Dear Wall Street:

Dear Wall Street Bankers: (excepting my brother)

I am writing to tell you it's going to be okay. I hear you all are a little worried. There was this article yesterday in The New York Times about how hard it is to live on less than $500,000/year in New York. And then there was this article about how long it's been since many passed the $500,000 mark, and how hard it might be to go back.

One of the hallmarks of good citizenship is empathizing with those who are having hard times. I'm used to doing that with people who make about $12,000/year. Or less. Single moms who work two jobs, who never got the chance to go to college because they never had the confidence. Or working dads who rarely get a chance to see their kids because they're trying to put in as much overtime as possible.

It's rare for me to sympathize with people making $500,000/year. But I can do it. And what's more, I have some suggestions for you:

WAKE THE EFF UP.

You make more money in a year than most people in this country would make in five years. And you're not that smart. You use other people's money - OUR MONEY - to make deals, trade stock, and generally destroy what we work hard to achieve.

So what can you do now? Try this: move to a more affordable place. Live in a home that costs less than $8,000/month in mortage payments. Take the subway to work. Drop the personal trainer. Tell your kids to get a loan to go to college.

And stop whining. You're embarrassing yourself.

Thank you.