Sunday, March 22, 2009

Golden parachutes of bankers

Title: Golden Parachutes: How the Bankers Went Down
Source: Mint
Date: 2/24/2009

From the article:
    When high-ranking executives are fired from a company, for whatever reason, they don’t go to the back of the unemployment line. Instead, they typically receive compensation in the form of the “golden parachute.” Golden parachutes can include severance pay, cash bonuses, stock options or other benefits. In the case of the financial crisis and the ensuing bank failures, if it seems like these executives are being rewarded for poor performance, you may be right. Here’s a look at what some bankers made on their way down.

Thursday, March 05, 2009

Corporate criminality

Title: The Case for Giving Eli Lilly the Corporate Death Penalty
Source: Alternet
Date: March 3, 2009

From the article:
    If Americans are ever going to revoke the publicly granted charters of reckless, giant corporations -- well within our rights -- we might want to get the ball rolling with Lilly, whose recent actions appalled even the mainstream media. And with Lilly's chums, the Bush family, out of power, now might be the right time.

    On January 15, 2009, Lilly pled guilty to charges that it had illegally marketed its blockbuster drug Zyprexa for unapproved uses to children and the elderly, two populations especially vulnerable to its dangerous side effect [cardiac arrest].