Welcome to Left Out, reality-based independent radio on WRCT 88.3FM, and on the worldwide web at leftout.info. Left Out discusses the news from a perspective left out of the mainstream media. Left Out is co-hosted by Bob Harper and Danny Sleator. Today's program is produced by John Koutrouba. Listeners are invited to call the program at (412) 268-WRCT (9728), to send email to bob@leftout.info, or to join the AOL chat room "Left Out" during the show.
Cindy Sheehan will be here to accept the Thomas Merton award! The 2007 award dinner will be on Thursday, November 15th at the ballroom of the Station Square Sharton. 6pm Social Hour 7:20pm Dinner. See this link at www.thomasmertoncenter.org more information, or call 412-361-3022.
UPDATE: Sheehan could not make it. Retired Army Colonel Ann Wright will be speaking instead.
Listen to the broadcast (requires MP3 player). (Streaming, Download, Podcast)
John C. Bogle is the founder and former CEO of The Vanguard Group. His latest book is "Battle for the Soul of Capitalism". Although Bogle comes from the business world, he takes a very critical look at the upper eschelons of management and high finance.
We'll talk to Jack Bogle about issues he raised in his book and in a recent interview with Bill Moyers [transcript, mp3, podcast].
The financial economy, which is the way you package all these ways of financing corporations, more and more complex, more and more expensive. The financial sector of our economy is the largest profit- making sector in America. Our financial services companies make more money than our companies energy no mean profitable business in this day and age. Plus, our healthcare companies. They make almost twice as much as our technology companies, twice as much as our manufacturing companies. We've become a financial economy which has overwhelmed the productive economy to the detriment of investors and the detriment ultimately of our society.
Bogle analyzes the growth in CEO compensation. We'll discuss its extent, its causes, and its consequences. (Page 18 of the book) On page 227 is a quote by Warren Buffett: "Many of these ... [CEOs] ... behaved badly at the office, fudging numbers and drawing obscene pay for mediocre business achievements." Obscene is the operative word here.
The 2000 stock bubble. Who was responsible? Winners and losers. The $2Trillion transfer. (Pages 10-15, 108 of the book)
The change from long term investing versus short term, and its consequences.
In the book and in this article Bogle raises the issue of corporate governance, and how the control of corporations has moved from the owners of corporations to the managers. What are the consequences of this?
What's Jack's opinion on business schools?
Hedge Funds (discussed on pages 120-121). The tax loophole that lets some of the highest paid people in the US get away with 15% tax.
Corporate malfeasance, accounting practices (e.g. restatement of earnings). The role of trust in business, and the consequences of losing it. Specifically: In the news today: Banana companies have been avoiding paying taxes through all sorts of machinations. guardian indymedia
Can Jack comment on the article by Joseph Stiglitz The Economic Consequences of Mr. Bush. Specifically: the deficit, and the cost of the war --- now estimated at $1.5T, or $20K per US household.
What can be done?
So we have a new Attorney General. And he's totally comfortable with Bush's power grab, the unitary executive, waterboarding, wiretapping, and with the suspension of habeas corpus.
And we have Democrats Schumer and Feinstein to thank. Schumer went through a whole series of contortions to justify his vote: "we can't allow a recess appointment", "We can't allow Bush to keep the interim apointee", "we need a strong leader to rebuild the damaged justice department". Etc.
This is just one in a whole series of pro-Bush Feinstein votes. link link
Truth Out
Common Dreams
Information Clearinghouse
Cursor
Tom Paine
The Independent
The Guardian
Consortium News