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hankrearden
October 17, 2008 1:55 PM
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It \"will try harder\"? WTF.


How about \"AIG will repay all incurred debts\".

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stang
October 17, 2008 2:09 PM
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@hankrearden: ...With the $100 Billion they received from the people.

That Luxury Suite need to go on the auction block IMMEDIATELY!! As well as any company cars (for managers and exec's), planes, helicopters, blimps, sky boxes, stadiums, box seats (probably for the World Series), Super Bowl tickets, EVERYTHING.... MUST....GO !!!! If it does not relate to the DIRECT business they do, SELL IT!

Look, I know this is obvious, but it needs to be said...

When invididual people are faced with bankruptcy, or money issues, what do they do? Cut expenses, cut costs, go with the bare minimum on everything. AIG needs to do the very same. Cut unnecessary jobs, spending, expenses, and then look at their financial standing. Then, and only then should they ask for money from the feds. Not the other way around.

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Scalvo2
October 17, 2008 1:56 PM
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Why can't we just hang the execs?

What about the other financial institutions that didn't get a bail out and have to compete with AIG?

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5 replies
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PlanetExpressdelivery
October 17, 2008 6:23 PM
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@Scalvo2: I think that we should send these economic terrorists to Guantanamo Bay and repossess their stuff.

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Jabberkaty
October 17, 2008 3:18 PM
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@Scalvo2: Yeah, you know I just had a great idea for a \"hunting trip\" for the rest of us. We stick giant targets that say A.I.G. Asshat on their back and start tracking them down.

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B
October 17, 2008 3:17 PM
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@Scalvo2: I dunno, the executive hunting trip sounds promising. Hunting the AIG executives for sport would be a great way for us Americans to relieve some stress relating to the financial crisis.

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blackmage439
October 17, 2008 1:57 PM
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The first step of many to becoming [or appearing to be] a moral and upstanding company. For this brief moment in time, I salute your efforts, AIG, even if they are only self-serving.

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HomersBrain
October 17, 2008 2:06 PM
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Lets put the Board of Directors on a plane and push them out and find out how well those \"golden parachutes\" really work....

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zentex
October 17, 2008 2:07 PM
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and I'm gonna try harder to consume less oxygen. we'll see how both work out.

With all this BS, why hasn't the govt put a full-time auditor in that company?

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Pan_theFrog
October 17, 2008 9:25 PM
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@zentex:
They could hire one from AIG. I understand they are hurting for money.


If they hire one from a competator, then AIG would scream about it being unfair, and how they never get any government contracts.


If they appoint a government employee to do it, then the taxpayers have to pay for somone to watch their money and that is wrong (or at least that is what it will be reported as in the next election).

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hankrearden
October 17, 2008 2:07 PM
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LOL @HomersBrain !


+1

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r.hinojosa
October 17, 2008 2:10 PM
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They're only doing this because people are complaining about them. If it weren't for us outraged with them, they would have done this without any remorse. There's a difference between in doing what's right and doing something because you are forced to do so. Screw them.

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Andon
October 17, 2008 2:11 PM
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Gee, how nice of them....

[/extreme sarcasm and embittered indignance]

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GothamGal
October 17, 2008 2:11 PM
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If I run into an AIG executive, I will try very hard to not kick him in the balls.

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Red_Flag
October 17, 2008 2:20 PM
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@GothamGal: Because you'll be busy poking them in the eyes and don't want to lose your balance?

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BrianDaBrain
October 17, 2008 2:46 PM
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@Red_Flag: I was thinking a good ol' fashioned headbutt myself :)

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Jim
October 17, 2008 2:12 PM
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I have a feeling this is going to start off with something like...\"We must form a task force of the world's greatest consultants. We will gather this elite group first in Dubai for strategic planning meetings. Later, we will remove them to a secluded Pacific island for a restorative retreat. Then, reconvene in Sydney to review the strategic plan... We'll need another $58 billion, please, to form this team.\"

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xspook
October 17, 2008 2:13 PM
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Now we know why they're so ready to raise your rates when you use your insurance...to pay for parties.

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SkokieGuy
October 17, 2008 2:17 PM
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Remember all the posturing of our candidates and Washington about how the bailout will include oversight?


Isn't it interesting that yesterday's letter threatening legal action was from a STATE'S ATTORNEY, not Washington!


And within 24 hours, AIG is falling all over themselves to make changes, withdraw compensation, document all recent transactions, etc.


Washington / huge fail.


Cuomo proved it ain't that tough folks.

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Feminist Whore
October 17, 2008 5:29 PM
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@SkokieGuy: It says they actually had a meeting with Cuomo, in addition (I guess) to the original letter. Cuomo must have kicked some serious ass in that meeting, I wish I'd been a fly on the wall.

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Red_Flag
October 17, 2008 2:19 PM
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Now we just need a superteam crossover between Sheriff Dart and Atty Gen. Cuomo.

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Chris Walters
October 17, 2008 2:31 PM
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@Red_Flag: Now you've got me picturing these two men in tights, flying through the air with one fist extended. That's just weird for a Friday morning...

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incognit000
October 17, 2008 2:28 PM
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Call me when \"Greed is Good\" is just a quote from a movie, rather than the be-all-end-all of Wall Street.

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Snarkysnake
October 17, 2008 2:37 PM
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Imagine.

Imagine that the companies that engineered this train wreck had asked for 700 billion dollars or more of taxpayer money BEFORE they handed it to millions of lying , insolvent borrowers that would not / could not pay it back. Imagine that they had told us that a thin scum of executives at the very top of these companies would become fabulously wealthy by gambling our money on dangerously overextended borrowers and then walk away from the mess with no consequences. Imagine that you have to work extra hours at a hard,dangerous job, your children have to go to work instead of college and you have to work an extra 10-15 years into what would have been your retirement so that a very few could get very,very rich.

Well, you don't have to imagine all of the above. It actually happened. The only difference is that the crooks on Wall Street didn't ask for your money until AFTER it all went boom.

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Feminist Whore
October 17, 2008 5:31 PM
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@Snarkysnake: John Lennon would never bum us out like that.

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evarga
October 17, 2008 2:37 PM
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I'm still wary of being attacked for wearing my Manchester United jersey, which bears the AIG logo in big bold blue on the front. They currently spend $30 million a year to sponsor ManUtd, but that does bring world-wide consistent exposure to the brand, as Champions of Europe and Champions of England.

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drjayphd
October 19, 2008 9:50 PM
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@evarga: Eh, don't worry, if I'd attacked you, it wouldn't be for the AIG logo as much as the Man U jersey. ;)

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ilovemom
October 17, 2008 2:38 PM
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I've been on a math kick lately. Trying to figure out how much money 10 million dollars really is isn't easy, but that single severance check amounts to $333,333 per year for 30 years. And that's just one check. These guys are disgusting and shameless.

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yorick328
October 17, 2008 2:41 PM
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All CEOs that have driven their companies into the ground deserve lead parachutes to make sure that they hang neatly out to dry.

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BrianDaBrain
October 17, 2008 2:44 PM
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We canceled the $10 million severance package and replaced it with a $9.5 million package. Whoo hoo!!! Go us!

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proskills
October 17, 2008 2:47 PM
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Not to play devil's advocate here, but how exactly is saving $18m going to get them out of a $150b hole?

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ARP
October 17, 2008 3:50 PM
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You're forgetting the ultimate loophole words, \"legitimate business needs.\" Remember their definition of legitimate business needs includes the hunting trips, the outrageous compensation, etc.


@proskills: Some of it is principle. When you give money to a friend or relative who's fallen on hard times, you assume they're going to spend responsibly. So even though you GAVE them the money, it probably would annoy you a bit if they went to Vegas and spent the money on hookers and blow. It tells you a lot about the person and whether to trust them in the future (i.e. more oversight). The other part of this is that every little bit counts since its OUR money.

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pmcpa2
October 17, 2008 3:01 PM
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They have saved $18m over the last month... now multiply!

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u1itn0w2day
October 17, 2008 3:56 PM
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@pmcpa2: This makes you wonder how much they have squandered over the years.


Everyone seems to forget but AIG and other insurance companies are selling government mandated insurance such as auto insurance.Now if I am forced to buy insurance from a private company shouldn't the government be trying to control the costs.Or better yet shouldn't these companies do it on their own so they can show the premium payers they are getting the lowest cost.


It makes you wonder how many of these perks were built into the cost you pay for one of their policies.

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proskills
October 17, 2008 3:18 PM
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@pmcpa2: 18,000,000 / month for 8,333.3 months (694 years) is how long it would take to clear 150,000,000,000 worth of debt without interest.

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rubberpants
October 17, 2008 3:28 PM
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You'd think they'd have done that BEFORE asking for a bail-out. Pants-on-head retarded.

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JustThatGuy3
October 17, 2008 5:10 PM
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A lot of these junkets are the company's way of rewarding top producing agents. If AIG doesn't keep these people happy, a competitor will. Saving $500k by canceling a trip might sound like a good idea, but not if it'll cost the company $10MM in sales.

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PlanetExpressdelivery
October 17, 2008 6:31 PM
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@JustThatGuy3: At this point, I don't know if AIG will last long enough for any of these lavish trips to matter. I believe the loan issued by the government is simply to allow them more time to split up (with their assets being purchased by other companies more efficiently as opposed to being violently ripped apart). The problem is that they might not ever be able to repay a large amount of this loan, but the damage done by a violent split would cause problems for the consumers of their service.

In addition, the entire company needs to realize what a quagmire they're currently embroiled in and realize that these lavish rewards are no longer good for the company's public image (now that they're using money loaned from the public), definitely now necessary to produce sale, and that they're company is in an ocean of hot water.

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TechnoDestructo
October 18, 2008 1:06 AM
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@PlanetExpressdelivery:

Exactly...how many people are looking at their AIG insurance bills and thinking \"why the fuck am I doing business with these scumbags?\"

It doesn't matter if everyone else does it. They are in a position where it makes them look bad.

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alexcassidy
October 17, 2008 6:08 PM
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@JustThatGuy3: Well if that competitor didn't accept billions of dollars in taxpayer money as a reward for fucking up, then they earned it. I personally don't care if AIG goes under tomorrow. Let 'em burn.

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darkryd
October 17, 2008 7:14 PM
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Suck it, AIG!

How is it that a company that specializes in managing money sucks so bad at managing money?

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copwriter
October 17, 2008 11:47 PM
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They were planning on 160 events that **didn't** have a legitimate business purpose? How could anyone have confidence in a management team that would consider such a thing, even when the company was profitable?

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TechnoDestructo
October 18, 2008 1:04 AM
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What the fuck do you people WANT? Do you want them to have to have VENEER on their yachts? Is that what you want?

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Moosehawk
October 18, 2008 6:41 AM
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Let's all quit lying to ourselves. We all know what we'd do if we had access to a few billion dollars.

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SegamanXero
October 18, 2008 4:33 PM
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Why in the world of hell is the government bailing these fools out? i mean come on, lavish retreats and whatnot... after they where bailed out. that shoulda been the first thing they cut, maybe severance later. they shoulda never bailed these fools out, and let that company crash as the execs took their lavish retreats wile the company crashed and burned. it would allow for this disgrace to go extinct quicker!

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TMurphy
October 20, 2008 1:01 AM
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If the elections were next year, Cuomo could run for president and be a shoo-in.

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Coopie
October 21, 2008 2:27 PM
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So, being Devil's advocate along with \"proskills\", by cancelling $18m in meetings, what are they going to pay in cancellation charges, attrition, and other penalties assessed by the hotels, restaurants, Destination management companies, airlines, ground transportation companies, restaurants and other businesses they were working with to organize all of these conferences? Just because you cancel a meeting, doesn't mean that you don't get charged for some or all of the costs.

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