When you think of Switzerland, what do you think of? For me, I think about Roger Federer, neutrality, the Alps, cheese, multi-purpose pocket knives, and Swiss bank accounts like you see in action/espionage movies. Swiss bank accounts are sought by wealthy people from all over the planet. Bankers are certainly welcomed in a place like Switzerland, which has a long history regarding the banking industry. You would think that in such a country, capitalism would be running rampant. You might also imagine that Swiss policies on CEO compensation would be bought out by lobbyists, much like what happens here in the States. I had these very thoughts, but an article that I read today proved me wrong.
The Swiss voters passed a measure today that would put a cap on pay-outs to top executives. This legislation has been dubbed “The Fat Cat Initiative.” It wasn’t a close vote either. Nearly 68% of Swiss voters punched ‘yes’ into their ballot.
You can read more about this story for yourself here:
In frustrating times such as the present, this type of story is uplifting. If a pro-banking country can say that enough is enough, then there is hope yet for this country. I am confident that we can pass a similar bill and finally get some economic sanity. We’ll see how long it takes for us to pass a similar vote.
Human Beings and Fish 