The stories about John Thain, former CEO of Merrill Lynch, are yet another sickening example of the rapacious criminality that seems to be more and more the norm among high level American businessmen (see, e.g. Bernard Ebbers, Ken Lay, Richard Scrushy, Bernard Madoff, Dennis Kozlowski, John and Timothy Rigas, Conrad Black,* etc.). Obviously those I've listed here in my parenthetical are on the extreme end of executive miscreants -- whether Thain will be deemed to be belong in this company is yet to be seen. However, it is clear that he was inept, dishonest, and overpaid on a fairly cosmic level. In other words, pretty typical of America's CEO class circa 2009.
One of the most nauseating spectacles of the post-Reagan era has been the rise of "business porn" and the cult of the CEO in America. Somehow these greedy, megalomaniacal cretins became objects of glamour and adoration rather than being seen for what they typically are -- enemies of the average American, who would ship your job overseas, pollute your neighborhood, sell you dangerous products, and take away your pension or health care without a moments hesitation if they thought it would make the next quarter's numbers look better.
It is my hope that the current financial debacle will seriously alter the American attitude toward the business elite, that it will demystify these so-called "masters of the universe" and expose their rather obvious limitations. I also hope that it will discourage so many bright people from entering the world of finance, which has always struck me as a tragic loss of societal talent for extremely dubious ends. Lastly, it is my fervent wish that the pain that will be endured (and I fear there is much yet to occur) will discredit for the rest of my lifetime the jejune market idolatry and money worship that has been far too much a characteristic of the culture in my adult years.
*Yes I know he's a Canadian, but really . . .
