You know, on second thought, lets scrap all that and really stick it to those fat cats!!!

Idiots

They favor an increase in pay for unskilled labor. Again, why do we need this? Can’t people earn higher wages through learning skills and merit?

They favor a tax on the oil industry to finance research into alternative fueled cars. So, make them pay to help put themselves out of business. Sounds fair right?

They are in favor of overturning a law passed by voters banning most abortions. If the majority of americans are pro choice, why did this pass in the first place?

At least they are trying to pass laws instead of having their judges legislate from the bench. Oh yeah, conservatives sitting on the bench has prevented that.

A problem of allowing well-financed and well co-ordinated campaigns on the part of those who can most easily finance and co-ordinate those campaigns (corporate interests, and the trade associations they form), the problem of circumventing the People’s Legislature.

Dissatisfied w/ the People’s Legislature, and the Laws they make?

Petition them; vote them out if you like.

Think these “ballot inititives” and “binding referendums” are a tool by which to circumvent the People’s Legislature, a corporate method by which to craft law, and a real problem in our Democracy?

Then by all means, let’s have more and more “ballot initiatives” and “binding referendums”…

Typically stupid response.

The CEO of a company is not there for the long haul if he can help it. Normally, a CEO is there to create short term growth and to get the heck out as quickly as possible. If you are still at a company after year 5, chances are the quick fixes you put in place in year 1, are going to come back and bite you in the ass. You don’t give a stuff about what long-term effects are going to be caused by your decisions, because frankly you aren’t even going to be there for the long term.

Now, the shareholders are happy with this, after all they mostly don’t have any real interest in the running of the business. The shareholders measure the worth of the business not in assets, but in how much their shares would sell for. They are either getting rich trading the shares or they are getting poor trading the shares that little bit too late because they don’t actually believe the shares will ever go down. Unfortunately, the laws of Neutonian physics apply fairly well to the stockmarket, and when a company’s share price is based on a perception, rather then anything real, it can fall quite a long way, quite quickly.

The trouble is, that CEO’s is that they are there to build the perception. They don’t have to think long term, and so they spend a lot on image rather then reality. Think about it thus, who spends the most on looking rich, the conman or the richman? When that share price comes tumbling down, frequently it can destroy a company, or even a country’s economy. This is what happened in the Great Depression, the illusion of what stocks were worth was so much greater then the reality, that the end effect was to destroy a lot of companies. This in turn led to a run on the banks. This is what led to a lot of the rules governing public companies today, and why companies get audited.

This is also why I don’t believe that it is the salaries which are the problem when it comes to CEO’s, its the short term nature of the CEO. Thus, the new law I would consider, would be that no person may become a CEO of a company, for less then 10 years, with exceptions obviously for if they die or the company goes broke.

making disproportionately more than your employees is what makes the US great…? I disagree. There are a lot of shitty countries out there that can lay claim to having similar levels of income inequality to ours. However, many of those countries don’t have the protection of basic civil rights and liberties built into the fabric of their governments. I think this distincition is a much better sign of our “greatness.”

also, i know many people who start small businesses and companies because they’re passionate about the work they do and the products they create or the services they provide. not all persons are driven by the thought of having a “CEO’s” salary.

Exxon’s CEO was one such guy. If you study his career, he netted his shareholder’s very nice profits well above the industry average. His shareholder’s basically gave him that retirement gift as a thank you for a job well done. This works in all industry.

If you limit the pay of Executives, you get less people that will be interested in starting a company. That afterall is what makes America great.

Either way, you wouldn’t get that on a ballot in any state. Your Democrat leaders expect those big contributions from business just like the republicans.

You are more generous than most, Juan.

I’m an east coaster that’s spent the last few years in Washington State. Here the initiative process has been a popularity contest used mostly to trick voters and turn back preventive legislative measures. But i agree that as long as the initiative process exists, left-leaners should utilize them as well. Great point!

On another topic, as a proponent of equality for all, I would like to make a quick plea to abolish the term “gay marriage” and call issue what it is: “marriage equality.” I’m involved in the marriage equality movement in Seattle, WA, and I never feel as if i’m fighting for my own type of marriage or for special rights. I just want to be treated equally and have the rights that most of my friends, family, and society, in general, have.

Please consider using this term.

Your hate-filled ad hominem attacks will not be tolerated, cuz lord knows nobody else here does it. Heh.

You really like Bill Clinton and just haven’t been able to break through your denial.

Again, haven’t you realized both “sides” pull much of the same crap, so you are correct, and so are we ;)

You are darn tootin’ on that, everyone does it, all sides, it’s part of modern politics. Both sides do the same stuff, haven’t you realized that yet?