What The Hell Happened?

For some time now the world has been turned upside down from the one I remember.  Socialism is now in vogue while capitalism is under attack.  Investors are throwing massive amounts of money at bonds at the lowest interest rates ever while selling all their stocks, including the high quality ones which remain profitable, have higher dividend yields than so-called safe bonds, and record levels of cash on their books.  And interestingly, public employees now have some of the best compensation packages to be found.  My father was a career employee of the federal government bureaucracy, and government workers in the 60's and 70's were among the lowest paid people in America.  Now seven out of ten of the wealthiest counties in America surround Washington, D.C.

An article in the Wall Street Journal today, December 3, 2012, provided further evidence that things have definitely changed.  It said that the average compensation for an employee of one of the 32 largest financial companies, primarily banks and securities firms, will be $128,089 this year, a new record.  These jobs are not rocket science.  Investment banks and brokerage firms don't need Ph.D.'s.  They need people with good bullshit.  Some folks in the business earn their money by trying to do their best for clients and customers, but most only care about how much money goes in their own pockets.  They don't have to provide value-added service, they only have to be able to sell the product to make the big bucks.  Bankers are not intellectually challenged much either.  They just need people who understand a little math, can fill out forms, operate some computer programs, and figure out that they must lend money to borrowers at a higher rate than they pay depositors for that money.

When I had my first job right out of college working for a bank in the early 70's, bankers were among the lowest paid people of any industry.  Now they are at or near the top.  I would like someone to explain to me why folks who have relatively easy jobs but still manage to inflict devastation on the economies and financial systems of Western Civilization should make 2.5 times the $52,000 median income of all Americans.

Working for a bank or the government is now among the highest paid jobs in America.  Forty years ago who would have known?  It does makes you wonder, though.  Why is it that folks who do the most damage to the country are the highest paid?