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MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

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1

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

2

Despite his $200 million success, Matthew McConaughey spent a weekend in the desert reading 20 years of bad reviews—he says some of them had ‘a point’

3

Travis Kelce joined an activist group pushing Six Flags to consider a sale. The ‘Final Destination’–style death of a patron poured gas on the fire

A case study in executive stupidity

By
Stanley Bing
Stanley Bing
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By
Stanley Bing
Stanley Bing
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November 20, 2008, 3:14 PM ET
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donkey1

Just a question I’ve been thinking about since yesterday… What do you think the boys at the Big Three auto companies were thinking about when each took his own private jet to Washington to ask for help? A number of subsequent queries suggest themselves:

  • Are they stupid?
  • Assuming that they are NOT completely stupid, didn’t anybody consider this might not be the absolutely best move, at least in terms of the optics?
  • If somebody DID think about it, did they voice the opinion and were then overruled?
  • Why were they overruled?
  • If nobody thought about it, WHY didn’t they? Granted, the thousands of dollars spent in this form of transport have no discernible impact on the billions that are under review, but still…
  • If they were going to fly private, why didn’t they all go in ONE jet? Do they hate each other that much? Or couldn’t they agree on which jet they would take?
  • Did they think nobody would find out?
  • Why do senior officers of corporations get so out of touch? Is it a part of the job description, or do they devolve as they serve their terms?
  • Do politicians fly commercial? If so, why don’t I ever see any?
  • Are senior officers of Detroit auto companies considered part of Middle America?
  • Should we blame an entire industry for the failings of its senior officers?

Tell me what you think.

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By Stanley Bing
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