By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 13/06/2026Friedman argued that "being a good person" was a squishy, undefinable standard that could never be objectively measured. But "maximizing shareholder value" was a crisp, bright-line test that could be readily evaluated by any reasonable person. 6/ 1391
By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 13/06/2026"Did this manager make as much money as possible for the company's owners?" *feels* like the kind of question we can all agree on, while, "Did this manager behave in an ethical way?" is much harder to answer. 7/ 1351
By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 13/06/2026But even a few moments' thoughts reveal the flaw in this line of reasoning. We can all agree whether a manager made money for the shareholders - but how can we know whether the manager made as much money *as possible*? 8/ 1471
