Scumbank

Now that Obama capped CEO compensation at $500,000, I am thinking of starting a new bank where Wall Street fat cats can park restricted stock bonuses, corporate jets, yachts and all sorts of ponzinous financial assets. Out of respect to the public, the bank's premises will be non-descript and decrepit-looking, the exact opposite of what a modern-day Poshbank would look like. Poshbanks are dead. Long leave my Scumbank in little Burglardeshi...

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Celebrity freebies

It's quite ironic to me that celebrities, among the few in this world who can afford the best things in life, often end up getting them for free. Case in point: The blockbuster film in the making in the courtside seats at Lakers games. Apparently some stars, including perennial seat filler/heckler Jack Nicholson, actually pay for season tickets. But others reportedly get seats from record companies, film studios and corporate sponsors. Oh, and they also get a private entrance, special parking and courtside food and beverage service. I have just three words: "Must be nice"

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Business crime lessons

Do you think it's a good idea to require all white-collar criminals (see Madoff and Jeff Skilling of Enron) to give, as part of their jail sentence lectures at business schools on corporate ethics? I assume that even if these guys haven't regretted their actions by then, seeing how a former high-paid executive who conducted fraud ended his career and how he justifies his actions years later can be a powerful lesson to students of business. Just out of curiosity, why are all white-collar corporate criminals men? Is it because the field is male dominated or is the nature of women to be honest when they run a company?

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