Corporate Fat Cats Got Fatter Off 9/11

So how does giving executives stock options after 9/11 calm people's fear? I don't know either, but apparently it is standard practice for over 200 U.S. companies. In the days immediately after the NYSE and NASDAQ re-opened, companies offered their executives options at reduced rates. Some of those were Black & Decker, Home Depot, United Health and Merill Lynch. Certainly with the President and every other public figure saying, go out and shop, spend money, show them[terrorists] you won't back down, they hate us for the way we live the American dream, these companies knew they were going to make money.

(Guardian)Companies defended the practice, saying the options were a way of calming and offering an incentive to executives in the tumultuous weeks after 9/11. Merrill Lynch denied that the timing of the offer was related to the attacks.

It's nice that they are looking out for the average guy, but I guess us socialists don't understand capitalism!