THE BABY AND THE BATH WATER

On both sides of the Atlantic critics of our economic woes have been numerous and vocal---with good cause, I agree. The world economy is in bad shape, and the fix ain't easy.

A think tank on the left here in England named Compass is suggesting that part of the answer is to form a "high pay commission" which would oversee salaries and bonuses in the City (the Brit equivalent of Wall Street) to determine if they are excessive and add to the decline of economic stability. At first reading, this idea sounds plausible; after all, the greedy bastards are overpaid, exacerbate the economic problems and should be under supervision. In our current mood it is easy to say, "String 'em up!"

But reconsider this idea. Do you really want another bureaucratic layer of "commissioners" acting as judge and jury of what is excessive pay? Do we want to take the chance of penalizing true entreprenurial spirit and innovative thinking that brings about growth and development of new ideas and new products? If executives create companies, make saleable products which are profitable, they deserve to be rewarded.

It is not fair to make the bankers, insurance companies and investment firms the sole villians for vilification. Let's face it: the cult of greed was sowed starting in the Reagan eighties, fertilized by the laissez faire attitudes of the Clinton years and harvested by the "anything goes" attitude of W. and his buddies. Long-term planning, just plain looking ahead to see where to go in the future, was sacrificed for short-term gains and a "feel-good" boom economy. The ruling economic principle was carpe diem---enjoy it while you've got it, take the money and run!

We don't need a new commission. Capitalism and the free market can still work, so long as we have some moral good sense to go with them, and guiding principles that say products should benefit consumers and users, be sold at reasonable profits and the entrepreneurs/executives should be rewarded for success only. We have enough watch dogs and built-in safeguards, if exercised, to control greed.

So don't throw the proverbial baby out with the bath water. Just return to some of those old-fashioned values and virtues, corny things like hard work, thriftiness, planning and, most of all, ethics...I think if you exercise your memory, you can remember those old values.