The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism.The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism. By John C. Bogle bo·gle n. A hobgoblin; a bogey. [Scots bogill, perhaps ultimately from Welsh bwg, ghost, hobgoblin. . Yale University Yale University, at New Haven, Conn.; coeducational. Chartered as a collegiate school for men in 1701 largely as a result of the efforts of James Pierpont, it opened at Killingworth (now Clinton) in 1702, moved (1707) to Saybrook (now Old Saybrook), and in 1716 was Press, 260 pages. $25. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] John Bogle--who founded the mutual fund giant Vanguard Group many years ago and is arguably the dean of the mutual fund industry--has not faded gently in his retirement. He's been a vocal presence in forums and op-ed columns, opining o·pine v. o·pined, o·pin·ing, o·pines v.tr. To state as an opinion. v.intr. To express an opinion: opined on the defendant's testimony. about mutual fund issues, investor concerns and corporate governance Corporate Governance The relationship between all the stakeholders in a company. This includes the shareholders, directors, and management of a company, as defined by the corporate charter, bylaws, formal policy, and rule of law. , always seeming to ask if those in authority can't act more wisely and nobly. In the introduction to his new book, Bogle writes that recent "aberrations" like the quantum leap quantum leap n. An abrupt change or step, especially in method, information, or knowledge: "War was going to take a quantum leap; it would never be the same" Garry Wills. in CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. pay and earnings managed to meet inflated Wall Street expectations can be laid to "the gatekeepers we trusted to protect investors--legislators, regulators, rating services, attorneys, public accountants and, most importantly, corporate directors ... They failed to intercede appropriately on behalf of the shareholders." Bogle divides the book into three principle parts--Corporate America, Investment America and Mutual Fund America. Each, he implies, went wrong in different yet related ways. While he excoriates corporate boards for too often failing to adequately exercise their responsibilities of managerial oversight, he blames owners--institutional investors in particular--for not insisting "that managers operate not in their own interest, but in the interest of the owners. In short, the owners didn't seem to care." Mixing the views of economic thinkers and movers like Adolf Berle, John Maynard Keynes Noun 1. John Maynard Keynes - English economist who advocated the use of government monetary and fiscal policy to maintain full employment without inflation (1883-1946) Keynes and Felix Rohatyn with a wordly view of the broad sweep of 20th Century investment policies, Bogle provides a superbly informed view of financial behaviors. But it's the mutual industry, in which he spent his career, where he directs some of his harshest fire. Fund directors, he argues, "ceded virtually unfettered dominion over the funds to managers whose goal was to earn entrepreneurial rewards by building giant fund empires." And, more than simply sniping away, he offers prescriptions for change. Recent events suggest that Bogle's voice is more than just a cry in the wilderness. Passionate, direct and eminently thoughtful, this is a book that rises to that rare "must-read" level. |
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