[UKTechie]

I don't agree and now feel negative towards him and companies. He is showing himself up as an egotistical tosser. Loved the Tesla but he is a bit of a twat.

 

[cah197]

OMG. Sell your Tesla quick!

 

[dk6780]

It's nothing new:

Tesla warning as Musk calls for end to lockdown

He does however have a responsibility to the shareholders to promote policies that he believes are in its interest. Clearly he believes that a long lockdown will hurt the business. As a clever person he has offset the effect of deaths from Covid-19 and the damage to the business and believes the lockdown to be worse to the business. In the long term we'll see whether he's right.

 

[GTEJesper]

It's nothing new:

Tesla warning as Musk calls for end to lockdown

He does however have a responsibility to the shareholders to promote policies that he believes are in its interest. Clearly he believes that a long lock-down will hurt the business. As a clever person he has offset the effect of deaths from Covid-19 and the damage to the business and believes the lock-down to be worse to the business. In the long term we'll see whether he's right.

Are you serious? Where on earth have people's moral compasses gone?! You realise you are equating people's lives with shareholder interests as equal in importance right? And a business leader does not only have a responsibility to shareholders. It also has a responsibility to society and wider stakeholders including, not least, its employees.

Let's see you lose a loved one to Covid-19 and see if you still have the same view...

 

[cah197]

Clearly he believes that a long lockdown will hurt the business.

He was actually commenting on how a number of his suppliers are probably going to go bust. His view is that Tesla have enough cash to weather the current situation.

 

[Hitstirrer]

Let's see you lose a loved one to Covid-19 and see if you still have the same view...

Or, of course, if a close relative loses his business and home. Sinking into financial ruin he sees no alternative but to end his own life. See how that argument works? By the way, that is a current strong fear by practising psychologists.

 

[dk6780]

Are you serious? Where on earth have people's moral compasses gone?! You realise you are equating people's lives with shareholder interests as equal in importance right? And a business leader does not only have a responsibility to shareholders. It also has a responsibility to society and wider stakeholders including, not least, its employees.

Let's see you lose a loved one to Covid-19 and see if you still have the same view...

So using your view tobacco companies should cease trading immediately? I believe that, but it's not the way that the law sees it. The law requires the Directors to act in the shareholders interests, and unless they can create an argument that the current situation is in the shareholders interests then they have to argue against it. Responsibilities to society and employees are only so far as they don't impact shareholders.
If you read my other comments today on the forum you'll see I've argued against lifting lockdown immediately. The cheap shot about losing a relative is poignant, I lost a close friend yesterday to something else that would have been treatable in normal circumstances but their operation was delayed.

 

[Tooks]

He was actually commenting on how a number of his suppliers are probably going to go bust. His view is that Tesla have enough cash to weather the current situation.

Would it not also be in Tesla’s interests to ‘pre-buy’ those parts and keep their suppliers afloat and able to supply them going forward?

 

[Tim Ostler]

Musk is like Wagner or Frank Lloyd Wright: creative geniuses who also happened to be tossers... Hate the man, love the products.

 

[dk6780]

Would it not also be in Tesla’s interests to ‘pre-buy’ those parts and keep their suppliers afloat and able to supply them going forward?

There will still have to be a reduction in the amount purchased.
Ford would normally use this as an excuse to drive their suppliers into the wall and then buy them at a knockdown price.

 

[ianatkin]

Musk is like Wagner or Frank Lloyd Wright: creative geniuses who also happened to be tossers... Hate the man, love the products.

After his outbursts over the last day I've added Tesla to the list of companies to avoid post pandemic... of course it makes no difference to him but you have to draw a moral line somewhere.

 

[Jimbo]

If you listen to his comments on the Q1 call last night, his view is slightly more nuanced than comes across on Twitter.

What we are seeing in the US is people being penalised for staying at home in some States (immediate loss of job & benefits); or penalised for breaking "Stay At Home" rules in other States.

Musk believes that people should have the freedom to choose to stay at home or to go to work, and should not be penalised either way.

He needs a better way of communicating that viewpoint over Twitter.

 

[cah197]

After his outbursts over the last day I've added Tesla to the list of companies to avoid post pandemic... of course it makes no difference to him but you have to draw a moral line somewhere.

This was what tipped you over the edge?

 

[GTEJesper]

So using your view tobacco companies should cease trading immediately? I believe that, but it's not the way that the law sees it. The law requires the Directors to act in the shareholders interests, and unless they can create an argument that the current situation is in the shareholders interests then they have to argue against it. Responsibilities to society and employees are only so far as they don't impact shareholders.
If you read my other comments today on the forum you'll see I've argued against lifting lock-down immediately. The cheap shot about losing a relative is poignant, I lost a close friend yesterday to something else that would have been treatable in normal circumstances but their operation was delayed.

I'm very sorry for your loss and for the cheap shot. I would be lying if I said it wasn't deliberate though as was trying to make the point strongly - apologies though.

Shareholder primacy is an interesting concept with many grey areas and is by no means as clear cut as you make out. What Paul Pollman did at Unilever is but one example of a large corporation of moving away from this. The fact is that anyone holding on to Friedman's arguments in 2020 is simply not living in the real world. And it is sort of a moot point anyway as study after study shows that responsible business that takes a much more holistic view outperforms the stock market and actually makes better returns for shareholders...

And for what it is worth, I don't believe tobacco companies should exist and have actively rejected work when offered.

 

[GTEJesper]

Or, of course, if a close relative loses his business and home. Sinking into financial ruin he sees no alternative but to end his own life. See how that argument works? By the way, that is a current strong fear by practising psychologists.

This shouldn't be happening either - but that is why in progressive European societies we have massive bailout packages, furlough schemes etc to avoid this happening. Sending someone back to work so they can spread a disease (or even contract it themselves and potentially die) is not the way to respond to the potential of a redundancy in the future that may or may not lead to a suicide.

 

[donald]

Are you serious? Where on earth have people's moral compasses gone?! You realise you are equating people's lives with shareholder interests as equal in importance right? And a business leader does not only have a responsibility to shareholders. It also has a responsibility to society and wider stakeholders including, not least, its employees.

Let's see you lose a loved one to Covid-19 and see if you still have the same view...

Your comment is predicated on 'lock-down' actually saving lives, but there is zero evidence that it does. Guesswork and feel-good factors there.

 

[cah197]

Your comment is predicated on 'lock-down' actually saving lives, but there is zero evidence that it does. Guesswork and feel-good factors there.

Give it a rest. It’s quite embarrassing how you persist in being contrary to quite basic evidence of the impact of COVID-19.

 

[donald]

Give it a rest. It’s quite embarrassing how you persist in being contrary to quite basic evidence of the impact of COVID-19.

You mean, the evidence you have not found and cannot exhibit?

"M'lord, I have evidence but I am not going to show you. It's embarrassing you'd ask for evidence of my client's innocence."

 

[GTEJesper]

Your comment is predicated on 'lock-down' actually saving lives, but there is zero evidence that it does. Guesswork and feel-good factors there.

Zero evidence!

 

[GTEJesper]

You mean, the evidence you have not found and cannot exhibit?

"M'lord, I have evidence but I am not going to show you. It's embarrassing you'd ask for evidence of my client's innocence."

Norway, Denmark and Finland are but three examples... and when compared against Sweden who should really be doing just as well as them but didn’t go into lock down, makes the evidence even stronger.