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Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting 2022 | Question 23 | Greg's Style | Buffett & Munger | Part 24/25 - YouTube
Channel: Billionaire Philosophy
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and uh becky here next this question聽
was sent in by dave shane from聽聽
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brooklyn new york he's responding聽
to something he heard earlier today聽聽
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he said in the future will greg be able to act聽
with the same spontaneity that you mentioned聽聽
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earlier and make immediate multi-billion聽
dollar decisions without board approval
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well my guess is that the board
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it's just the respondus people do they'll be聽聽
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they'll put some more restrictions or they'll have聽
some more consultation on a lot of matters that聽聽
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that uh or some matters uh then聽
they they do with me i mean that uh聽聽
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they won't need to but they'll feel that they聽
haven't had the experience they haven't seen聽聽
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them as long and then a whole bunch of things聽
and they'll feel that the delaware laws protects聽聽
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them better and incidentally they don't have聽
directors and officers liability insurance i mean
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virtually every company on the new york stock聽
exchange has it and uh we just don't buy it i mean聽聽
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to come on the board and you're a trustee聽
for a whole bunch of people that trust聽聽
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you and me uh i'm talking about the聽
directors in me uh you know finding it聽聽
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but it it's very interesting people people go聽
on museum boards you know and they're expected聽聽
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to contribute people go on college boards聽
and they're expected to contribute money聽聽
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and it's they say it's a great honor to be on a聽
university board or museum board or whatever it's聽聽
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a great on earth and therefore you should raise聽
money for us well frankly i think our board's more聽聽
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interesting that being on a university board聽
or you know or a hospital board or something聽聽
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i wouldn't know what they were talking about聽
anyway on museum board or art board so in uh in
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uh you know but people have found that they can聽
make 300 000 a year uh you know which is way more聽聽
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which is enormously important to some people聽
and it's meaningless to others uh and i mean聽聽
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chances are if somehow they'd arranged it so聽
that directors didn't get paid at all there'd聽聽
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be plenty people wanted to be directors and聽
that'd be a prestigious sort of thing and聽聽
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all that but but in effect it's聽
it's money i that comes very easily聽聽
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i did the whole idea of the independent director聽
frankly is it just doesn't really make any sense聽聽
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you don't think a director is independent who聽
needs three hundred thousand means the money yeah聽聽
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i mean he's independent of the way a slave聽
is independent i am i am going to read a few聽聽
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sentences which are absolutely the case except聽
i'm doctoring the justice i don't want i don't聽聽
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want anybody to be identified obviously with us聽
and these are just but these are word for word聽聽
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excerpts was and i'm not i'm not telling whether聽
it's a a woman or a man i'm going to use a male聽聽
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pronoun because it's just because it's easier聽
but i picked out a few sentences from a letter i聽聽
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received many years ago and this letter said i'm聽
writing to you with a great deal of reluctance聽聽
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and a sense of personal embarrassment i have聽
tried all of the conventional means of raising聽聽
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the money this person needed聽
a couple million dollars聽聽
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and i wouldn't have known the person if i聽
saw him on the street you know but but uh but聽聽
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it wrote this letter and said i need a couple聽
million dollars and uh and then this is the item聽聽
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that i think you might find interesting and聽
i've kept the letter my income is composed 100聽聽
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of my board fees well he i just looked him聽
up and the time he was a director of five聽聽
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companies and they've been directors of others聽
and directors and he's going to be directing聽聽
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a whole bunch of things but聽
he was desperate for money聽聽
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and he says he's getting 100 of award聽
fees and he was an independent director聽聽
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classified as an independent director聽
at every one of these companies
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and
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it's just astounding to me uh that uh聽
you know we're gonna have a shareholders聽聽
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meeting just a couple of minutes we're聽
gonna we're gonna start it and uh um
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it's just astounding to me that uh uh
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in 2006 we own nine percent of the coca-cola聽
company i mean maybe they gave me a free coat聽聽
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i mean but we know nine percent of berkshire聽
hathaway we obviously cared about the future聽聽
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of the coca-cola company and and uh uh just so聽
happened in in that year calpers and a few others聽聽
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have recommended that maybe voted against for聽
something or other and and at one time there were聽聽
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two big institutional ambassadors voted because聽
they didn't think i was independent because聽聽
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dairy queen bought some coca-cola uh for the聽
or actually the people that had our franchise聽聽
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bought some coca-cola i mean do they think i聽
can't add things and if we've got billions and聽聽
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billions and billions of dollars that i'm going to聽
be compromised and but it's it's just nutty and so聽聽
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one year my my my vote fell from 90 96 percent聽
yeah maybe it's 98 vote approval to 84 percent聽聽
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because uh i forgot whether it's 2004 somewhere聽
along the line they just decided that that聽聽
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i wasn't the right sort of person to be able to聽
handle these responsibilities and uh um you know
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the idea that somebody it's an important part聽
of their income i mean what they want they may聽聽
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want to do a lot of other good things it does it聽
doesn't mean they're terrible people but if the聽聽
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if the difference is whether you how you live聽
in this case whether the person might go broke
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how in the world you can call somebody like聽
that independent and say that anybody owns聽聽
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a lot of you know women water聽
scotsman not independent or maybe聽聽
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it's just ridiculous but it's the way the rules聽
are and we we will we follow the rules but well聽聽
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they don't want them just independent now they聽
want one horse one rabbit one cow one whatever um聽聽
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i mean i you know i feel like galileo independence聽
is not enough you gotta have a very diverse kind聽聽
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of independence yeah yeah and and if you if you聽
desperately need the money in this case 100 of聽聽
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the income coming from it uh you're on five of the聽
most prestigious boards in the in the country and聽聽
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and and classified as independent on each and聽
other other and all you're hoping is that well聽聽
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if your ceo gets called by another ceo and says聽
is this guy okay and you say of course he's okay聽聽
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which means of course he doesn't cause trouble聽
and so he gets on the sixth board anyway i know
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oh he says it's not our idea of an independent聽
director it's all a little crazy which brings聽聽
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us to the fact that we're now going to have our聽
annual meeting here and about 15 minutes we'll聽聽
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we'll reconvene it 3 45 and then we'll do the聽
the business of the meeting uh that is required聽聽
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and uh and you're all welcome聽
to stay here and uh it's very
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