Ready to be done with AIG

March 19th, 2009 by Andrew Swenson in General

Okay, so I get that people are upset about AIG’s executive bonuses.

I get the argument that we are rewarding cruddy work by allowing these bonuses to stand.

I get Harry Reid’s proposal for a 90 percent tax on the bonus money.

I get the argument from that if the bonuses are returned, NY city and state will lose a significant amount of revenue that they desperately need.

But I’m bothered that issue has spawned a populist uprising. I’m bothered that President Obama is following suit. And I’m especially bothered that Andrew Cuomo is suddenly a hero.

It seems to me this whole AIG situation is just a convenient way to let off some steam.

I’m not saying that the conversation about what to do with the bonuses is misplaced. I am saying that all of the energy we’re busy pouring into righteous outrage is perhaps misplaced.

It may be more beneficial, as Stephen Colbert so astutely points out, to keep our heads. It’s my opinion that what we need to climb out of this economic crud hole is not anger laced with fear. We need level-headed and fair-handed analysis, not cheap populism.

It’s my hope that we can suppress our indignation and return to critical thinking in the government, in the media, and in the populus. It’s also my hope that we can be done with this whole AIG thing soon.

-Andrew