It seems that large corporations today are falling all over themselves to prove how diverse and inclusive they are, even when it means their corporate profits tank faster than a balloon made of lead.
At first, I had to chuckle that Bud Light would make such a bizarre marketing move that would alienate their core customers by putting a transgender person on a can and then have that person lounge in a bathtub sipping on the product.
The only one who is likely laughing at the backlash is Dylan Mulvaney, the transgender spokeswoman for Bud Light, and she is laughing all the way to the bank.
Despite the boycotts, other corporations dove into the “woke” deep end without verifying that there was water in the pool.
When Target decided to up the ante and place somewhat suggestive LGBTQ+ merchandise in the front of its stores, I had to shake my head because I could just hear some seven year-old kid asking his mother while shopping: “Mom, what is tucking?”
Some people are now asking, why are these companies going out of their way to offend people, and why aren’t the stockholders of those companies revolting when they see their stock portfolios shrink?
According to Peter Basciano of the Hull College of Business at Augusta University, one reason is that many, if not most, people who own stock in Target do not even know they own stock in Target.
Most people purchase mutual funds, which contain a diversified portfolio based on the amount of risk the individual is willing to accept. By having stock from many different companies, the investments become less riskier.
“Most people go to the broad market to avoid economic shock, so the more diversified you are, the better protected you are,” Basciano said.
Wendy Habegger, also of Augusta University agrees and says that it’s like choosing a basket of goodies, and those baskets come in all shapes and sizes.
“Most people acquire their mutual funds through their job or retirement plan, and they rarely read the entire package. They just select the name of the portfolio that is going to bring the highest amount of return,” Habegger said.
It is not the individual investors who hold power over corporate CEOs. Rather, it is the giant investment firms that manage the mutual funds that have leverage over corporate policy.
Allen Mendenhall, associate dean of the Sorrell College of Business at Troy University, writing for the non-profit news outlet Divided We Fall, contends that coercion from large investment firms such as BlackRock, State Street and Vanguard forces corporations to hire “diversity, equity and inclusion” departments.
“It’s not because these companies are genuinely conscientious and socially responsible (there are, of course, exceptions). Rather, it’s because companies respond to top-down pressures from government, regulators, and activist investors,” Mendenhall wrote.
If the new “woke” corporation loses billions of dollars and sees its stocks devalued, the social justice warriors at BlackRock don’t care. They just move on to another target (no pun intended).
I have always seen huge corporate behemoths as a threat to capitalism, even long before they began trying to indoctrinate the public on social issues.
Thanks to companies such as Walmart, Costco and Target, the “mom and pop” retail store is becoming extinct.
Years ago, I owned a small fine wine and beverage store. I felt I was somewhat shielded from some corporate colossus coming in and pulling the rug out from under my business since the state of Georgia only allows entities and individuals to hold a maximum of two liquor licenses in the state.
Walmart found a loophole in the law.
What then happened was that the arms-length-Walmart-owned-big-box-liquor-store was able to purchase vast quantities of, let’s say, Crown Royal, when I could afford to purchase only five cases a week.
The big box store then undercut me and all of the other small liquor outlets offering Crown Royal at insanely low prices.
As soon as I and other small stores were shuttered, those “low low” prices vanished, and the big box store hiked up the price of Crown Royal and sold it at a much higher retail price than I would have ever dared.
According to Habegger, this has long been the corporate strategy, and in the end, it only harms consumers.
“They know that they can take a loss in one area and make it up in other areas. Once they own a major portion of the market, they eventually jack up the price,” Habegger said.
Boycotts against big corporations rarely work, for the simple reason that while Bud Light may be losing money at breakneck speed, Anheuser-Busch owns scores of other brands. Also, giant retailers like Target and Walmart have the market cornered and consumers often find themselves forced to buy goods from them because they feel they have no other choice.
This is yet another reason for all of us to buy locally whenever we can. It may mean driving five miles out of the way and paying a few dollars more, but the money spent stays in the community.
Local businesses support little league ball teams, not “social justice” organizations that want us to normalize tucking.
Scott Hudson is the Senior Investigative Reporter and Editorial Page Editor for The Augusta Press. Reach him at scott@theaugustapress.com
