BS- tough to do in this state of spend-aholics, but if i had absolute power, i slash the crap out of useless programs. retarded politicians? ummmm, move somewhere else, i can't change the way the lemmings vote... So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

I never said I supported the Bush administration's policies, though if i had to pick between two... We're going from one extreme to another- like saving a guy from drowning by saying "f*ck it, he can teach himself to swim" or utilizing the entire US Navy to save the guy. Neither make all that much sense, but I'll go with what makes most sense and effects the least number of people, if i have to pick. Hopefully, at some point we can find a middle ground. So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

You forgot to add exclamation points!!!!!!! On everthing!!!!! he he he... Addictions: Making money Spending money (on finding new ways to hurt myself while smiling WIDE) So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

The janitor doesnt have the means or capacity to bankrupt the company, he gets paid for the work he does, even if he does a bad job til he is fired. Execs get paid for the work they do, even if it is bad, until they get fired. Weird concept right? i know it is a tough pill to swallow. The spending has been passed. Congrats, you found a typo. Go celebrate your keen eyesight and attention to gramatic detail with a sparkler and a beer. He admitted he worded it wrong, the fact remains- sums WILL be spent in quantities and over a short time period we've never seen before or thought possible. So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

Hmmm... responsible spending? What a novel idea!!! I wonder who else in the government could use a pointer like that... he he he Anyone have thoughts on professional bureaucrats making corporate policy? So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983

well clearly, being the senior executive of a billion dollar organization is comparable to cleaning toilets for a living. You make a very great comparison of livelyhoods. f*ck apples to oranges, try cherries to planets, ha ha ha! So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983