In 1965, America’sbigcompanieshadahellofayear. Thestockmarketwasbooming. Saleswererisingbriskly, profitmarginswerefat, andcorporateprofitsasapercentageofG.D.P. wereatanall-timehigh. Almosthalfacenturylater, somethingslookmuchthesame: bigAmericancompanieshavehadahellofayear, withthestockmarketsoaring, marginsstrong, andprofitshittinganewall-timehigh. Butthere’soneverynoticeabledifference. In 1965, C.E.O.satbigcompaniesearned, onaverage, abouttwentytimesasmuchastheirtypicalemployee. Thesedays, C.E.O.searnabouttwohundredandseventytimesasmuch.
从第二段开头的thehugegap可以看出第一段讲的是两种经济状况之间的差距。这里也正好是第一题的定位：Theauthormakesacomparisonbetweentoday’sAmericawiththatof 1965______.既然第二段追究的是这种gap的原因，那么答案就在第一段结尾处：今天的CEO-雇员的收入差距比大大增加了。
Thathugegapbetweenthetopandthemiddleistheresultofaboominexecutivecompensation, whichroseeighthundredandseventy-sixpercentbetween 1978 and 2011, accordingtoastudybytheliberalEconomicPolicyInstitute. Inresponse, we’vehadahostofregulatoryreformsdesignedtocurbexecutivepay. Thelatestoftheseisarule, unveiledbytheS.E.C. lastmonth, requiringcompaniestodisclosetheratiooftheC.E.O.’spaytothatofthemedianworker. Theideaisthat, oncethedisparityismadepublic, companieswillbelesslikelytoawardoutsizedpaypackages.
Faithindisclosurehasbeencrucialtotheregulationofexecutivepaysincethenineteen-thirties, whencompanieswerefirstrequiredtorevealthosefigures. Morerecently, ruleshavemadecompaniesdetailthesizeandthestructureofcompensationpackagesandhaveenforcedtransparencyaboutthekindsofcomparisonstheyrelyontodeterminesalaries. Thebusinesspress, meanwhile, nowrigorouslytracksexecutivepay. TheresultisthatshareholderstodayknowfarmoreaboutC.E.O. compensationthaneverbefore. There’sonlyoneproblem: evenascompaniesaredisclosingmoreandmore, executivepaykeepsgoingupandup.
这一段开头黑体部分为我们提示了一个关键字：disclosure. 由此可以看出本文的话题是从收入差距说开去，转向CEO的收入披露机制。
Thisisn’tacoincidence: thedrivefortransparencyhasactuallyhelpedfuelthespirallingsalaries. Foronething, itgivesexecutivesagoodideaofhowmuchtheycangetawaywithaskingfor. Amorecrucialreason, though, hastodowiththewayboardsofdirectorssetsalaries. Asthecorporate-governanceexpertsCharlesElsonandCraigFerrerewriteinarecentpaper, boardsatmostcompaniesusewhat’scalled “peerbenchmarking.” TheylookattheC.E.O. salariesatpeer-groupfirms, andthenpegtheirC.E.O.’spaytothefiftieth, seventy-fifth, orninetiethpercentileofthepeergroup—neverlower. Thisleadstotheso-calledLakeWobegoneffect: everyC.E.O. getstreatedasaboveaverage. Withalltheothercompaniesfollowingthesameprocess, salariesratchetinexorablyhigher. “Relyingonpeer-groupcomparisons, thewayboardsdo, mathematicallyguaranteesthatpayisgoingtogoup,” Elsontoldme.
本段讲到越是披露高管们的收入，他们就越能要求更高的收入。
Ontopofthis, peer-groupcomparisonsaren’talwayshonest: boardscanbetoocozywithC.E.O.sandmaytweakthecomparisonstojustifyoverpaying. ArecentstudybythelaboreconomistRonLaschevershowsthatboardstendtoincludeaspeerscompaniesthatarebiggerthantheyareandthatpaytheirC.E.O.smore. Thesystemisalsoskewedbyso-called “leapfroggers,” thefewC.E.O.sinagivenyearwho, whetherbyinnatebrillianceorbydumbluck, endupearningastronomicalsalaries. Thosebigpaydaysresetthebaselineexpectationsforeveryoneelse.
段首句是主题句：高管们可能还会想方设法隐瞒自己高增长的收入。
Thisisn’tjustanAmericanproblem. Elsonnotesthat, whenCanadatougheneditsdisclosurerequirements, executivesalariesthererosesharply, andGermanstudieshavefoundsomethingsimilar. Norisitprimarilyacaseofboardsbeinghelplesslyinthralltoacompany’sexecutives. Boardsarefarmoreindependentofmanagementthantheyusedtobe, andit’snotablethataC.E.O. hiredfromoutsideacompany—whothereforehasnoinfluenceovertheboard—typicallygetstwentytotwenty-fivepercentmorethananinsidecandidate. Therealissuesaresubtler, thoughnolessinsidious. Someboards, inthefaceofmuchevidencetothecontrary, remainconvincedofwhatElsoncalls “superstartheory”: theythinkthatC.E.O.scanworktheirmagicanywhere, andmustbeoverpaidtostay. Inaddition, Elsonsaid, “ifyoupaybelowaverage, itmakesitlookasifyou’dhiredabelow-averageC.E.O., andwhatboardwantsthat?”
这个问题并不局限于美国，而是国际化的。
Transparentpricinghasperverseeffectsinotherfields. Inahostofrecentcases, publicdisclosureofthepricesthathospitalschargeforvariousprocedureshasendedupdrivingpricesupratherthandown. Andthepsychologicalcausesinbothsituationsseemsimilar. Wetendtobeuneasyaboutbargaininginsituationswherethestakesareveryhigh: doyouwanttheguydoingyourneurosurgery, orrunningyourcompany, tobeofferingdiscounts? Better, intheeventthatsomethinggoeswrong, tobeabletotellyourselfthatyouspentallyoucould. Andoverspendingisalwayseasierwhenyou’respendingsomeoneelse’smoney. Corporateboardmembersaredisbursingshareholderfunds; mostpatientshaveinsurancetofootthebill.
收入披露在其他领域中也会引起一系列不良反应。
Sunlightissupposedtobethebestdisinfectant. Butthere’ssomethingnaïveaboutthenewS.E.C. rule, whichpresumesthatfulldisclosurewillembarrasscompaniesenoughtorestrainexecutivepay. AsElsontoldme, “Peoplewhocanasktobepaidahundredmilliondollarsarebeyondembarrassment.” Moreimportant, aslongasthesystemforsettingpayisbroken, moredisclosuremakesthingsworseinsteadofbetter. Wedon’tneedmoreinformation. Weneedboardsofdirectorstostepupandsetpaythemselves, insteadofoutsourcingthejobtotheirpeers. Therestofusdon’tgettoliveinLakeWobegon. C.E.O.sshouldn’t, either.
本文得出的结论是，SEC的规则的潜台词是，完全披露收入将会是各大公司不愿提高高管的薪水。