Now Hear This

Aetna’s CEO, Mark Bertolini, gave a shout through the ear trumpet of heedless legislators at a Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce breakfast, according to a report in the Business section of the Hartford Courant:

"We've done the analysis, and, quite frankly, Connecticut falls very, very low on the list as an environment to locate employees . . . in large part because of the tax structure, the cost of living, which is now approaching, all in, the cost of locating an employee in New York City.”

The Courant business reporter noted that Aetna was well positioned to move jobs around on the international chessboard:

“Aetna insures people in 160 countries around the world, Bertolini said, and has offices in Indonesia, Beijing, Shanghai, Abu Dhabi -- and was even working to open offices in Egypt until massive political upheaval there.

"In short, the Hartford-based health insurer could add workers anywhere around the globe as it grows its health-technology business. Forty percent of Aetna employees today work from home full-time.”

Egypt recently exploded in wrath and booted out its authoritarian, pro-Western dictator. It’s future now lies in the hands of fumbling U.S. foggy bottom employee and the Muslim Brotherhood. Part of the reaction against its now departed dictator was the result of large scale unemployment of a highly educated workforce; the Egyptian street was full of college graduates holding masters degrees who were underutilized, a fertile ground for Aetna, provided the Muslim Brotherhood is kept at bay. The Obama administration is working on it.