Back in the early eighties, when I was publishing my newsletter The Tortoise Report, the thought crossed my mind that the crumbling U.S. empire might find itself breaking up into smaller pieces — as Rome and the British Empire did.

When it comes to ruling over people, even I agree that bigness is bad. The most recent example of this is the former Soviet Union. With its satellite countries biting at its ankles at an accelerating pace and its troops bogged down in Afghanistan, the bitter truth finally came to the surface: With all its military might, the thugs in Moscow couldn’t control the disintegration of their “Union.”

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In Part I of this article, I said that a high ratio between executive pay and worker pay is neither good nor bad – that it is, in fact, irrelevant. Why? Because in a truly free market, “employee rights” have nothing to do with it. An employer would decide what he is willing to pay an employee, and the employee would be fully protected by the market. (Not the government – the market.)

When I say “protected by the market,” I mean that if he’s worth more than what an employer offers him, he is free to sell his services to another employer who places a higher value on what he does. In response to a blasphemous statement such as this, I’ve heard people say things like, “That sounds good in theory, but what if the employee can’t get a job somewhere else?”

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It seems like yesterday that seedy Michael Moore was ranting and raving about General Motors laying off thousands of workers in a year when the company’s profits were in the neighborhood of $5 billion. Too bad he didn’t get his way, because it would have put GM out if its misery a lot sooner.

It’s hard to believe that just fifty years ago GM controlled 50 percent of the U.S. car market (now down to about 22 percent). Who could have imagined that, after the harsh consequences of Pearl Harbor, the Japanese would have the temerity to invade such unglamorous heartland spots as Ohio and Tennessee with their efficiently run auto plants?

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I had a dream last night that my unsubscribe link sent me an e-mail saying, “Would you please stop taking on divisive issues and stick to the touchy-feely stuff?” Just to be obstinate, my answer to that request was to write this article.

You’re probably familiar with Gianna Jessen from an ad the Republicans ran during the presidential campaign. She’s the young woman afflicted with cerebral palsy as a result of surviving a botched abortion. Gianna has also appeared on many television shows, including Hannity and Colmes, and, incredibly, has run marathons and travels the world speaking out on the rights of unborn babies.

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