Attention corporate executives and board members: Please help us restore some rationality into the executive compensation debate.
The recent feeding frenzy about the AIG bonuses was much more about melodrama than installing a capital market fix. The only items missing were pitchforks and tar on the side of the rampaging masses, and some CEO dropping a Marie Antoinette-like saying such as “let them eat stock options” on the other. Rational discussion was drowned by the din.
Into this emotional maelstrom is born the United States version of “say on pay” (SOP). Nearly 400 public companies must have advisory votes on executive ...