Plutocracy, anyone?

Here's an interesting take on corporate corruption: The Cycles of Financial Scandal. (You have to register with The New York Times to read the article, but it's free.)

More and more commentators are pointing out that the last two decades have been a second "Gilded Age," an age like that of the industrial robber barons that led to reforms brought about by Teddy Roosevelt in the early 20th century. It's possible to carry historical analogies too far, of course, but it's interesting that the income distribution in the U.S. is now quite similar to that time, with the top 2 percent owning about half the country's wealth.