Your excellent coverage of the Enron-Andersen mess has conclusively demonstrated the inadequacy of regulations designed to prevent corruption of our capitalist economic system by greed-driven executives.
Is the remedy to be found in more regulations? Double the dosage of a failed medication? I think not. Instead, we need to consider some self-correcting mechanisms developed most notably in Scandinavia under the overall concept of economic democracy. One of the main elements of such basic reform is to empower employees, such as those at Enron who knew what was going on but were afraid (for good reason) to blow a whistle, by giving them equal representation on corporate boards of directors. (Management gets the tie-breaking vote, but in practice it seldom is needed.)
This structural reform has virtually eliminated the malaise of managerial corruption exemplified by Enron.
Instead of tinkering with a busted regulatory engine, perhaps it’s time for us to consider some bold reforms.
