The NYT reported that Lloyd Blankfein, the man who engineered the government's bailout of Goldman Sach's, will get a bonus of "only" $9 million for 2009. The use of the word "only" in the headline of this piece displays questionable judgment. Without the help of tax dollars from bus drivers and school teachers, Goldman Sachs would have collapsed in 2008 and Mr. Blankfein might well be on an unemployment line right now. In short Mr. Blankfein took his company to the edge of bankruptcy (and caused enormous damage to the economy in the process). He was subsequently rescued by his former colleagues who occupied top positions in the government. "Only" might not be an appropriate word to describe his $9 million bonus.
--Dean Baker
