Transcript
Oh, I added over here. I don't know how I feel. That's not in the script. And we are live and Alive. Oh my God. Am I screaming to my microphone? I like this is Ari the data Queen. It join us whole map of Scotty. Jesse the money. Whisper hazelnut role is just sleepy hazelnut rollers on. Today's weekly wrap up, we have pointless Furniture, greedy, God, and uplifting bills. Wait, I don't know why that means. I don't know what any of that means. I'm greedy God. Get ready? I capitalized God, I hope it doesn't offend anybody as an atheist of wondering which one you're referring to are you had uplifting bills in all caps with five explanation points but he didn't sound like that. When you said yeah well I hope nobody thinks I'm talking about the football team that lost. Oh, I was actually thinking that the Buffalo Bills. I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about a little process. Oh, nobody cares about that, definitely not him. All right, should we do this thing? Up, please. Oh, it started its Damien's turn. With story week, we're saying that we're recording this. If you're watching live stream right now which you're not, we're recording the Friday show on a Thursday because Ari is actually leaving for vacation. We already are offering vacation time in the at the end of January. She waited as long as she could before she took her first vacation day. Yeah we gotta have a meeting with HR actually. Yeah, we don't just he is. All right, but you guys went to high school together. So clearly, there's a conflict of interest there too. Yes, because people matter. All right, all right. I have, I'm very concise this week. Thank God because I looked at your to your segments, and you guys are very long-winded. So, I will start with Exxon Exxon sues to ESG investors. They are suing our Junior capital. And follow this. Uh that because both of those entities are trying to put share the proposals up on their upcoming proxy statement, their annual meeting, they're taking a very unusual route, usually companies go, right to the SEC. But excellent decision to seek legal judgment. Makes a more aggressive pushback against climate activists you shareholder voting oh no influence boredom strategy. So I think what they're hoping, I I I'm guessing this is set some kind of a precedent that allows these companies to bypass the SEC and say and say we can do whatever the hell we want bullied and there. And they're what Exxon is saying is that since the SEC is a full political appointments that, you know, the SEC doesn't really have a. That's kind of an arbitrary process of making decisions based on, which political but there's two things that are true about this one is that if you buy shares in a The owner of the company, no matter how few shares you own and you have a right, you have right to at a certain level, put forward proxies and number two, this, but the company does have a right to exclude certain proposals based on SEC guidelines. Well, not only that but they, these are non-binding shareholder proposals, like, even if it were to pass, that's the crazy thing. So all Exxon has to do is write in the proxy for the shareholder proposal. We disagree vote against black rocks, guaranteed to vote against they vote against everything now. It's just like they used to so, so it's not exactly like this is owner is but they're making a point here. Number two, the board that had to approve. The lawsuit is the engine number one board, the people in The Boardroom of them, at least three of them were put there by an activist with limited shares who wanted to change the makeup of the Board. We don't know that they vote for this. We don't really know. Do we? I think we don't against this. Yeah. I what do you think? I think they voted for this. Yeah, I think that's probably correct. I think. Once they realize how much money there's to be made Exxon and being friends with Exxon types, they're like, oh, we'll just go with what you say. Yeah, whatever. The next big story is a director story. I love director stories. Do you guys? Who knows, who Dwayne Johnson is anyone? Dwayne Johnson, who doesn't know who Dwayne Johnson? I didn't know that his name was that recognizable. I know him as his, you know, his stage name, The Rock The Rock is joining Ari. You'll be happy that the rock is joining your database. Your data set, he will become a director at TKO. Yeah, yeah, you know what? You know, why they brought? The beat up that they brought him in because man is listed as a risk. So now he has to fight him. So quite true risk though, that's not quite true because he's actually representing one of the so the WWE and Endeavor each have designated direct receipt and he is representing Vince McMahon's side because he's a WWE wrestler. But he also, unlike most directors he also is entering the board with the services agreement worth 30 million dollars. Wow, baby get paid. So there you go. The rocky aboard. I feel like, right. Like he's probably richer than most of the board. Oh no. Yeah no. I'm gonna look into this. I'll come back with numbers. Are you from all the Furious and whatever movies. Oh, he was in this, not him. Yeah, he was in a couple of those, I don't really know but Vin Diesel was in all of those. Well, the rock also happening this week over at Netflix has signed an agreement to air live wrestling WWE right there. Finally, which is just bizarre to me. Yeah, I've everybody's been waiting for that. DVDs from the library anymore whereas Bob Iger shouldn't Bob Iger be signing Disney on his platform. Yeah. The third big story of the week is the patriarchy wins again, is the headline. Oh, so I don't know if anyone's following the Oscars nominations, but we have kind of an ESG related story with the Oscar nominations. So the movie Barbie So the Barbie picture itself. The movie was nominated for an oscar, but not the director. Feminist director Greta go where she was not nominated. And And Barbie herself. Margot Robbie was not. It but Ken, the man was nominated. This is this is what this article is about. I think this, I think this is part, this is kind of in line with the BlackRock of BlackRock is now rolling back all. It's it's it's it's vows to fight climate change its ESG goals. I think it's the same thing. I think they're bowing to to anti-wolf pressure. I'm a little bit. That the Oscars are not relevant anymore, that was just the story would be much more interesting. If anyone cared, I think people only think most people care because of all the snubs, maybe you do it on purpose, to generate Buzz. That's true. That's true. Except for the 150 year, history of denying women Oscar nominations for direct films. Now it's a, what if they knew that Barbie was going to lose everything and they're actually sparing everyone. But the man, they're basically gonna have the man there who's got to sit through the ceremony. He is very good looking and and they're gonna turn to him when Barbie loses and he's gonna have to like clap for whoever won annoyed. I maybe that's the plan. Maybe it's not a snub maybe it's Saving Face. And finally, the four story of the week, the fourth story the week is not a new story, but it's new to me and it's one of my favorite corporate governance. One of my favorite board stories. I think I've ever heard this is from an article in the financial times called how unions are fighting a boardroom battle at Starbucks, and they reveal a story, an anecdote that I have not yet heard and I'm gonna read from the article. It says, there is a famous story about Starbucks that is often cited during discussions of governance at board meetings. There is an empty chair. Yeah, but let me finish the story sound effects person. I love this. There is an empty chair to represent the interests of the coffee, Giants employee's, the idea, All right, comes from its mouth. Oh my God, will you speaking of employees? Someone shut mad up. The idea was proposed by a founder and former CEO Howard Schultz to show that the company's Baristas have a symbolic seat at the table. So the the emptiest gesture in the history of corporate America, symbolized by an empty chair, just like blanket, right? The Holocaust. Yeah, this is, this is worse. Because Howard Schultz literally could have a representative from the many thousands of stakeholders, the state. The, the people that he claims are so important that he calls them partners and he says over and over and over how instrumental they are the company, how they are the company, these partners and he has them represented by an empty chair at the board. This is the greatest story ever. Don't know about. This we need to tell you now they do, if they're listening to this story because I think when they were protesting or walking out doing their walkouts, they were just, you know, hold up. Empty chairs. Yeah, that would be exhausting now. That's probably they probably didn't know what that was like. Oh it's too heavy too heavy. I'm not doing this. So those are my four stories Exxon, Sue's ESG investors The Rock joining TKO board. Patriarchy wins again at the Oscars and empty chair at Starbucks. Again, that's not a news story, but the financial times just had that this week. So, all right, I'm gonna vote first. Oh yeah, I'm gonna go with Exxon suing. Oh, I don't like this. Well, I don't like that. I don't like that. They're doing that and I feel like, I don't know. I don't want the nuns to get sued. Yeah, when you go to sue a nun, get on that. So just yeah. I'm voting for The Empty chair. Thank you, Jesse. Somebody understands somebody gets it. I felt easy to me, not so this is actually hard for me because I think the empty chairs like the greatest anecdote. I've ever heard new, unfortunately, the story but still, but it's definitely the story of the week feels like Exxon to me. Oh, no, it feels like Exxon somewhere else. Because look, we don't have much in the way of precedent of company, suing shareholders for doing what is legally their right to do, which is put up a proxy, right? Like put up a shareholder proposal, sure. That means if Exxon were to win this lawsuit, it would suggest that any time a company doesn't like, what a shareholder proposal or one of their investors has to say, they can just sue them. Instead of not putting it there and said going, Through all the normal channels and they are, you putting it up for a vote and letting it fail, they can sue them. Yep. Which to me is it's really it's it's a really bad look for Exxon because they don't care, they don't, and they don't care, well that's the thing, they don't care. They know the wind their back when it comes to this ESG stuff being like you know focus of conservatives. So that's the story. Yeah. Thank you. Damian. That's just thanking Damien. She's the host. What the host? Thank me. I got three Goodluck and they're so good. You're gonna have trouble. Okay. All right. Southwest. Airlines. To prove strike authors station. You know, I love me a good strike. Now good and bad. Yeah, South West back in the headlines, right? The company that up until the 222 holiday season had us all believing or I don't know maybe just myself that it was peace and love with their hearts all over, I believe. Yeah. It's a terrible experience. I enjoyed. I don't really have you, flown Spirit? No, no. I don't have a desire to die. So their philosophy was happy employees. Equals happy customers. Right? Well, I guess the relationships. Is a complicated right now. 98% of flight attendants belonging to the transport Workers Union of America voted to authorize a strike against the company for the first time ever. Now you might be asking, okay did Queen, didn't they just approve a new labor agreement? Hey, where they're gonna get? I know they did. Raise over five years. Nope, that was the pilots only piece of the pie as well. So this goes great. That's why I feel bad about this one. Keeping it going. Matt. I know I'm gonna die this year. Look at it. Look at that. It's gonna die. I want to vote for this, just because look at it and why? No, it's gonna I mean, I like this sorry, but it is what depresses me, that the pilots did get this great deal and and I I'm guessing that the flight attendants are well not because they're majority women and yes, right. Yeah. I mean, but right now we're gonna move to number two. This is my headline outrageous. CEO paid targeted in new bill from Bernie Sanders in us. So surprised a bill to anyone to tell me that this is not good because I'll never pass. I don't want that type of negativity, that's what you're gonna hear. But let me tell you about the bill directors that well, you know, because cope isn't the hands of the boards of directors, right? It's not the companies that pay their CEOs and shareholders, supposedly supposedly. So those people that pay CEOs over 50 times. The typical workers salary would expect to pay higher taxes under this. That's every company, right? Just for free float. That's reverse the average for the S&P 500 in 2022. The average CEO pay ratio was 2721. Yep, at the top of the list for 2022, was Live Nation, of course. 5,414, they have Taylor Swift. Live Nation know they have their website. They don't like Taylor Swift to think that Taylor Swift's fans. I think for that. That's um, Beyonce's fan. That was the biggest failure for them, are you kidding? They're failing. Okay, 400 words of failure, whereas the failure the whole, there's a system crashed when all the fans start to buy other companies that we know at the time Coca-Cola at 1800 McDonalds at 1200. And you might be saying, well, you know, the people who work in McDonald's, they don't make a lot all. So Apple at 1100, oh, that one is a bit of a flash in the pan though, because Tim Cook got one of those Elon Musk deals, made them like several billion dollars in metric and metrics that everybody could have guessed that. He would have met anyway, whatever. Anyway, moving on to something good from Florida know. To ban social media accounts for children under 16. That's awesome. I mean, I was just so floored by this article, I'm gonna read three quotes from there. Florida children under the age of 16 would be banned from popular. Social media platforms, regardless of parent approval. Oh, and this is what Bill sponsor. Republican rep, Tyler. Soros. Whoa serious, a great guy. I'm guessing great guy. Yeah, no problem, they're taking advantage of kids growing up, that's their business model. And why do they do it to keep them hooked with a dopamine hits her children? You can't get a abortion but teenagers can't go on Facebook. I don't know, I can't I can't get behind Florida. Anything or him? Sorry, Republican house Speaker precedent. That could be set, Florida, Republican house Speaker Paul Renee or whatever his name is said the Florida. Bill should withstand constitutional scrutiny because it targets the wall addictive features of social media and not the content of social media, how Facebook always gets out. I mean, Mark Zuckerberg. Hey, sorry, we haven't for drinking and that's a defensive and social media and you're right, I don't have just, you're so right? Just I've never known a high school kid. Drink. It's just it, I certainly did not, I didn't either. Yeah, right, sure. Anyway, so the way they'll solve this, though is with, when you sign in to, to Instagram, it's like, are you 18? And then you're just like, yes, quite a passes, the passes, the burden onto the kid, right? Like they can actually check this. How are they gonna enforce this, Jesse? How? I don't know, but I like it. Anything that brings attention to the detriment. I agree. Yeah. So why don't they get rid of how about this Florida? Republicans? First of all, everything else you do suck but second of all, why don't you want to you a text section 230 and, and actually have these social media companies, liable for their content, they put out instead of doing this weird Jesse thing, that No One's Gonna Do. And 2:30 is the thing that says that, if you created a platform, you are not responsible for let's put on the platform wrong. No, I think about that. They are not responsible for the content on their platform. Because it, because if we were just talking about videos with like snowball fights, everybody would be fine. I used to be just Captain memes, which you Of my stories. Are you voting for Damien? Where's two? These are tough. There's Southwest flight attendants. Strike authorization, there's CEO pay bill from Bernie Sanders and there's Florida's ban on social media. I think I can't support anything on a Florida. I'm sorry. I could I don't and I don't even trust, she said to nobody's trust, I don't there's no way I trust Tyler through war or republican house Speaker, Paul Renner, but I applied you for trying to be bipartisan here on the show. Yeah, somebody has to somebody. Somebody has to Uh, Southwest Airlines look, I'm all for striking workers, but I I feel like that they shouldn't even be in this position. The first place that's lumped together the pilot. I just, yeah, I mean, so it's not what I mean. They didn't want to be bogged down by the women that they have that the risk going out in the pickle. It's not like these experience in the picket lines are easy and so advice is just sucks for, you know, that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying, Southwest get, get it into action and pay your flight attendants, the best, particularly when South West runs flights, with no flight attendants on it, because they're striking, but they still run the flights. So you get on a Southwest plane and there's no one. There's like it's just like you and seal all the exit because they they have to lock the pilot doors. Now thanks to terrorism, right? Like so all the pilot doors are locked so you can't get access to the pilots which means it would be Lord of the Flies. Can you imagine like just walking around? They'd be punching each other for stuff? Well have Roomba Rolling around you have to admire the flight attendance for no other reason than they are. Like the parents to the like kindergarteners that are people taking flights now like they walk around and they're like, excuse me sir, you know, you can't like wave that cigarette butt and that baby's face you need to, you know, they there's the adults in the room. Yeah, no, look. I support of course, I support the flight test, I support, all labor movements. I'm just angry at Southwest. I'm gonna go for the the Bernie Sanders bill because I know it's not gonna pass. It needs 60 votes, but I think it's just important to keep at it. Keep trying. I mean, who else is, who else is at it here? I mean, yes, as you point out over and over, and over shareholders, are not doing their job, they don't have to care. That's correct. We do. So let Bernie go after them. I'm putting for that one. Why don't you go next? So, vote for the house, Banning Social. Oh my God. And I'm not gonna vote it for me to vote for anything for Florida, because they think social media is literally the worst thing that's ever happened to humanity. I agree with you highly even police this, I think it has a better chance of passing the Bernie Sanders bill on CEO pay. But I know they already passed it. I just, I do think that this is like, well, doesn't DeSantis have to sign it. They have enough boats, too. I'm sure he'll sign. I just have this. Like if if I'm watching my daughter, go through it right now where it's like she goes to school and their kids who are like saying things and doing things that they saw on tiktok and she's not on tiktok or social media. So she has no reference for what they're talking about. And it's like exclusionary at the same time, it's generally horrible. And all it does is teach kids are 12 and write fucking 12, right? So this, I ban it all. Shut it all down. I don't want Zuck to get another dollar. I don't like, he owns either Side Market that I agree with. I just don't, I just got to call Florida in general. I, I don't care where it's from. I'm glad they're doing it so that's right with a win. There you go. I can't believe that I totally expected that to be the case. Okay, Matt, oh Get ready. Stretches go. Take a water break. You're gonna get back? I'll keep it quick. All right. Come on. It was a break. First of all, Damien mentioned, the story. How unions are fighting a boardroom battle at Starbucks. My first asshole of the week is actually the authors of that story or tenka, aliage and Patrick Temple West. And here's why, because they framed this story when you read the full ft article as in. Not about employees wanting a non-empty seat at the table. They did not. They mentioned this as the launch point to say this is how investors are using an Arcane or we're back door rule to advance a social agenda. The whole story, not a social agenda. Well, this is what they, This Is How They quote it right there. Here's a quote I do not think this is the campaign we have been waiting for and worry about or I do think sorry. I do think. This is the campaign we've been waiting. For and worried about says, one advisor to large public companies, single issue. Activists advancing a social agenda. And then the authors, write, not only must companies contend with challenges from traditional hedge funds, which have long stalked, their decision making, they must also prepare themselves for proxy fights from outfit seeking to reshape their social agendas. Yeah, it's not the representing the employees of a company. That's not a social agenda. It's probably the most important stakeholder of your entire Corporation. But my favorite, my favorite actor of my favorite, regulator of 2023. Basically, I haven't mentioned her yet this year, but CEO, commissioner Hester Peirce, oh my God has a quote about the actual mechanism being used saying that investor passionate about issues involving bees would have leveraged to demand companies, put beehives on the roof of each office building. These are not binding votes. Actual investors, have to vote on them. You have to get a majority of the non-binding vote to even get anyone's attention to talk about this. Like, it's some slippery. Slope or were forcing a social agenda? Well, nothing actually. How The slippery slope argument is used for so many things, right? I mean, I remember first hearing about with gay marriage back in like the 90s saying that, you know what, next people can marry their dog, that's what it was. Yeah, and they contrast this with the activist action at Disney saying, quote Disney, for example, is facing a conventional campaign led by activist. Investor Nelson Peltz. Nelson Peltz borrowed. Shares for his campaign and his strategy to attack his knee includes no strategy. Other than Disney said they want streaming to be profitable. Pelt said he wants to streaming to compete with Netflix. Like that's like the conventional campaign. Yeah. Like I the whole frame of this article just diminishes the fact that this is a union quashing billionaire, it's the financial times knowing your Source. Yeah, I know, but that's why I'm talking about who wrote her right, like management friendly. You're not reporting. Like the news, the reporting on the Mechanism to to what and then purporting, it to be a social agenda. It's not a social agenda. It's the same mechanism that everybody's used forever and shame on. You know, in fact, in fact, the big there is a bigger picture to this because it's Starbucks. Labor is a, is a major risk going for, in general, for whoever's, running Starbucks. It's correct. So like start, but well, it's under pay their people because there's been fighting going on for years now. So putting on some directors who are who are come from labor and have an awareness over labor issues. Could actually prevent long-term risk at the company by not having this crazy strike breakout like it happened at the big three automakers. I mean, this actually could be a very, very kind of sobering cautious move as a social just logical. It's not Even like the, the Strategic organizing Center, which put this slate up, picked people who are not qualified to be born members, like they're highly qualified human beings. So, what are we really talking about? Number two option, and this is more to be clear to be clear. Your number one, option was the authors authors authors of that, number two, number two, and this is really has, there's not really an asshole here. But I want to talk about the big vote segment on our next proxy countdown, we are covering apple and as part of that, I looked at skills matrices, Hmm. A skills Matrix is, you know, directors and proxies. They have like a little check. The box thing that says, like I have a skill and Leadership. I have a skill in politics. I have, it's not required, they don't all have them. But yes, the bigger companies, definitely, bigger, companies tend to have them and it tells you like, what your skills, mix for the directors are. They're very, very simple and simplified things in order to give you a quick, snapshot Lego building, it turns out Rubik's cube solving skills. It turns out, not only does no one read them because if they did read them they'd recognize that they're totally made up. That's the unfortunate part. I did a deep dive for the proxy countdown which is our other show, which you should go listen to, to get a recommendation on who to vote for in Apple's upcoming AGM. And I looked at the skills Matrix and I looked at the skills Matrix for every board member on Apple and on every other board that they're on, the result was things like this. Most of them are in other words, right? Almost all of them. Yeah. It's a very heavy hit Champions champions. So take someone like Andrea Jung who's on the apple board she's listed as having a check next to financial expertise. She has no check mark next to Tech expertise. Well it's Apple. I'm sure the bar is pretty high for Apple. I mean, yeah, sure. But no check. Mark next to government expertise either. Okay, except on Unilever, she has no check mark for financial expertise, they have the same, it's the opposite, it's the opposite and then it says, because she's on the apple board, she has Tech expertise. So absolutely, she has any expertise, but Unilever, does. And then you leave her says she has geopolitical expertise which sounds and smells a lot like government expertise. That doesn't think that she has. Yeah. That's one example of on the entire apple board. Yeah. Which is what nine people don't think he'll be a for this meeting. 8 people. Yeah, after this meeting on the apple board five of He ate had different skills on different boards than on the apple board. Well, I'll tell you, I, as I, I worked at one of the predecessor, companies of msci that developed, the data point asking whether directors have industry expertise, and I'll tell you, this is what we ran to over and over and over. Is that the companies lie? You can't take what the company say you. So we had to have a an analyst to just did this. Just try to figure out what what directors expertise was is because you couldn't even trust the companies, right? Because you're right they they constantly contradicted each other or they they claim that showing up to four board meetings a year represented some kind of expertise in the industry which is clearly not the case. But Ron sugar is on this board who is one of the most powerful board members in the entire world ever. And and it's like the companies, he's on the boards of can't even agree. What? He's an expert at. Like apple says he's got no no government expertise. No environmental expertise but Chevron says he Has bully. Yes. Because he's an expert, everything but no one wants to say that because then they look like they're lying, but wasn't he? The CEO of like a major government contractor Northrop Grumman? Yes, he was. Of course he was. Yeah, apple maybe Apple doesn't know they're talking about well. Somehow Chevron says, Environmental expertise, but Apple says he is no environmental and destroying and destroying so, but this is the problem, right? This is why I nominated skills matrices. Because if we're in a world where we want to understand like we routinely say that we've heard that the people who sit on boards don't matter, but we care enough to show you all the skills that they have and how they matter. But we just lie about that, right? Like it's all theater. It's all you. It's all overwhelming from an Investor's point of view because they often there's like 19 different skills and and there's, you're right like they presented in some table and some weird check marks and you have to, like, scan over 400 feet to see who has, you know, experience like using a computer. So it's like it's not helpful, it's just not helpful to investors. And the part of the problem is that SEC doesn't regulate this as data and they should. Yeah, everything's too hard. Go home skills Majors use your What else? Matt. My favorite part about it too. Is they also have definitions of the skills sometimes, like, and then you got to read that. All right, number three, I am nominating. The financial reporting Council. Oh, good. I know why? So the so the UK corporate governance code is up for refreshment. And the financial reporting council is the one who refreshes it. They put out a draft of a new corporate governance code in May. And then they just released the final code and they removed ESG from most of it all the term. Well ESG is gone gone. One of the reasons why? Because from May, until they actually released report there was a heavy anti-esg sentiment. So they put their finger up in the air and they didn't like the way the wind was blowing, so they just hit the delete, but I see I'll refine that. Right? Because the FRC the financial reporting council is not a count, like, some amorphous blob. It is a bunch of people who made decisions and the name of the people who made the decisions Who removed ESG actually, might matter the CAO of the FRC for the first draft, was someone named Sir? John Thompson, I guess, I have to say the sir, we're not in the UK. He threw Elton John, he's a lifelong bureaucrat, and he's liberal Affiliated. He's a civil servant. He was the CEO for the first draft. He was replaced. After the first draft. Just a couple months after Um, by a conservative appointed Richard, Moriarty the minister who replaced him has argued that they should Frack for natural gas in Yorkshire. Like there's natural gas in England. I guess he voted against same-sex marriage in Ireland and he once said, that parents should be responsible for feeding hungry kids and not accepting charity, from a footballer who set up a charity to feed hungry kids. So the person running the FRC the CEO, what's the plan? So if you're wondering why he is, she got removed, it might have something to do with the fact that the person running the FRC went from one guy to another guy and the other guy was appointed by a conservative politician. Yeah, Richard wouldn't allow ESG and then finally your final asshole of the week. Is Dave Calhoun the CEO of Boeing that's he's probably a winner. I saw hey don't worry. Well, don't leave the jury when you hear what he said. So I New York Times has a long spread about what's going on at Boeing. We've covered it at nauseam here. Times Mr. Calhoun. Here's a quote from the article. Mr. Calhoun visited the spirit aerosystems Factory last week. That's the plant that made the door plugs. And Boeing said this week that it was planning to hold a quote quality Stand Down on Thursday during which production delivery. And support teams would stop working to intend learning sessions on quality. So, Dave Calhoun has basically said, oh boy, it's the employees fall that they don't know how to do quality having nothing to do with the fact that he and his cronies have been leading the company for 20 years into the abyss. What do you suggesting that they shouldn't they shouldn't be addressing that. Dave, Kyle Hoon should not be telling anybody. What quality is he fired immediately? What's amazing Matt that during this round because they were lucky enough that nobody got hurt. Nobody is calling for any Executives or board member to step down this time even though Think we've made the case over and over that, it's the same people, too. Like I, I don't know how deep. I mean, we talked about this yesterday in the show. Dave Calhoun has been attached to Boeing since 2008. I believe he does. Only joined the board. Yeah, been in leadership positions since 2011. So it's how, how is he avoiding? I think part of you had enough as David I don't, but I think it from the perspective, Dave Calhoun, what point do you say? You know what, I've made enough money from this company, it's not worth it anymore. All this stress every week on the headlines, never pretending to cry. So those are your four options. Your four options are the writers of the Ft article. Yeah, I like the skills matrices skills Matrix fraud, the financial reporting Council and their new CEO and Dave Calhoun. Can I go first? No. Oh, Dave Calhoun. I told you that would be leading the jury. Yeah, this is why I want to go first because I'm actually not gonna vote. Okay? It's gonna come down to just tell me why don't you just? And I know Jesse won't support my vote. So, but probably be a time. Maybe a time. Maybe a tie for Matt. I'm actually going right for the writers of the financial times. We, I mean really, because I, I'm glad you pour into this out. I was gonna make a note of this on the show because that that stood out to me to this bullshit about calling it, a social agenda. And and I, I think this stuff matters, I mean, I I know, it doesn't in the big picture, it seems like a nothing like a throwaway but to attach the term social agenda, which somehow it has a negative connotation. He was the actual thing. And how how does it even have a negative connotation to have an agenda that is trying to take care of fellow human beings? I don't even know how we've got his point. Like, I don't even understand it but that they that they think that a pointing board members with an Ortiz in labor, and Human. Resources is a part of some kind of a liberal agenda is just crazy to me. And and you're right and I think it it plants seeds into people's in investors heads that somehow, this is like some kind of Nefarious, woke up if you vote for the soc slate at Starbucks, now, are you woke right? Like, that's what they're trying to plant. Meanwhile, they talk about the Arcane quote-unquote, Arcane method that now you can put a slate together through proxy access without mentioning the fact anywhere in the article that a no investor has to vote for that slate and B, those none of those votes are binding. So like, yeah, it's laughable that anyone can say that you're pushing an agenda when no one has to listen to you at all. And it's worth pointing out and reminding people that Starbucks is a unique company, right? Where 100% of your interaction with this company, is all through these Baristas, right? So, so it, everyone else is getting rich at headquarters, but, but all all the customers deal directly with these people, they have to deal with everything that happens at this company, so they definitely deserve more. So, just break the tie or make the tie I am breaking the time. I make a time. I'm going, I'm going with Damien. Oh, we haven't had a tie in a while. All right. Okay, we Dave's an asshole. But this is, this is more important thing. This is a unique free flow. We picked up on it, we're gonna put it in everyone's I like it mines pay attention While You're Reading Plus Things. Jesse. You're right. We knew we've been saying that Dave Calhoun for years. We knew this already. Yeah, that should be more of me. All right? Please exhausted, Jesse. All right, we're gonna go quick bees. Articles that I picked are just so obvious that I don't even really have to talk much about them. Okay. So first headline GOP rep his name is Andy Biggs from Arizona. Oh I know. Andy Biggs says, no well we've talked about it. I programs are to blame for airline problems. I decided to put this in my section of exhausting us because we have been hearing this for a couple weeks. And we love racism started to hear these issues about the airlines. It's everyone's been everyone that wants to escape. Go has chosen Dei And his quote, this. And of course, he shared his ideas on X. Yes. You should not share anything anywhere none other than x. But here's what he has to say. There have been too many close calls with major airlines recently, woke to EI programs are placing on qualified. Pilot airplane, cockpit these Airlines need to be prioritizing safety over diversity quotes. Nothing to do with the pilot off the place, but just stayed right on. Just just, this is like straight KKK, honestly? No difference. This is partially. Why it's exhausting? But also instead of prioritizing Dei, maybe you should not choose. Profit over safety for this anymore. How dare, I think it wasn't really big growth growth. Wasn't there andy Biggs who said scapegoat its profit. He said something about the was it Andy big? She said something about the ball bearings on the Norfolk Southern like if they spent more time, Focused on the ball, greasing the ball bearings. And then Dei, then Norfolk, Southern Train, would a state underground. Norfolk Southern Rock, crusty old white guys? Okay, no, because there's more. So here's my second story, billionaire. Joe Lewis says he's embarrassed by knowingly committing Securities fraud after pleading guilty to cry. Oh yeah. Not actually the most exhausting part of the story that my section. That's not, that was exhausting part. So, first of all, we all know that Joe Lewis is just embarrassed that he actually got caught, he's not embarrassed that he committed it. If he didn't get caught, he'd still be doing this. This is the statement from his lawyer. I mean, I know the lawyer has to be on his side but this is the statement. This exhaust to me, the government has made an egregious error in judgment in charge of Mr. Lewis. In 86 year old man of impeccable Integrity. Mr. Lewis has come to the US voluntarily to answer. These charges and vigorously. Okay. Ill-conceived Chargers, he did something illegal, like he pleaded that he tipped off a acquaintances Pilots, that were just like, on piloting planes. He was on like just acquaintances with Insider info of boards or companies that he was like, A large and faster on. That's literally illegal. So how are these charges? He has impeccable Integrity, he's a billionaire. So he go. There we go. Anyways that that is just completely exhausting. A ready for my last one. Yeah, this one. This one's really good. This one's the one. I've been waiting this. Okay. My last exhausting is is committing crimes in the name of God. I feel here's the headline. I like that's a good musical named blah blah. Here's a headline. Pastor charged with cryptocurrency fraud said God told him to do it so much better, a Denver passed her Regalado and his wife marketed a digital coin. That prosecutors said was practically worthless and pocketed, more than one million, they used the proceeds to support a lavish lifestyle classic. He wrote when he, when there was a civil complaint was filed in Denver's District Court, created a video to address his Christian followers who invest his Christian investors. Saying that he went into the cryptocurrency business because the Lord told him to. Yeah. That's why we started free flow. We have continued to tell his Christian investors that they have to do this. I mean, if you think about it, we took God at his word and sold a cryptocurrency with no clear exit. They're just doing what the Lord wanted them to do. He also he and his wife a few hundred thousand dollars of the funds on a home. Remodel that the That's right or told them to do it. And he says that he still hopes investors can get their money back and believes, God is going to work a miracle in the financial stuff. Oh, we're gonna get an investor. Yeah, so good guys. Maybe we should try that. This is when we file for me. That's you know what we should do? When we go to investors and we tell them, we have all the data that you need to make informed decisions. On the directors, we can tell them that God is telling them to buy the data. And we shoulds operates, right? Vote for this person, what you're asking questions? God said, vote for that. I'm sure I assess has ever said that. I just want for the record. It's really proud of you. What are you guys? All right, so wrapping these up, is there easy for me? Easy, i programs for blame for airline problems, Joe Lewis's. He's embarrassed by actually committing Security fraud and he has impeccable integrity. And finally, a Pastor said, God made him do a fraud. I love crime. Damian. Why don't you go first? Yeah, right simple. Anyone who ever blames a Dei program for anything? Other than other than, like, trying to reverse hundreds of years of like enslaving people in this country, it should always will always be voted by me for any category asshole. Exhaust. All right, easy boat, Andy, Biggs Andy. Biggs I'm going with cryptocurrency. Okay, crazy, you're crazy. This is defrauding by the church in like this Century, right in like real time, they're adapting, it's wonderful. We already know churches do this. But yeah, he blamed black people for adore and on an airplane pilots for the door coming off the side of the airplane. Well, I'm not exhausted. There's not been enough pastors saying that God told them to make cryptocurrency tribes. There's been plenty of crimes committed. I know you want this the 21st century. Now, I'm over it, I'm actually already single or sing more quickly. So, I stopped singing. I'm going to go with Joe Lewis actually. Oh, it's high because, and I'm gonna sway Jesse here. Because how many times does a billionaire have to be caught doing a crime? And then they say that, well, this was just like, and this is impeccable person. This is these, are you charges, he's now 86 years old right. He's been a billionaire for a really long time on the back of some of these egregious crimes that he's not, he admitted to but is still impeccable integrity and somehow our fault that we are inconvenience here. Like the whole thing is like you said, you did it. You did it and now you're telling us that we are like convenience thing, you like Grandpa, he came to the US voluntary lead to answer these ill. Conceived charges, really sorry. Like we he's inconvenienced to have to come to the United States because he committed a crime in the United States. That's exhausting. All right, Jesse you're up. Oh, you're leading the jury. I think I'm gonna go with that because I think it's really scary. I mean, obviously I want to do it. Can't think they can do whatever they want and this would just like further confirm that they can and I that scares me. So I'm voting for that. That means, right? Who won the week? I got a quick one. Go ahead. It doesn't happen very often winners. I'm gonna say women. Oh no, that would be the right answer, actually, why. According to Yelp women were the largest demographic of new business owners in 2023. Okay? Was a real thing. It's a real thing. Yeah, they also went from six of them to eight of them. Anyway, I'm gonna say I'm saying the empty chair at Starbucks that they did win the week though for all. Yeah, for me, I mean imagery. So because I, I swear, maybe a year ago, I don't remember what the context of the show we were doing was but I called Starbuck's the greatest gift to a corporate governance. ESG analyst, that is my favorite company ever because it's just tons of stories. And then this happened is my favorite. Come on, I love that. It was the Holocaust blanket and everybody had to list their favorite, their favorite Starbucks drinks. And Roxy, I love boomerangs CEOs, all of Howard Schultz's Bluster and I have The Rock, he got 30 million dollars for a rubber stamp vote. This anybody who won more than the rock, just did like 30 million bucks to show up 12 times a year. Started out in the WWE, right? He did. Yeah, technically yes started Ari party which I didn't say was that he is gonna he's gonna return to the ring to face off against the Undisputed. WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns. Nobody cares. Yeah. I'm just saying, like, he's the director on a board is also gonna wrestle on that. Time that's ever happened. And oh my gosh, we haven't said the word musk this whole time. Sorry, I ruined it. Okay, I chose peacock because they report 2.8 million subscribers for the NFL. I, and I also thought they would be publicly traded. So I tried to dig up some dirt. But NBC, they are Comcast BC. NBC Universal is owned by Comcast know. It's privately held. I looked it up. All right, prediction. Prediction. Well. I'll go first, because I actually ruined the musk thing, although I didn't say musk. Oh, but here, but here's my friction. In order to get his 25% stake in Tesla, Elon makes a big deal. Okay. And he tried to CEO title and his brother. So I like this. Oh, he so Elon becomes executive chair, right? And Kimball is gone. That's the trade that gets him. His 25%. Yeah, I like that. All right, that's a good one. Here's my prediction average salary for chief marketing officers is gonna take a doe, a nose, dive this year for two reasons. So weird, well, as a way to distract from CEO pay and two women at numbered men in Seattle jobs, representing 70% of new appointees and so 2023, they're gonna win anymore. 2023 saw ups at Sea Walgreens among others eliminate, the CMO position altogether 2024, we'll see more of that. Plus pay cuts. Oh wow, where's my Adam prediction? Companies will decrease their outrageous. CEO pay ratios by hiring women for the job. That actually is. That's the one pretty. That's a better prediction. Thank you. I don't know what the other one way to do it. That's good I like that I've prediction is simple. It is that we see a rise in the nominations of empty chairs for boards that represent things, they have to specifically say what the empty chair represents though. Well excellent. Sue you for that. Yeah, I am going to slate a group of empty chairs for the next board and they will hold people must share. That's all we got. Some money Whisperer and are the data queen. I am. So I'm at Scotty, we are free float. This is a weird Thursday Friday show. But listen tomorrow on Friday, Thursday for the proxy county is gonna be gone for a while so you won't hear she comes back or next week, whichever comes first, goodbye.