Poll: Any stock you would avoid for moral reasons?

Discussion in 'The Cocktail Lounge' started by emmett kelly, Oct 23, 2020.

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would you avoid a company for moral reasons?

  1. yes

    6 vote(s)
    60.0%
  2. no

    3 vote(s)
    30.0%
  3. go back to the circus, clown.

    1 vote(s)
    10.0%
  1. emmett kelly

    emmett kelly Well-Known Member

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    For example, if you opposed abortion, you may not buy into a specific drug company or if you opposed war you may not buy into a munitions company. What say you?
     
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  2. Onepoint272

    Onepoint272 2019 Stockaholics Contest Winner

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    Yes. I only short gambling related stocks for example. Also, FB, AMZN, GOOG, TWTR come to mind as being the "ministers of truth". Also I'm on the fence with any company that claims to reduce CO2 emissions, like TSLA. Either because they are lying since the production of their products releases more CO2 than they conserve in operation or just because it's a bad idea to reduce CO2 emissions and they are selling the political agenda. In geologic terms the earth has been getting colder, the CO2 in the atmosphere has been depleting as it is sequestered by plankton, coral, plants, animals for 1000s and 1000s of years. Just one case in point, they used to grow oranges in South Carolina. Go to the mountains, note how trees are progressively stunted the higher you go, until they disappear, the timber line, not enough CO2. Geologically we're approaching the limit of plant growth viability. The industrial revolution came in the nick of time to rebalance the carbon cycle and release just some of that immense quantity of sequestered carbon back into the atmosphere where it belongs.
     
    #2 Onepoint272, Oct 23, 2020
    Last edited: Oct 23, 2020
  3. TomB16

    TomB16 Well-Known Member

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    I answered "no", although there are things I wouldn't do. When a company does things that demonstrate morality issues, I stay away because I don't trust them to treat investors with any regard.

    Some might consider my answer a "yes" and they might be right.

    The reason we've never invest in any weed related companies is because of my scepticism of the capability of a pot head to run a company profitably and I actively avoid investing fads which push stocks to high valuations in a short time. I don't care about the damage weed smoking does to society, at least from the perspective of an investor.

    I'm looking for well run businesses and one of the attributes required to run a business well is to demonstrate a reasonable moral fabric. Maybe I should have answered "yes"....
     
  4. emmett kelly

    emmett kelly Well-Known Member

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    Sounds like a go back to circus, clown to me. :rofl:
     
  5. TomB16

    TomB16 Well-Known Member

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    You know what they say about men with big feet, don't you......









    .... clown.
     
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  6. emmett kelly

    emmett kelly Well-Known Member

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    full disclosure, i have traded chinese stocks, but info below gives me a good reason to bump this poll to the top.

    https://www.state.gov/chinas-disregard-for-human-rights/

    As the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states, all people possess human rights and fundamental freedoms that governments must protect. The government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), guided by a totalitarian ideology under the absolute rule of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), deprives citizens of their rights on a sweeping scale and systematically curtails freedoms as a way to retain power. People in China cannot practice the religion or belief of their choice. They cannot express their opinions openly or form or join groups of their choosing without fear of harassment, arrest, or retribution. Members of minority groups are subject to mass arbitrary detention, Orwellian-style surveillance, political indoctrination, torture, forced abortions and sterilization, and state-sponsored forced labor.
     
  7. emmett kelly

    emmett kelly Well-Known Member

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    well, with a fresh war about to start, what better time to bump this poll.
     
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  8. T0rm3nted

    T0rm3nted Moderator
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    My answer remains the same, yes
     
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  9. TomB16

    TomB16 Well-Known Member

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    I looked for a petroleum related company in 2020, during the first shutdown. Did not find one I was happy with. Looked again in the fall of 2021, when I thought there was a chance Omicron would shut down China and Russia would invade Ukraine. Again, didn't find.

    I knew petroleum and gas companies would do well in the near future. I have no problem owning those companies, despite being interested in the environment.

    There are companies I won't own for ethical reasons, though. Google is one. No problem with apple, though.
     
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  10. B Russ

    B Russ Well-Known Member

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    They wear big shoes?
     
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  11. B Russ

    B Russ Well-Known Member

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    I guess i would. That said, most i choose to invest in, align with my moral compass and vision in which i see business/world, headed, and i believe thats a factor to what makes them successful. So its easy to disregard the moral question, when most that fit, are more profitable than not.

    pharma excluded. They have their place, but are beyond my realm of comprehension, coupled with the fact that i think they do indeed….whats the way to say it…..seek treatment over cure, for profitability. I have no need or capacity to gamble on those loose morals. nor desire to learn the fundamentals.
    If we were about to engage ww3 and lockhead had a strong case, sure. Id snuggle up to the US gov, and lockhead. Id rather we all just get along. But the crisis will happen whether i deny it and watch the market crash more, or try to make some cash on something i cant change anyway.
     
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  12. Value543

    Value543 Well-Known Member

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    Interesting question. I answered "No" because honestly I've never thought about it that way. On the short/swing side, I'm trading the charts more so than I am the unerlying stock itself. That said, I supposed my answer would be "Yes" on the long term side. I do not own any longs which I feel or have a moral aversion towards.

    Thanks for posing the question @emmett kelly, albeit a while ago, and for bumping it today of all days!
     
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  13. roadtonowhere08

    roadtonowhere08 Well-Known Member

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    There is no scientific proof to prove any of this.

    The tree line is due to temperature and lack of atmospheric moisture necessary to support the water needs of trees. That is why the tree line gets lower in elevation as you get higher in latitude. It has nothing to do with lack of CO2.

    As to the OP, yeah, I avoid certain companies if they are just too morally bankrupt. FB is one. What a cancer to society.
     
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  14. T0rm3nted

    T0rm3nted Moderator
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    This is a good point. My position would change for trading to the short side.
     
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  15. Value543

    Value543 Well-Known Member

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    I'm making a small play on RSX -- so I guess that answers that...
     
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