Business Pants

Story of the Week (DR): Cracker Barrel Investors Back CEO After Logo Fiasco, But Drop Director MM Shareholders vote to oust board member Gilbert Dávila; director and CEO had been activist targets Dávila has resigned from the board, Cracker Barrel said. US regulator will permit companies to exclude shareholder proposals from proxies Securities and Exchange Commission could reshape corporate governa...

MAGAISM/BRO CULTURE CRONYISM/CEOs RULE!/ELONISM I am deeply ashamed': Larry Summers to step back from public commitments after new Epstein emails Senator Elizabeth Warren: “[Summers] cannot be trusted to advise our nation’s politicians, policymakers and institutions — or teach a generation of students at Harvard or anywhere else.” And an unidentified Trump administration official told Politico tha...

Story of the Week (DR): Walmart CEO Doug McMillon to retire in January and US operations chief John Furner will take over MM On February 1, 2026, Mr. McMillon will continue in his capacity as an executive officer of the Company, he will report to the Chairman of the Board of Directors and he will continue to be employed as an associate of the Company through January 31, 2027. Mr. McMillon will als...

DAMION In our 'That chainsaw better be filled with disgusting gas and oil and have really giant testicles' headline of the week. Tories vow to ‘take a chainsaw’ to ESG rules to boost London listings   In our 'I tried to get Doug to buy a Haunted Mansion Lego Set for $89.99 but for some reason he wasn't really that interested' headline of the week. Affirm CEO says furloughed federal employees...

Story of the Week (DR): Tesla says shareholders approve Musk's $1 trillion pay plan with over 75% voting in favor Elon Musk and Optimus dance as Tesla (TSLA) shareholders approve his $1 trillion CEO pay package The anti-CEO wave: Palantir CEO Alex Karp blasts Ivy League grads supporting socialist New York Mayor-Elect Mamdani Bank of America CEO Moynihan Will Give Mayor-Elect Mamdani 'Our Best Advi...

New Mexico’s governor [Michelle Lujan Grisham] in Brazil for climate change conference US Will Not Send High-Level Representatives to COP30, White House Says New Mexico State Investment Council, Educational Retirement Board Vote Against Tesla CEO $1 Trillion Pay Package The New Mexico State Investment Council (SIC) announced that it has directed its proxy, Northern Trust Asset Management, to vote...

Story of the Week (DR): TRICK OR TREAT EDITION Bill Gates and his 'three truths' : 'Climate change will not wipe out humanity' Trick: a gift to MAGA MM Treat: a focus on poverty The 3 truths: "It's a serious problem, but it won't be the end of humanity" "temperature is not the best way to measure progress on climate" "health and prosperity are the best defence against climate change" Bill Gates’ 1...

Our show today is being sponsored by Free Float Analytics, the only platform measuring board power, connections, and performance for FREE. DAMION Amazon to announce largest layoffs in company history, in AI push . WHO DO YOU BLAME? Former CEO Jeff Bezos AI Covid (This wave of layoffs results from overhiring during the pandemic) Executive Chair and largest shareholder Jeff Bezos F5 Expects Revenue...

Story of the Week (DR): Citi’s Jane Fraser consolidates power with board chair vote — and a $25 million-plus bonus to boot a one-time equity award (the Award), consisting of Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) with a grant date value of $25 million and 1.055 million Citigroup stock options the Compensation, Performance Management and Culture Committee Duncan P. Hennes (Chair)* Peter B. Henry* Other dire...

E Scientists worry about biggest CO₂ spike ever recorded Montana Court Dismisses Youth-led Lawsuit Challenging Trump Executive Orders Boosting Fossil Fuels While the court found it plausible that the Trump administration’s efforts to increase the extraction and use of fossil fuels and other actions that suppress climate science and undermine renewable energy would cause grave harm to the health an...

Story of the Week (DR): Blowhard CEOs: Cerebras CEO Andrew Feldman says you can't 'build something extraordinary' working 38 hours a week Sam Altman Says If Jobs Gets Wiped Out, Maybe They Weren’t Even “Real Work” to Start With Marc Benioff Says Trump Should Send Guard Troops to San Francisco Ron Conway skewers Mark Benioff in board resignation after 25 years: ‘I now barely recognize the person I...

DAMION CEOsSayingStuff In our 'Hey Ma, put down your Word Search, I found a CEO that isn't intentionally trying to hold Americans back. Tell Dad!' headline of the week. Jeff Bezos warns Gen Z to think twice before dropping out of college to become the next Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg: ‘These people are the exception’   In our 'CEO haunted by inequality ghost she personally feeds' headline o...

Story of the Week (DR): CEO Succession: Disney CEO to Step Down, Replacement Race Narrows Between Two Major Contenders Josh D’Amaro, Chairman of Disney Experiences Dana Walden, Co-Chair of Disney Entertainment Jimmy Kimmel Endorses Dana Walden as Next Disney CEO: “She’s Done a Great Job” Tim Cook may step down as Apple CEO, John Ternus likely to be his successor Verizon Names Lead Director Daniel...

Japan's first female governing-party leader is an ultra-conservative star in a male-dominated group Sanae Takaichi. In a country that ranks poorly internationally for gender equality, the new president of Japan's long-governing Liberal Democrats, and likely next prime minister, is an ultra-conservative star of a male-dominated party that critics call an obstacle to women's advancement. In a countr...

Story of the Week (DR): War against women continues:  Uber Not Responsible for Sex Assault , Jury Finds, as More Cases Follow Ethan P. Schulman, the judge presiding over the California state court cases, told jurors that Uber would be responsible for the woman’s harm if the company was negligent in using adequate safety measures and the negligence was a “substantial factor” in causing the har...

TECH STUFF California’s Gavin Newsom Signs Major AI Safety Law The Transparency in Frontier Artificial Intelligence Act, or S.B. 53, requires the most advanced A.I. companies to report safety protocols used in building their technologies and forces the companies to report the greatest risks posed by their technologies. The bill also strengthens whistle-blower protections for employees who warn the...

Story of the Week (DR): Disney brings back Jimmy Kimmel’ s show after backlash spurred massive boycott while some conservatives blasted FCC Sinclair says it won't air Jimmy Kimmel on its stations after Disney announced his return FCC Chair Brendan Carr defends ABC affiliate that's not showing 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' despite his reinstatement Nexstar joins Sinclair , says it will continue not to air J...

DAMION Oracle names two CEOs in rare leadership shift after Catz exit Who Will You Blame? Lord Emperor Larry Ellison (65% influence and 42% voting power): he still gets $8.3M in pay despite owning ~$378B in Oracle stock. Is this even possible? He got security-related costs and expenses of $2,999,264 for his primary residence. Board chair Former CEO and now Executive Vice Chair Safra Catz. She’s st...

Story of the Week (DR): Disney Pulls Jimmy Kimmel’s Show After Kirk Remarks Republicans Leverage Charlie Kirk’s Death to Declare War on Free Speech Charlie Kirk assassination reignites debate over Section 230 protections for social media companies "Section 230 needs to be repealed. If you're mad at social media companies that radicalize our nation, you should be mad," Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.,...

LET’S GET POLITICAL! Companies from Delta to Office Depot are disciplining and/or firing employees for their public comments on Charlie Kirk's death Trump wants to end a half-century-old mandate on how companies report earnings Companies should instead only be required to post earnings every six months, pending the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s approval. This change would break a quart...

Story of the Week (DR): Lachlan Murdoch Secures Control of Fox and News Corp , Ending Succession Fight Lachlan Murdoch is confirmed as Rupert Murdoch’s successor, gaining control over the family’s media empire (which includes Fox Corporation and News Corp).  Prudence MacLeod, Elisabeth Murdoch, and James Murdoch—three of Rupert’s older children—will each receive about US$1.1 billion . They wi...

DAMION1 Let’s start with some shameless self-promotion: In our 'So it's theoretically possible you can NOT like someone on the board!' headline of the week. Jim Cramer Likes A Casino CEO Board Member Of AppLovin Corporation “He’s also on the board of AppLovin by the way, which makes me feel like AppLovin’s okay.” In our 'Of course I'm independent, you moron! I've only been on the board since Clint...

Story of the Week (DR): Nestlé chief executive sacked over affair with junior colleague MM Laurent Freixe dismissed after boardroom inquiry revealed ‘undisclosed romantic relationship’ Nestlé chief ‘promoted junior colleague he had affair with ’ Nestle CEO axed after probe into complaints of favouritism, CFO says CFO  Anna Manz said the relationship between Freixe and the employee, who has no...

How Are the Very Rich Feeling About New York’s Next Mayor ? “The Hamptons is basically in group therapy about the mayoral race.” “Even overpriced lobster salad can’t seem to make people out here feel better,” said Robert Zimmerman, a veteran political fund-raiser who has yet to back anyone in the race. Greg Kraut, the chief executive of KPG Funds, a real estate investment firm, has called Mr. Mamd...

Story of the Week (DR): The Cracker Barrel BS Cracker Barrel scraps new logo design, keeps 'Old Timer' after listening to customers Restaurant chain's stock price sank following removal of 'Uncle Herschel' from branding Uncle Herschel wasn’t just a marketing creation, he was a real person. Born Herschel McCartney, he was the younger brother of Cracker Barrel founder Dan Evins’ mother and served as...