5 ms·
But I don't get the "shareholders do not own business corporations" bit. Well, why would they? At risk of horrifically simplifying things, I have a company, I
by EliRivers 7y ago
But I don't get the "shareholders do not own business corporations" bit.
Well, why would they? At risk of horrifically simplifying things, I have a company, I decide I want some more money. I sell you the right to vote in some things that concern the company, and I sell you a share of any dividends that get paid out in the future. That's what you get. Do you now own the company? Do you own the company assets? I didn't sell that to you. I sold you the right to vote in some company meetings and decision making processes, and I sold you a piece of any future dividends that get paid out to you and others like you. Doesn't sound like "owning" something to me.
- kgwgk 7y ago> I have a company What does that mean? You don’t “own” the company, do you?
- EliRivers 7y agoCertainly not in the same way that I can own a pen or a nice wristwatch. Now we're getting somewhere! So what does it mean to "own" a company? If the company is just me and a bag of tools, fixing people's cars on their driveway, do I own that company? What does it even mean for me to "own" it?
- Gibbon1 7y agoYou're making a good argument to point out that 'ownership' takes a lot of different forms. And an interest in one class of thing isn't the same as others. Ownership comes with differing, restrictions, rights, and responsibilities depending on the thing. An opinion of mine the ownership of a company through stocks is secondary to stocks being a quasi-cash financial instrument like bonds.