Stories by Sam Pizzigati

Sam Pizzigati is the editor of the online weekly Too Much, and an associate fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies. subscribe to Sam Pizzigati's feed

10 Greediest People of 2009

Posted on: Dec 21, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

As ordinary Americans reel from the Great Recession, these gluttonous all-stars continue to claw in absurd amounts of money.

Congress Can Kill Outlandish Bonuses for Wall Streeters: Why Won't They?

Posted on: Dec 2, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

We need more protection from corporate greed than the current mainstream antidotes provide. Americans get this. Too bad moderate reformers don't.

What Happened to That Prosperity Tax-Cutters Promised Us?

Posted on: Nov 24, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

Members of the super-rich elite don't care who gets burned by 30 years of tax cuts. Here's why we should.

Why Can't Prosecutors Even Come Close to Taking Down Wall Street Thugs?

Posted on: Nov 17, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

As the big bank bonus grab shifts into overdrive, doing "God's work" has never seemed so lucrative.

Have the Very Wealthy Achieved Victory in Their Class-War?

Posted on: Nov 3, 2009, Source: Dollars and Sense

We don’t want our tax dollars aiding companies that increase social inequalities. So why do we let our tax dollars help companies that increase economic inequality?

Bonus Bandits: Why Are Bank Execs Making a Killing in the Midst of Catastrophe?

Posted on: Oct 19, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

Welcome to post-meltdown America. One year and counting after last fall’s high-finance collapse, average Americans are reeling and Wall Street is rejoicing.

A Little Help From Your Friends: How Common Security Clubs Can Mend Our Social Fabric

Posted on: Oct 13, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

As the activities of many are beginning to illustrate, conquering economic inequality means banding together.

Turning Lead Into Gold: How CEOs' "Performance Incentives" Are Screwing Everybody

Posted on: Oct 6, 2009, Source: AlterNet

A new Institute for Policy Studies Report shows how big-business bubbles are keeping CEOs in the black -- and robbing the little guy.

Lies and Statistics: What Does Our Obsession with Gross Domestic Product Obscure?

Posted on: Sep 28, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

A new report by two celebrated economists attempts to reform the way we view a country's wealth.

There's a Bubble That Still Threatens the Entire American Economy ... and Few Are Talking About It

Posted on: Sep 1, 2009, Source: AlterNet

Outrageously large rewards for executives give executives an incentive to behave outrageously -- and engage in behaviors that put the rest of us at risk.

New Study Exposes 2007 as the Year of the Super-Rich

Posted on: Aug 18, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

In 2007, the year before the Great Recession began, America's super rich partied — as never before. The evidence? We look at the year's freshly crunched income numbers.

What's Really Draining State Money?

Posted on: Jul 8, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

To become less unstable, states are going to have to first become less unequal.

Apologists for the Rich Are Scraping the Bottom of the Barrel

Posted on: Jul 1, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

In a down economy, apologists for the awesomely affluent are having to dig deep for inspiration. In the process, they're looking dopey.

So What Happened to That Talk About Reining in CEO Pay?

Posted on: Jun 24, 2009, Source: AlterNet

The Obama administration has watered down the rules on executive pay into mushy prescriptions that pose no real threat to the Big Boys' windfalls.

Remembering When CitiGroup "Cared" About Inequality

Posted on: May 18, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

In 2005, a Citigroup team began arguing that what “average” consumers do with their money really doesn’t matter any more.

A Serial Job-Killer Is Stalking America

Posted on: Apr 27, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

With Barack Obama's election, real reform has once again become politically viable. And America's anti-union business leaders know it.

Solving the Mystery of the Richest Americans' Missing Wealth

Posted on: Apr 20, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

Families in the top 1 percent are grabbing a rising share of the nation’s income -- why does the data show no jump in their share of the wealth?

Tax Day: You Pay Your Taxes -- Why Don't the Rich Pay Their Share?

Posted on: Apr 14, 2009, Source: AlterNet

Few Americans realize just how incredibly little our nation's wealthy now pay in taxes. Our grandparents seriously taxed the rich. Why can't we?

Down But Not Out at $464 Million a Year

Posted on: Apr 4, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

Hedge fund manager earnings remain, despite the global financial collapse, at absolutely stratospheric levels.

What Would the Man Who Got Us Out of the Last Depression Do About Wall Street's Greed?

Posted on: Mar 22, 2009, Source: AlterNet

What would FDR do if he were around to see AIG's bonus bozos spit in the face of the American taxpayer?

Sad News: America's Billionaires Facing Tough Times

Posted on: Mar 19, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

Have billionaires, as some observers claim, now 'suffered' their way back to the rest of us? Nope.

Is Taxing the Super Rich a Waste of Time?

Posted on: Mar 10, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

Critics of Obama's tax plan claim the uber-rich will find a way to evade tax hikes. But history tells a different story.

Obama Is Right to Take on the Very Rich

Posted on: Feb 24, 2009, Source: Christian Science Monitor

They're paying far less of their incomes in taxes than average Americans.

A-Rod and Inequality: A Lesson Worth Learning

Posted on: Feb 19, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

Yet again, the latest sports scandal demonstrates the perils of inequality.

The Audacity of Hope Tackles the Enormity of Inequality

Posted on: Feb 14, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

Our new White House has begun a counterattack against the grand divide between the rich and everyone else. It will be an uphill battle.

Class Matters: UK Law Would Require Gov't to Lessen Inequality

Posted on: Feb 2, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

Last week, a Labor Party "white paper" offered a surprisingly novel -- and rather remarkable -- proposal.

The Great New Surge in CEO Self-Sacrifice: Is It For Real?

Posted on: Jan 16, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

Some CEOs are taking pay cuts. But here's why it's really faux sympathy for truly struggling workers.

Nelson Rockefeller's Deepest, Darkest Secret: Not As Rich As People Believe

Posted on: Jan 7, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

In our staggeringly unequal times, the source of Rocky's distress can offer the rest of us some welcome public policy inspiration.

Financial Meltdown Provides Final Verdict on Reaganomics

Posted on: Jan 7, 2009, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

The economic meltdown may finally have ended the era that began when Ronald Reagan became President.

The 10 Greediest People of 2008

Posted on: Dec 22, 2008, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

For obvious reasons, we probably couldn't have picked a better year than 2008 to "honor" our most avaricious.

Congress Grills Hedge Fund Titans, Gently

Posted on: Nov 17, 2008, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

Lawmakers still haven't recognized danger of concentrated wealth to the economy.

Setting Sights at the Top is the Key to Governing from the Middle

Posted on: Nov 12, 2008, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

To govern effectively for the middle of America's economic ladder, Obama is going to have to take aim at the top.

The Massive Wealth Redistribution that Doesn't Bother John McCain

Posted on: Oct 31, 2008, Source: AlterNet

Upward wealth redistribution has taken billions of dollars out of the pockets of average Americans.

Cheating Uncle Sam

Posted on: Oct 28, 2008, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

America's tax cheats come disproportionately and overwhelmingly from the ranks of America's rich.

The Hedge Fund Meltdown: Another Reason Wealth Needs Spreading

Posted on: Oct 26, 2008, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

The hedge fund industry's ever-widening crash is likely going to leave average Americans the hardest hit. Here's why.

Let's Make Wall Street Execs Pay for Cleaning Up the Mess They Made

Posted on: Oct 15, 2008, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

The "polluter pays" principle works in the environmental realm -- we can apply it to the financial meltdown too.

Wall Street's Meltdown: How America Caught Speculative Fever

Posted on: Oct 7, 2008, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

To fix the U.S. economy, we don't need a bailout that rescues the rich. We need a bailout that soaks them.

Truth, Lies, the Bailout and CEO Pay

Posted on: Oct 6, 2008, Source: AlterNet

The bailout does precious little to limit the extravagant pay that gives top executives the incentive to behave outrageously.

In Wake of Crash, McCain Talks Tough About CEO Pay -- Will Congress Call His Bluff?

Posted on: Sep 23, 2008, Source: AlterNet

The candidate is proposing a radical restriction on pay for CEOs of bailed-out firms.  But is he serious or is this just election season populism?

Should Uncle Sam Be Helping CEOs Get Richer?

Posted on: Aug 27, 2008, Source: Too Much: A Commentary on Excess and Inequality

America's overpaid corporate execs have plenty of people to thank for their good fortune, including average American taxpayers.

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