I continue to find the corporate lack of understanding of how their woke stances can adversely impact their bottom line beyond incomprehensible.
For those who may not remember, or have known, ’Can You Feel The Love Tonight’ is one of the songs from Disney’s movie ’The Lion King’.
Can You Feel The Love Tonight?
Hakuna Matata
WSJ Ed Board: “Revolt in Disney’s Florida Kingdom”
“Its alienating push into Florida politics is a warning for other CEOs.”
“One answer is that previous corporate political signaling came with little cost and media hosannas. Recall when Major League Baseball pulled its All-Star Game out of Atlanta, as a punishment for Georgia’s new voting law.
“Perhaps he thought this would be a free way to mollify his staff, but Mr. Chapek misjudged the political moment. Republican voters who have watched companies side with the progressive agenda and silence employees who disagree are fed up.
“There’s a warning here to other companies, especially Big Tech and Wall Street, which are mainly based in liberal states but conduct business everywhere. If they try to impose their cultural values, they risk losing Republican allies on the policy issues that matter most to their bottom lines, such as regulation, trade, taxation, antitrust and labor law.”
“The Disney lesson for CEOs is to stay out of these divisive cultural fights. The lesson for political partisans in the workplace is that their bosses run the office, but they don’t run the country.”
Be Prepared
Examiner: “Disney chose war with the GOP on behalf of a party that hates it”
“Whether it is good that Republicans are essentially exacting revenge by revoking Disney’s special status or not, it is the inevitable result of Disney making itself a cultural arm of the Democratic Party. And this is not unique to Disney: Major corporations of all stripes have completely bought in to the Democratic Party’s cultural battles, whether they believe in the causes or are simply afraid of mean tweets from activists or unfavorable media coverage.”
“Corporations like Disney have declared cultural war against the GOP, the pro-business party that generally favors fewer regulations, on behalf of Democrats who would rather crush them.”
“Conservatives and Republicans are not going to be running to the defense of Disney over its special status being revoked, and they won’t be standing in between woke corporations and the Democratic Party’s antitrust warriors either. Disney and other corporations chose to become talking point parrots for a party that hates their very existence. They will now have to lie in the bed they made for themselves.”
The Lion Sleeps Tonight
Federalist: “Gov. DeSantis Is Right To Attack Disney. Republicans Everywhere Should Follow His Lead
“This is how you deal with big corporations that try to throw around their weight and force woke policies on voters and families. You punish them, not just because they deserve it …”
“Indeed, at any other time and place, with almost any other Republican governor and legislature, Disney would almost certainly not have faced any consequences for wading into the debate over the parental rights bill. After all, since when do Republicans actually wield power against the enemies of their voters and defend ordinary families from powerful woke corporations? Almost never.
“By breaking that mold, DeSantis has set a clear example that other GOP governors and state lawmakers should follow. If a corporation like Disney wants to insert itself in a political battle that has nothing to do with its business — in this case, a fight over whether to prohibit classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity to children in kindergarten through the third grade — then it should be prepared to pay a heavy cost.”
“This isn’t about the economic arguments, not anymore. Whatever merit there was to the notion that Disney ‘serves the public interest’ before the fight over parental rights has completely vanished. Now that Disney has taken a stand against families and parents, there can be no doubt: Disney does not serve the public interest in Florida, and Floridians owe it nothing.”
“For many years now, only one sidein this war has been crying ‘no quarter’ before every battle. The other side has pretended not to believe it and surrendered time and again, with predictable results. Finally, DeSantis and Florida Republicans have taken the enemy at their word, and responded in kind. Republicans everywhere should go and do likewise.”
Circle Of Life
RedState: “Funny how the gamebook of the left becomes offensive when those on the right start running the same plays.
“The Disney-DeSantis Dust-up Leaves the Left Outraged Their Tactics Were Used Against Them”
“It also places leftists and members of the media in the awkward position – for them – of defending a version of corporate welfare. But in reality, they also ignore that the First Amendment, while allowing freedom of expression, does not mean you are free from experiencing the ramifications of your words. Disney is not being forced into silence, nor compelled to change its practices. The company chose to enter a political fight; it is in no way protected from being hit.
“What has the left and the media in a furor is a governor resorting to the methods they have supported for the better part of the decade. It was fine for them to target businesses into forced compliance with an agenda, so now the blueprint is in place for dealing with woke corporations that are attempting to leverage their own agendas. The method used may be uncomfortable, but the design that has been accepted requires such reactions.”
Just Can’t Wait To Be King
James Freeman: “What Happened to Disney’s Florida ‘Stakeholders’? Businesses that claim to have a greater purpose than serving shareholders often end up serving a lesser political agenda.”
“Disney’s intervention into Florida politics highlights again the problems that arise when businesses stray from their central purpose of creating long-term value for shareholders.”
“Also, how do Disney shareholders benefit from Mr. Chapek’s foray into cultural politics? Some may want to sell their stakes and instead buy shares in a business where the CEO demonstrates corporate responsibility—to the owners.”
Vivek Ramaswamy: “Disney’s CEO took a toxic political position that hurt Disney’s business. Normal capitalism: his top 3 shareholders would tell him to knock it off. Capitalism today: BlackRock, State Street, and Vanguard tell him to keep at it in the name of ‘ESG’ & ‘DEI.’ That’s the problem.”