The more I hear about ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) movement, policies, and programs, the more I think about ongoing political scams and power grabs like those facilitated by faux global warming and the exaggeration of the risks of the next "man-made" pandemic.

The degree to which a large multi-national corporation supports any particular community is the degree to which the community supports the corporation's goals and, more specifically, its senior leadership.

And by support, I am speaking in concrete terms of a friendly regulatory environment, potential financial inducements, proximity to its marketplace, and the availability of an adequate lifestyle and cost of living, including access to a trained talent pool, raw materials, energy, logistical support, and the absence of crime. To think otherwise is naïve.

To the extent that communities condemn corporations as being the primary cause of adverse environmental, social, and economic problems, the less attractive those
communities become relative to other communities.

ESG is not about shared values but about the politics of third parties insinuating themselves into corporate decision-making and access to corporate funding and support, overcoming legally-imposed fiduciary duties that bind corporate actions to the benefits afforded to its owners and investors. 

Like unions who continually demand a larger piece of the pie without increasing production, improving workflows, or reducing costs, we find corporations locked into a lose-lose situation created by community activists and agitations, many of whom might be corporate extortionists trying to sell their consulting and training services to redress wrongs that only they, as enlightened individuals, can perceive.

It is not readily apparent that increasing globalization demands less community participation as one directs resources to hospitable environments wherever they exist. Hence, outsourcing repetitive, labor-intensive tasks to areas with low-cost labor. The importation of highly-educated and trained foreign workers who will work for lower wages can be disposed of without burdensome legal consequences—the increasing use of independent contract workers who do not receive benefits.

ESG is shortsighted, directing capital and resources to politically advantageous products, personnel, and positions. In essence, a form of top-down government control over private enterprise under the rubric of "stakeholder capitalism," more accurately characterized as corporate socialism and control.

We are introducing chaos and communism into our capitalist system to destroy the system from within. A system that has produced untold wealth and raised the standard of living for almost every nation in the world.

It's time to tell the corporatists to step off. To the extent that corporations use tiered stock plans to allow founders to maintain control and do pretty much as they wish, it is time to remove such vehicles. To the extent that large corporations have singular executive control over systemically important financial institutions, it is time for mandated retirement programs and term limits. 

Bottom line…

Another political watermelon scam – green on the outside, red on the inside.

We are so screwed.

-- Steve