AIG bonusses and bailouts. Load of bollocks.
I’ve just read yet another stupid article about the $165 million AIG paid out in bonusses, after they recieved $170 billion in a government bailout.
Here are two points to give some perspective to the absolutely spectacular and rediculous fuss that’s been made over the whole story.
$170 billion bailout, $165 million bonusses
Let’s start with this little point. Just write out the amounts:
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Bailout | $170,000,000,000 |
| Bonusses | $165,000,000 |
Need any help to spot the insignificance? Let’s put it as a percentage.
Bonusses paid out as a percentage of government bailout = 0.1%.
Honoring contracts
The second point I’d like to make is that the bonusses were paid to employees and contractors who entered into a contractual agreement with AIG, before the economic crisis revealed itself.
If I agreed to do some work for AIG, say, in 2007, and part of the contractual agreement I made with AIG was to receive a bonus every year in March, should I reach my individual targest or KPIs, then I would certainly expect the company to honor their agreement with me, whether they reach their own targets or not.
If they don’t pay me as they agreed, they would be in breach of contract.
If a government encourages or enforces companies to break the contractual agreements they have with their employees or other companies, then that is a government I want no part of.
Go away. You’re irritating.
My message to the media and anyone else who’s going to continue making a fuss over these bonus payouts is to stop wasting their time on this meaningless garbage.
Why don’t you rather start talking about something meaningful. Perhaps the fact that the government is actually giving bailouts (which means the USA taxpayers are giving bailouts), instead of letting companies suffer the consequences of their actions.
March 23rd, 2009 at 09:45 am
Sjoe, dit wys net weer dat dit belangrik is om feite in perspektief te beskou.
March 25th, 2009 at 04:58 pm
My opinion, the media is being used as a distraction. The figures all show some serious problems in the US economy and that it hasn’t collapsed yet is a miracle, the point is, the uninformed public has a lot of anger or frustration which the media simply redirects towards anyone receiving bailout money as bonuses (making the honest working class the crooks instead of the bankers). Also, I guess it helps their circulation figures seeing as the one after the other US newspaper company is closing down due to circulation figures rapidly declining.
Tabloids always sell out, badmouthing people receiving bailout money as bonuses falls in the same category as tabloids.
March 25th, 2009 at 05:23 pm
Good perspective that counters mainstream media. AIG bonus is definitely bad timing and as a taxpayer, I found it distasteful. However, I don’t like the idea of the government creating laws to fix specific issues either. I think this creates even more problems.
March 28th, 2009 at 12:04 pm
@Riaan:
Yup, die ding lyk vir my meer na ‘n media frenzy as ‘n ware storie.
@Re@Per:
I’ve also got a nasty feeling that these type of things are just distractions to cover up something bigger, and that the media are just misdirecting emotions.
I see there is talk of a new global currency and global reserve system, apparently to “bring global stability, economic strength and global equity”.
Smells a lot like what was said to motivate the creation of the Federal Reserve Bank.
“Let me issue and control a nation’s money and I care not who writes the laws.” Mayer Amschel Rothschild (1744-1812), founder of the House of Rothschild.
@Pinyo
I agree with you, my first impression was also that these bonus payouts are distasteful, but now that I’ve thought about it, I really don’t think AIG is to blame.
The timing is unlucky, but they’re not doing anything wrong – they are honoring agreements.
April 9th, 2009 at 06:57 am
I think most people, including myself, only know that huge bonuses were paid out. Now, since you’ve clearly broken down the details, it makes more sense.
Making use only 0.1% of the bailout to honour agreements made is not that bad after all.