my politics and economics are pretty middle of the road, I think the market needs to left alone if it is supposed to work, and we should be ready to tolerate a few contradictions and absurdities, especially if we can't come up with a pretty obvious way of correcting a clear injustice. So I DO support a minimum wage, nationalized medicine, welfare, free education for those who qualify, and several other programs I don't consider socialism, but just common sense and human decency.

On the other hand, I don't believe there is some law of physics that says anything some businessman wants to do is automatically a commandment from god. My politcal and economic opinions are based on practicality and experience, not ideology, and I'm willing to be flexible. My politics have shifted considerably to the right since I was a student, but I still don't trust businessmen any further than I can throw them, and I keep my hand firmly on my wallet whenever I'm near any.

Now if stockholders are stupid enough to pay their CEOs bonuses for running their companies into the ground, why should I interfere? That's just natural selection at work. Besides, I just don't see any way this could be legislated so it wouldn't be arbitrary and unfair. If they want to pay their own money to these guys, I've got no business stopping them. It still doesn't stop me from pointing out that they incicate a serious flaw in the system, I just don't think I have any right (or ability)to correct it..

After all, if I singlehandedly save the old man's business, why shouldn't I spend the night with his daughter?