Companies often use shareholders as an excuse to justify their abuses of workers, the environment, and the general public. Boards and executives can hide behind the shareholder, deflecting the attention of public onto shareholders and positioning them as the enemy.  Activities like pay cuts, lockouts, unionbashing, unethical sourcing, and polluting are justified on the grounds that they make money for the shareholders, ergo the company is fulfilling its mission: To generate profits. The board has a legal responsibility to the shareholders, not to the public, let alone its workers, vendors, and sources, the people who make it run.

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