Wednesday, March 25, 2009

An AIG "I Quit" Letter

The NY Times prints a letter from Jake DeSantis, an executive vice president of the AIG’s financial products unit, to resign his position...

What I find funny is that this guy first says he is a $1/year man who has taken on the job of cleaning up the mess as a patriotic duty:
Like you, I was asked to work for an annual salary of $1, and I agreed out of a sense of duty to the company and to the public officials who have come to its aid.
Then he mentions that while his "salary" is $1/year, he is hopping mad that people think he is overpaid because of his bonus:
On March 16 I received a payment from A.I.G. amounting to $742,006.40, after taxes.
Notice the "after taxes".

These two statements show the sleight-of-hand game that these guys play all the time. On the one hand he wants to be patted on the back as a $1/year man. On the other, he feels hard done by that his "hard work" isn't going to be rewarded with some million-dollar-plus bonus payment that works out to $742,006.40 "after taxes".

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

There's already an answer to this letter, if you're still interested in this case. Have a look at http://weblogs.swarthmore.edu/burke/?p=784

I personally wish that Mr DeSantis finds a suitable job soon.

Take care,
Julie