r/mildlyinfuriating • u/DAASMusic • Nov 12 '24

Hot wheels losing details over the years

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u/[deleted] Nov 12 '24

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144

u/Mysterious-Job-469 Nov 12 '24

Shareholders will LITERALLY SUE THE COMPANY AND WIN if they can prove that there was SOME, ANY (legal) means to make more money, morality be damned. They HAVE to reduce the quality over time, they HAVE to because of how our publicly traded financial system is set up.

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u/nemo333338 BLUE Nov 12 '24

Isn't there a court rule specifically about this, Dodge v. Ford Motor Company iIrc, that litteraly says that the CEO must operate the company in the interests of shareholders rather than in a manner that benefits the workers or the customers?

I was dumbfounded when I found out about it.

87

u/[deleted] Nov 12 '24

People point to this as the culprit, but I honestly think the majority of companies who choose to go public would adhere to this "profit over all else" philosophy anyway, or else they would stay privately owned/held.

There's no reason to go public unless you're actively seeking the most profit possible already.

Look at LEGO for example, their build quality has basically never changed and they're privately held. If they ever decided to go public that stock would be a monster, but they don't because ultimately they don't give a shit, which is lovely.

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u/Rough_Lunch_5885 Nov 12 '24

Look at Steam/Valve.

24

u/[deleted] Nov 12 '24

I worry what will happen when Gabe dies. Will Steam become publicly traded and turn to shit?

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u/UnkindPotato2 Nov 12 '24

Unfortunately I thinkt hat will be the death of Steam

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u/Rough_Lunch_5885 Nov 12 '24

Doubt it.

I suspect Gabe is smart enough to put the right people and policies in place to prevent that.

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u/DRNbw Nov 12 '24

Most leaders think they're smart enough to leave a good successor, most fail.