Here's Your Nationalization In Action

Remember the repeated predictions (most recently here) of the government controlling private industries who accept bailout money?  You may be thinking that won't necessarily affect you or your job, or that it's just a right-winger scare tactic.  Well, our very own Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill is demonstrating beautifully exactly how that will work in real life:

U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill — mad as hell and not going to take it anymore — called Wall Street executives "idiots" Friday and proposed limits on some of their salaries.

Her proposal would force companies taking federal bailout money to limit compensation for any employee to what the President of the United State currently earns: $400,000 a year.

"Is that so unreasonable?" McCaskill asked. "It's eight times the median household income in the United States of America…I don't think that sounds like a bad deal."

There's a crucial point in here that's easy to miss at first glance - did you catch it?  Her plan would 'limit compensation for any employee...'

They're going to market this plan as a way to cap CEO pay, but the actual plan applies this cap to all employees.  What does this mean for you?  It means that if you work at a company that has accepted federal bailout money, the federal government would control your salary.  Oh, sure, they'd start with the people at the top...but do you really believe they'd hesitate to take aim at employees a little lower on the totem pole if it gave them some political advantage?  When has the government ever ignored an opportunity to exert control over the people it supposedly serves?  If you can name one time, I'll be impressed.

I think we can all agree that most CEOs and top executives want their businesses to succeed and make their decisions based on that desire, but just how safe do you think your job will be when it is controlled by the whims of politicians who can -- and regularly are -- bought by lobbyists and special interests?

You have been warned.

There's my two cents.