WOKE WEDNESDAY: Aviation CEOs announce things, Ron DeSantis manufactured the woke mind virus, Target's less proud of pride, and a AGM proxy vote sports roundup

Live from the ISS Panda Garden, it’s the ESG Industry’s ONLY weekly woke data podcast, featuring BS-Man Matt Moscardi. In today’s Enormous Shady Grapefruit called May 24, 2023: an ESG Irony roundup and an exhaustive but exhausting look at recent annual meeting vote results.

Our show today is being sponsored by ESGauge, your ESG data solutions provider 

MATT1

ESG Irony Roundup:

1. Two CEOs announce that things that would fundamentally change their business models will never happen:

1. Boeing CEO warns climate-friendly biofuels will ‘never achieve the price of jet fuel’

1. Calhoun added of sustainable aviation fuel, or SAF, “We will create scale and get more economic.  No, I don’t think we will ever achieve the price of Jet A.  It’s gonna be what it’s gonna be.”

2. Calhoun was speaking to aviation executives yesterday, but neglected to mention in this segment that Boeing launched less than a week ago its “Cascade” program… to support net zero in aviation and sustainable aviation fuel

3. Calhoun also didn’t mention his own business trends section of the 2022 annual report from Boeing which said: 

1. While the outlook continues to improve, we continue to face a challenging environment in the near- to medium-term as airlines are facing increased fuel and other costs, and the global economy is experiencing high inflation.

2. But no, obviously it’s not POSSIBLE that sustainable fuel would ever compete.

2. Meanwhile, in a country with no vested interests in oil, Qatar Airways CEO suggests 2050 net-zero goal beyond reach

1. Akbar Al Baker told the Qatar Economic Forum, “I don’t think that we will be able to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.  Everybody’s talking about it, but let us be realistic - there is not enough production of sustainable aviation fuel.”

3. Neither CEOs suggested flying less as a solution, as that would have just been ridiculous.

2. Ron DeSantis may have actually manufactured the woke mind virus in a lab in Florida

1. In 2019, he established the Office of Minority Health and Health Equity to administer health grants to people of color and women and discriminate against white people?

2. The program is called the Closing the Gap program

3. George Soros was NOT involved, but it looks like both managed to release the woke mind virus of diversity AND contain it

4. A new Gallup poll shows the American public who’s “very aware” of ESG went from 8% in 2021 to 11% in 2023 - literally no one cares.

1. 81% of US retail investors have no idea what ESG is and have maybe been vaccinated against it

3. While the woke mind virus may be under control, its effects are still being felt

1. Target announced it’s pulling some LGBTQ+ merchandise from stores ahead of June Pride month after threats to workers

1. Stores in the south have seen pride merchandise moved from the front of the store to the back

2. They’ve reportedly stopped sales of “tuck friendly” women’s swimsuits for trans women

2. Target CEO said on not this podcast last week that DEI, or diversity equity and inclusion, fueled company growth over the last 9 years

3. There is evidence in our Board Sabermetrics data to suggest that the woke mind virus at Target should have been foreseeable, however

1. The board is stacked with the woke: Derica Rice sits on Disney’s board, Monica Lozano sits on Apple’s board

2. The board has no gender power gap - women occupy 38% of board seats and 36% of board power

3. There is a slight POSITIVE diversity power gap - diverse board members occupy 25% of the board and 28% of the power

4. The management team is considered aristocratic, with highly educated directors and management and no single source of influence - the CEO only commands 22% of the board, far below most American peers

4. If all else fails, it has been suggested by me, though, that Target could just leverage existing gun laws and arm your employees like we hope to arm teachers, shooting anyone who threatens you because they care deeply about other people’s swimsuit choices

4. Next, let’s turn to Damion to give us an update on sports

DAMION1

Random AGM Factoids

1. Royal Shell Protest: <audio clip>

1. AGM Results

1. Shell's Energy Transition Progress for the year 2022: 80% yes

2. Shareholders’ version: 20% yes

3. Everything else (24 items) received average support of 98.5%

2. My takeaway: protesters are losers!

2. Honeywell

1. Independent board chair: 45% yes

1. BS: to be fair, CEO/Chair Darius Adamczyk 28% influence while Lead DIrector D. Scott Davis 23% influence

1. Davis former CEOChair at UPS… suggesting a LD needs to strong, also longest tenure on board

2. Despite this, Davis received most votes against: shareholders purey fixated on tenure but not on his counterbalance to CEO/Chair: need BS

2. Environmental and Health Impact Report: 13% yes

1. Franciscan Sisters of Allegany: a report on environmental justice describing its efforts, above and beyond legal and regulatory matters, to identify and reduce heightened environmental and health impacts from its operations on communities of color and low-income communities.

1. Honeywell already publishes a report that addresses our due diligence processes to identify and address environmental and social risks, and in our 2023 update, we have added discussion of how our existing program interacts with environmental justice concerns. We intend to issue an environmental justice report, but we believe that future reporting in this area should be guided by accepted disclosure standards and industry norms, which have not yet emerged, as well as input from our shareowners.

3. My takeaway: Honeywell’s gone Woke!

3. O’Reilly Automotive

1. The O’reilly brother battle (Larry and David, both over 50 years tenure)

1. Winner: David (1.25 million more haters for Larry)

2. Independent board chair: 46% yes

3. Here’s what’s actually important here:

1. 6 of 10 directors (all the white dudes) are wearing identical orange dress shirts in proxy pictures:

3. The 3 women and the black guy were not given the same shirts!!

4. My takeaway: O’Reilly Automotive is White Male Supremacist Cult!!

4. AT&T

1. Independent Board Chairman: 34% yes  

2. Racial Equity Audit: 22% yes

1. The Nathan Cummings Foundation was endowed by Nathan Cummings, founder of Consolidated Foods, later renamed Sara Lee.

3. My takeaway: Pound Cakes are woke!!

5. Morgan Stanley

1. Policy to Cease Financing New Fossil Fuel Development: 5% yes

1. Sierra Club

2. Down from 8% last year

3. “Morgan Stanley continues to support the transition to a low-carbon economy. We have already committed to achieve Net-Zero by 2050, and have announced multiple commitments to help facilitate this transition.”

2. My takeaway: Morgan Stanley gone woke!!!

6. NextEra Energy

1. “Board Skills Disclosure”: 49% yes

1. New York City Employees’ Retirement System

2. “The Board agrees that a diversity of skills and attributes is a key quality of a well-functioning board and is important information for shareholders.”

3. BS: prior to AGM; had a POSITIVE female power gap: +1%!

2. My takeaway: NextEra Energy is super woke!

7. Tesla

1. Robyn Denholm: 26% NO; Elon: 5% NO; JB Straubel: 14% NO

2. Key person Risk: 6% yes

3. stockholder proposal raised from the floor regarding reporting on child labor and forced labor: 0 for votes

1. What the hell is a floor proposal?

2. As you Sow

4. My takeaway: I don’t want to talk about Elon Musk

8. Altria

1. Altria to Conduct an Equity and Civil Rights Assessment

1. Altria will conduct an equity and civil rights assessment following the passage of a 2022 shareholder proposal (62% YES).

2. Assessment to be led by Altria and overseen by an independent external advisory review board consisting of third-party members who possess relevant expertise.

3. Assessment plan informed by recent shareholder engagement.

4. A comprehensive third-party assured report will be published approximately 12 months after the assessment commences.

2. 2023 Commission a Civil Rights Equity Audit: 31% yes

1. Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia

3. My takeaway: Altria gone extremely woke!

9.  Harley-Davidson

1. Say on Pay: 49.9% NO

2. My takeaway: All vote lives matter!!

10. Home Depot

1. “Racial Equity Audit”: .009% Yes

1. National Center for Public Policy Research

2. Senior Management Commitment to Avoid Political Speech: .02% yes

1. The American Conservative Values ETF

1. You’ll be shocked to learn it’s run by 3 old grumpy white dudes

2. They have a boycott list:

1. Includes such favorites as BlackRock, Disney, Starbucks, and yes, Bank of America & Wal-Mart

3. My takeaway: Home Depot gone woke!