Soaring executive pay is shaping up as a major political issue. US share prices might have fallen but executive compensation has continued to rise with the average chief executive now making more than 465 times what the average US worker makes. That's in contrast to the differential of 54 times average US worker pay in 1980.

It's not surprising then that European Union finance ministers have condemned excessive executive pay and have linked it to over-the-top risk taking and the recent financial turmoil. The European commission is pressing member countries to give more powers to shareholders over boardroom remuneration but has stopped short of demanding EU-wide action to restrict salaries and bonuses.

In keeping with that, the Financial Times reports that a FT/Harris poll shows that most people in Asia, Europe and the US believe income inequality is too wide and has to be pulled back. The numbers ranged from 76 per cent in Spain to 87 per cent in Germany.

But the really interesting number is that 78 per cent of respondents in the US felt the same way. That's highly significant because the US has tended to be more tolerant of this gap. A sign that times might be changing.

Of course, that's shaped up to be a political issue in the US with Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama slamming chief executives and bankers who have paid themselves big bonuses while sacking workers or foreclosing mortgages. Still, that hasn't stopped the Democratic candidates cashing in corporate profits behind closed doors. According to CQ MoneyLine study, reported here, Clinton has received $164,000 from 54 of the Fortune 1000 CEOs and Obama, who always says he takes no money from political action committees or federal lobbyists, has picked up $130,000 from 45 of America's top companies.

Still, the most interesting take on executive pay has come from internet billionaire Mark Cuban in his blog.

Cuban says the issue is that CEOs are paid in stock, or as he calls it "lottery tickets", but the rest of the population is paid in cash.

"The pressure from Wall Street is to grow earnings forever,'' writes Cuban."No matter what it takes. This isn't a problem when a company is doing well. Everyone is happy. But when the economy hits a bump like it has now, when the market is hitting a bump and stock prices are declining, like it is now, the pressure comes. Everyone owning the stock reacts and whats to know what the CEO will do to get the price back up. This, as they say 'is where the CEO earns their pay'. Unfortunately, what this really means is that everyone who works for that company is at risk. At risk of losing their jobs, benefits, raises, you name it. It's at risk.All of which is a long winded way of saying that employees live in the corporate cash zone, CEOs and the top few in management live in the equity/lottery ticket zone.

"Those in the cash zone always take the first hit. People,places and things that consume cash are the first things to go because cash expenses immediately reduce earnings. If you or anyone like you consumes cash, unless someone upstairs thinks you generate a straight to the bottom line return on the cash expenditure, you are about to become a corporate ghost. Your person, place and thing will be memorialized as a cut to increase earnings mentioned in a press release that wall street will cheer and use to push up the stock price."

The answer? According to Cuban, it's pretty simple. Put the CEOs in the cash zone. That's not to say they can't own stock. But if they do, let them buy it on the open market or as part of a program that makes stock available to every employee.