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Comment by zimbatm | Hacker News Reader

A developer is pretty well paid when compared to other professions regardless of the price fixing scheme. I'm not sure fixed pricing and developer shortage are linked.

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Software engineer's salary is nothing compared to doctors, lawyers and financial traders who enjoy protections from their organizations and a reputation of "being just expensive".

Lawyers and financial traders, maybe. Doctors, not so much (at least in the US). The NRMP is a far more effective wage-fixing cabal than anything anyone in silicon valley could ever dream up, and it's 100% legal.

In the valley I think I'd rather be a software engineer than a doctor or lawyer if I wanted to maximize my expected career earnings.

I should point out that your Expected career earnings has nothing to do with your profession and everything to do with what you actually do.

> Software engineer's salary is nothing compared to doctors, lawyers and financial traders who enjoy protections from their organizations and a reputation of "being just expensive".

Not really all that true, for the professions as a whole, except for medical doctors, who are far above any of the others.

Per the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook [1], 2012 Median salaries for various professions:

Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents: $71,720

Software developers: $93,350

Lawyers: $113,530

Physicians & Surgeons: >$187,200

[1] http://www.bls.gov/ooh/

Yea, to the contrary, they're actually trying to decrease the upward price pressure of the natural market.

They decreased inflation immediately prior to a major period of financial instability. We all owe them a debt of gratitude for the foresight demonstrated. Corporate tax cuts for all involved as reward.

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