Kings and Queens of the Con....
The nation seems all a twitter about Obama's move to impose salary caps on the people who work at firms receiving substantial financial assistance from the federal government. In fact, reading some articles, one would think that the pay limits will ruin the free market as we know it. Dave Krasne, a partner at a private equity firm, says in today's NY Times that "it would be a bad thing if Congress sets the precedent of passing legislation that caps compensation, and consequently productivity." Evan Newmark, in yesterday's Wall Street Journal , goes to great lengths to explain why this strategy won't work. In his mind, "it's bound to end in disaster...because the Treasury pay guidelines run counter to the fundamental human truth that people act in their self-interest." Newmark continues to explain that "the split on Wall Street between the good banks and the bad banks, the shareholder-owned winners and the taxpayer owned losers, will...