Spring Break
Asinine, Insolent Gamblers
State Hornet Staff
Issue date: 10/15/08 Section: Opinion
American International Group Inc.'s galling inability to conduct itself in a successful manner is leeching money out of our paychecks. Recently, Uncle Sam extended AIG a $38 billion credit line so the company could recover in the stock market. A year ago, AIG stock traded for more than $60 on the New York Stock Exchange. As of press time, it only sells for slightly more than the cost of a Red Bull from one of the University Union's vending machines.
This latest example of corporate welfare came on the heels of an $85 billion bailout package the insurance firm was rewarded with last month. Try to remember that both of these fiduciary lifesavers are separate from the $700 billion bailout package lawmakers recently cobbled out.
No one should be shocked or bewildered upon learning that the taxpayers are footing the bill on every cent of it.
However, the biggest bombshell of the AIG drama came when Congress discovered the company showered some of its employees with a luxurious weekend at the St. Regis Resort in Monarch Beach, Calif. The total bill ended up at $440,000; $150,000 on food alone. That total would seem to indicate copious amounts of booze and room service.
AIG even had the fortitude to defend the retreat by saying that it was scheduled well before the bailout and rewarded workers who weren't responsible for the company's woes.
The Hornet would be more visceral and angry about the getaway for the executives. Only the majority of us on the editorial board easily figured something like this would happen.
But it's impossible to take a "told you so" stance on something of this magnitude so it's our duty to inform those who care. AIG's stunning display of self-indulgence in a time of financial ruin is remarkable. This isn't condemning those who can afford luxuries and live how they want. It's just a reminder that living within your means is the key to financial wellbeing. How hard is it to remember? Don't spend what you don't have and don't buy what you don't need.
Congress did its usual huffing and puffing and grandstanding upon learning about the resort trip, but little else. During a House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform hearing, lawmakers blasted AIG for its financial failures but no one suggested pulling the rug out from underneath the company and letting it crumble under its own weight.
The vacation also included $7,000 in golf expenses. The Hornet is fairly confident that more than a few of AIG's workers have handicaps nearly identical to their waistlines and don't replace their divots. It's disturbing to contemplate how much money was blown and how gleefully it was done.
AIG also pampered itself with nearly $24,000 in spa treatments during the retreat. Unfortunately, there was no happy ending for taxpayers.
The reason The Hornet isn't more indignant about this extravagance is because in the grand scheme of things, $440,000 taken from more than $120 billion isn't really that much. AIG's spending nearly half a million dollars on its own pleasure is just another reminder that we are never seeing that money again. Our children will still be paying this debt.
This was money that could've funded infrastructure projects to improve our highways or initiated a public works project. Instead, our government virtually gave it to panhandlers who go home to mansions.
Well done, AIG. Caligula would be proud.
The State Hornet Staff can be reached at opinion@statehornet.com
This latest example of corporate welfare came on the heels of an $85 billion bailout package the insurance firm was rewarded with last month. Try to remember that both of these fiduciary lifesavers are separate from the $700 billion bailout package lawmakers recently cobbled out.
No one should be shocked or bewildered upon learning that the taxpayers are footing the bill on every cent of it.
However, the biggest bombshell of the AIG drama came when Congress discovered the company showered some of its employees with a luxurious weekend at the St. Regis Resort in Monarch Beach, Calif. The total bill ended up at $440,000; $150,000 on food alone. That total would seem to indicate copious amounts of booze and room service.
AIG even had the fortitude to defend the retreat by saying that it was scheduled well before the bailout and rewarded workers who weren't responsible for the company's woes.
The Hornet would be more visceral and angry about the getaway for the executives. Only the majority of us on the editorial board easily figured something like this would happen.
But it's impossible to take a "told you so" stance on something of this magnitude so it's our duty to inform those who care. AIG's stunning display of self-indulgence in a time of financial ruin is remarkable. This isn't condemning those who can afford luxuries and live how they want. It's just a reminder that living within your means is the key to financial wellbeing. How hard is it to remember? Don't spend what you don't have and don't buy what you don't need.
Congress did its usual huffing and puffing and grandstanding upon learning about the resort trip, but little else. During a House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform hearing, lawmakers blasted AIG for its financial failures but no one suggested pulling the rug out from underneath the company and letting it crumble under its own weight.
The vacation also included $7,000 in golf expenses. The Hornet is fairly confident that more than a few of AIG's workers have handicaps nearly identical to their waistlines and don't replace their divots. It's disturbing to contemplate how much money was blown and how gleefully it was done.
AIG also pampered itself with nearly $24,000 in spa treatments during the retreat. Unfortunately, there was no happy ending for taxpayers.
The reason The Hornet isn't more indignant about this extravagance is because in the grand scheme of things, $440,000 taken from more than $120 billion isn't really that much. AIG's spending nearly half a million dollars on its own pleasure is just another reminder that we are never seeing that money again. Our children will still be paying this debt.
This was money that could've funded infrastructure projects to improve our highways or initiated a public works project. Instead, our government virtually gave it to panhandlers who go home to mansions.
Well done, AIG. Caligula would be proud.
The State Hornet Staff can be reached at opinion@statehornet.com
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