On Tue, 31 Jan 2006 02:30:27 -0500, RCE wrote:


You know what? None of this matters. For every proven crook running a
company, I'll find you an honest, hard working example.

Personally, I'd expect you could find hundreds of honest businessmen for
each crook, but there lies the problem. As you know, it's quite
competitive out there. Competing with crooks isn't a level playing field.
If we don't punish the crooks far more heavily than we do, even an honest
businessman is tempted to shade the edges. What did Ebbers get? 25
years for an $11 billion fraud and there was talk that it was a "stiff"
sentence. If I'd lost my retirement and was forced to eat cat food
during my Golden Years because of some fat cat's greed, I'd be thinking
he'd better be spending heavily on security.

It all depends on
one's personnel perspective of the world and business. If you tend to be
of the cynical bent, you are going to find conspiracy and deceit behind
every door. If you're a glass half full type your going to gravitate
towards the belief that the system can work, despite Herculean problems.
I've always been more of the latter. Obviously others here are not.
Makes the world go 'round. In my life there have been more people telling
me I couldn't do something than those who encouraged me to try. I rarely
listened to the first group.

RCE