4 ms·

The state government of lower Saxony (the state where VW is based) owns 25% of VW. I don't think that's a coincidence. Edit: looks like it's 20%

chii 6y ago
how can a company be both owned by, but also regulated by "the same" entity? that is a conflict of interest aint it?
- raverbashing 6y ago
  It isn't the same entity
- k__ 6y ago
  Employment. The big corps can accumulate more slack that would otherwise need money from the state. This keeps unemployment rates down, at the cost of giving out tax cuts. It's always important to keep the powerful people happy.
- apexalpha 6y ago
  This would hold true for any government owned entity... In practice, the 'same entity' are very different people in government with different mandates.
  - hutzlibu 6y ago
    But they all know how "important the car industry for germany is". And if they don't know, they will find out. Heck, even the german car newspapers apparently would not really attack german cars on a serious level. At lest I head of a case, where a reporter from Auto Bild was on a test drive for a shiny new car model - and some shiny new feature did not work. What they did, was not report it, but secretly worked out, how to conceal that in the reporting. (no sources avaiable, heard it from people in the industry)
- squiggleblaz 6y ago
  I would have thought the federal government should be taking the lead in regulating a car manufacturer. It's not like their cars will be limited to use in one state.
- cosmodisk 6y ago
  There are lots of examples of state own enterprises. If correct legal barriers are erected,it can work,but obviously it's not always the case.
- anoncake 6y ago
  Considering how influential the car industry, including the companies owned by the state, is, it doesn't make a difference.
- perlgeek 6y ago
  So, we should forbid all politicians to own stock.
  - _whiteCaps_ 6y ago
    No, but it should be in a blind trust. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/blindtrust.asp https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/blindtrust.asp
  - sdinsn 6y ago
    Politicians holding stock and the government itself holding stock are two very different things.

chii 6y ago

how can a company be both owned by, but also regulated by "the same" entity? that is a conflict of interest aint it?

raverbashing 6y ago
It isn't the same entity
k__ 6y ago
Employment. The big corps can accumulate more slack that would otherwise need money from the state. This keeps unemployment rates down, at the cost of giving out tax cuts. It's always important to keep the powerful people happy.
apexalpha 6y ago
This would hold true for any government owned entity... In practice, the 'same entity' are very different people in government with different mandates.
- hutzlibu 6y ago
  But they all know how "important the car industry for germany is". And if they don't know, they will find out. Heck, even the german car newspapers apparently would not really attack german cars on a serious level. At lest I head of a case, where a reporter from Auto Bild was on a test drive for a shiny new car model - and some shiny new feature did not work. What they did, was not report it, but secretly worked out, how to conceal that in the reporting. (no sources avaiable, heard it from people in the industry)
squiggleblaz 6y ago
I would have thought the federal government should be taking the lead in regulating a car manufacturer. It's not like their cars will be limited to use in one state.
cosmodisk 6y ago
There are lots of examples of state own enterprises. If correct legal barriers are erected,it can work,but obviously it's not always the case.
anoncake 6y ago
Considering how influential the car industry, including the companies owned by the state, is, it doesn't make a difference.
perlgeek 6y ago
So, we should forbid all politicians to own stock.
- _whiteCaps_ 6y ago
  No, but it should be in a blind trust. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/blindtrust.asp https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/blindtrust.asp
- sdinsn 6y ago
  Politicians holding stock and the government itself holding stock are two very different things.