Not Only Greedy and Incompetent

We could probably live with our Masters of The Universe if venality and short-sightedness were their only shortcomings. What's equally galling about them, though, is that what they actually do is of so little value to society in general. I mean, teachers teach and firefighters fight fires, and legislators legislate and entertainers entertain. But what exactly does a derivatives trader do beyond making risky bets with other people's money? Considering how much wealth they set on fire last time, it's not a stretch to assert that their true social utility is a net negative, which is likely why future historians will wonder why our political leaders allowed them to stay at their jobs.

---Baron V