I submitted this letter to the Bloomington op-ed page. I think the GOP needs to be out in front of Democrats on this issue to show that as free enterprise advocates we will not tolerate corruption.
op-ed letter:
Lee Raymond, the Chairman of Exxon, recently retired with a retirement benefit worth $400 million. This is such a blatant looting of company assets that it makes a mockery of the value of work. It leads to distrust in the free enterprise system. We hear of these outrages almost every day. The stockholders own the company. These executives are not owners, they are employees. They are hired to manage the company. They are entitled to a salary, not the crown jewels. However, with the collaboration of a corrupt board of directors, the door to the company safe is wide open.
What bothers me as much as the unchecked greed is that these guys can still go around posing as great businessmen and leaders. Their self-serving books are published and they are sought after as paid speakers at Universities and conferences.
The business community, the business press and the public need to take a moral stand… even though these guys beat the legal system we should view them as corrupt and shun them in public life. No TV commentator job, no book offers, no invitation to speak at the IU School of Business.
