[sweeps]

I think you'll find that people have divulged that information on this site when they found it appropriate. Jim's point was that a first time poster comes on to the site and asks everyone's salary? It was just very presumptuous.

Like it or not, people often act goofy when they know how much another coworker, family member, or neighbor makes. Companies have very good reason not to publicize their employees' salaries. I don't know if there is a "culture of mysteriousness and defensiveness" about divulging salary -- It's just not relevant to who a person is, and frankly it's no one else's business. I would say there is more of a culture of voyeurism about divulging salary.

From a practical standpoint, again, I say how much you make doesn't mean a whole lot. Where you live, who you have to take care of, what benefits your employer provides you, the general health of your family, whether you have rich parents who are taking care of you, etc. are examples of factors that make a dollar figure useless to compare.