American Consequences - January 2021

FORCED TO CHOOSE

F ew things irk me more than on my rights, your rights, or anyone else’s . Complaints of systemic racism and other forms of discrimination abound today – as do myriad ‘solutions’... If you believe the current system favors white men in particular, and you flip it to force companies to favor women and other races... you haven’t made a single step forward. politicians, government officials, or others in positions of power meddling in places where they shouldn’t meddle. They can’t infringe Apparently, the folks who run the Nasdaq stock exchange believe the solution is more racial and gender discrimination... embedded by law, no less. Last month, Nasdaq filed a proposal with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) to establish new rules for board diversity and disclosure. (You can read the full proposal right here.) The new rules would require that all Nasdaq-listed companies...

• Disclose statistics on the diversity of their boards of directors (races and genders). • Have at least two “diverse” directors, or explain why they don’t. Nasdaq officials spend most of the 271-page document touting the virtues of the plan. Of course, as always, they get bogged down in the linguist quagmire in the first sentence... Over the past year, the social justice movement has brought heightened attention to the commitment of public companies to diversity and inclusion. Social justice, diversity, and inclusion are all undefinably vague, but popular buzzwords of our time. They’re used to justify the government (and other powerful entities) imposing their will on individuals who aren’t infringing on anyone’s person or property. Let me say it again loud and clear... It is wrong in all times and places for governments and powerful organizations like Nasdaq to force anyone to do business with anyone else . Using coercion and fraud for any purpose are wrong in all times and places. Period. Before I go any further, I need you to understand... I’m not saying racism doesn’t exist or isn’t

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January 2021

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