The Bush giveaway is just beginning

Recently we saw the entertainment giants begin the push for their hobbyhorse, the CBDTPA, to squeeze every drop out of the consumer. Now, as reported in Critics Charge Pension Bill Favors Highly Paid Workers, the House of Representatives is close to passing a bill that would remove requirements that corporate pension plans be balanced between higher and lower paid employees, a change for which businesses have lobbied for years. Plans which do not comply with this balance would need a waiver from the government. The article quotes James Delaplane, vice president for retirement policy at the American Benefits Council, which represents large employers, as saying “I’d certainly be surprised to see the Treasury Department start to bless plans that anyone believes are unfair.” Gee, I wonder if he said that with a straight face, don’t you? In a way, this is funny because these bills are kind of working against each other, since the latter will most likely reduce disposable income while the former seeks more of it. But with the Oil Industry takeover of the government expect more corporate appeasement, not less.