"What executives have done is troubling, but it's equally troubling to have government telling shareholders how much they can pay the executives," said Sen. Mel Martinez (R-FL). HUFPO-TODAY

Why is it that every time I see an issue become part of the scene in cable news, I know what the republican position is going to be before I even hear it?

Eighteen Billion Dollars went out the door of our financial markets to 'top management'.  The same top management that was in charge when the financial markets went south.  And by south I do not mean the Carolinas.

Money is fungible. That means if you give me twenty dollars to get you cigarettes and your sister gives me ten dollars to get some milk, the store manager does not care which money goes for what product.I have to account later on to you and your sister. But money is money.

The banking corporations would tell you, hey, those bonuses came out of other funds, not the funds you gave us.This argument is not to be believed.

You give me the keys to your car and ask that I get it washed and you will give me fifty dollars.

I take the car to a local car wash, pay ten dollars, wash and shine it and then drive it into a wall. I bring you the car with the front end all smashed in and the windshield broken. As I hand you the keys I ask for an extra fifty dollars as a bonus for my hard work.

There are arguments for the top management to receive their bonuses:

They put in most of the work before the markets crashed and the banks went bankrupt.

They would put money back into the economy.  Valets and waitresses, boat washers, Hispanic domestics.....

They are good solid citizens who did everything right and it was just serendipitous that things turned our the way they did.

Some, like the head of Merrill Lynch, wanted thirty million dollars before he was turned down by BOA. But most of those monies went to management farther down the line, that is those who made two hundred grand received a hundred grand bonus.

For me, responses to each of these 'points' are easy:

Government can have something to say about executive pay WHEN THE TAXPAYERS ARE SHAREHOLDERS. Why is that so difficult to understand? When the government gets its money back with interest, then the company can go ahead and pay all their money to management.  However, the problem here is that the shareholders have not had a say in executive pay. They cannot sue the corporation when there has been looting by management.
The shareholders are supposed to be represented by directors who will look after their interests, when they are looking to their own interests.

The problem with government becoming a shareholder simply underlines the problem with the model of corporations in the first place.

If I am working for a car dealership and it goes bankrupt, my 'bonuses' are way down the line as far as which creditor gets paid first. 

If everybody gets some equity in the distribution of tips at a restaurant, and there are not many tips, then everybody gets a little. Because that is all there is. Too bad.

Republicans have no trouble telling those making minimum wage: 'too bad'. As a matter of fact, they vote down raising minimum wages every single time they have a chance. Minimum wage people put money back into the economy also.

Wages going to medium wage workers go into the economy also.  Their monies go to grocery stores, landlords, car finance companies, lower price clothiers, etc.

If the issue concerns the richest part of our society, the republicans are always there with an argument to buttress the side of the argument that helps the riches part of society.

The only exception to this reality deals with education.  Not educational funding because republicans do not wish the government to help anybody in their educational concerns.

I am speaking here of the substance of the education itself.  Only two of some twelve or thirteen republican debaters agreed that evolution should be taught in our public schools.Now these were and are grown men. Grown men that went to college and most of them took advantage of the the greatest university education this country could muster.But they could not bring themselves to accept basic scientific tenants taught in seventh grade biology.

And speaking of biology, republicans do not believe that people have sex until they are married and then only inside of marriage.  That is 'other people' since republicans really like call girl operations as well as meeting people in lavatories.  Oh, I forgot massage services.

Therefore, republicans have come to the conclusion that there is no need to teach people about birth control. And they do not like government sponsored programs providing birth control measures to the general population.

And republicans like to out source.  That is, republicans do not like putting more people on the government payroll where employees become part of a pay grade system with benefits including health insurance.

So when our prisons become so expensive due to the fact that we have too many prisoners, more prisoners than any nation, republicans come up with the idea that we should outsource our prisons to private corporations who can hire and fire anybody they desire whenever they desire and pay minimum benefits if any.

Half of our armed forces in Iraq are outsourced to corporations. Then it is the corporation's responsibility to take take care of their employees and they in turn like to use the cheapest sources for their materials. And then when war crimes are committed, hey it was not our fault.

Almost all republicans will vote against anything 'green'.  It will put to big a burden upon management, corporations. And we are in a recession/depression and we cannot weigh our selves down with environmental concerns.

Oh and forget a single payer health system. As a matter of fact, we republicans will vote against children getting health care on the basis that some of the children receiving the benefits have parents who might be able to give up a car or somebody's college education in order to provide that assistance.

So here it is folks, what possible use is the republican part?  Why take them seriously on any single issue facing America today?

Same old, same old, same old.