Wall Street Bonus Outrage

Is Wall Street clueless or what ["How Wall Street Continues To Doom Itself," usnews.com]? Doesn't anyone there have a sense of how 18 billion in bonuses looks to Congress and to the rest of the people in our country when the Street was just bailed out to the tune of several hundred billion in the last few months? Everyone on the Street needs several courses in political reality, and in particular in political perceptions of the average Congress man/woman and average citizen. Clueless, unwise, and just plain dumb are the best descriptive phrases for the Street folks.

Comment by Barry Herchenroder of NC

The stock market as it exists today is a distortion of value and worth. This distortion influences our society to its very foundation. Money is not the only thing that matters, yet it has been the accepted basis for discrimination against people for too many decades. One does not have to want a lot or more than others to be worthy. Conversely, the extent of greed we are witnessing is surely pathological. Humanity would be well served if the stock market was not continued as it has been. If the rules of the game have allowed this unbalance to occur, the rules must be changed.

Comment by Christina of NY

Bonuses are outrageous when given the performance of these companies and corporations. Please understand there are four principle parties to blame, not just one. Those parties are: the government (with oversight problems and an attempt at affirmative action financial policies); the companies and corporations (to roll over for improper government regulations as well as to unions—greed now is prioritized later than debt); unions (the largest expense for any company or corporation is labor—especially looking at what unions did to the American auto industry); and individuals—like us (consumer mentality that has us conspicuously consuming and buying too much house, too expensive cars, getting into loans we cannot afford, credit card debt, etc.). We've got problems that the depth of which we have not experienced yet! It still only gets worse from here.

Comment by William Tinney of SC

I may sound uneducated, but the logic behind a bonus is major profits. Bonuses should be allocated on profits exceeding budgeted profits. How can an institution or any company for that matter pay out bonuses to diminish their funds? Am I missing the boat or do I just not understand how greed can provoke bankruptcy?

Comment by Anna of VT

The huge bonuses paid post bailout are just further proof of how untouchable Wall Street has come to believe it is. The idea that Wall Street executives are puppet masters and the world is full of their marionettes has had its day. Old habits die hard, but I hope the American government will no longer stand by while greed trumps good judgment.

Comment by H. Gallagher of TX