It's the entitlement, damn it!

Much outrage is pouring forth from politicians and pundits alike about the AIG executive bonuses and the general cluelessness of the executives and their corporate directors to why this offends public sensibilities.  The mere fact that all that keeps AIG aloft these days is their draw on public funds via the U.S. Government seems beside the point to those in charge at AIG and elsewhere.  Tom Peters attributes this to the "insanity" of the corporate bigwigs.  Maybe.  But why reach for hyperbole when a more likely cause is simply the entitlement that infects those who come to believe that something--praise, adoration, money--is their due reward, not for performance, but just for being who they are.