After dinner, the hostess Caterina was clearing the table. The 19-year-old second son Hank was carrying a whole plate of Hessian pork sausage and white bread slices in one hand, and carrying a large bottle of juice upstairs.
, that was his late night snack today.
"Hank, at this time you should go out and have a beer with your friends instead of hiding in your room and playing Blizzard games. This will make you isolated from the whole society. If there is a suitable girl, you can try to date."
"Dear mother Catalina, please leave me alone for a while. I am not a curly-haired baboon in heat."
The 16-year-old daughter, Lisa, was helping clear the table. After hearing her brother's impatient words, she raised her head and glanced at her father, Chambers, who was sitting in the living room. Seeing that his father had no expression, she quickly drew back her neck.
After hearing her son's rude words, Catalina dropped what she was holding in disbelief and walked angrily to the bottom of the stairs in the living room.
He shouted to the people upstairs, "Water Hank, you play that Blizzard game day and night. You are possessed by the devil, and you actually spoke like this to your mother."
"I just... okay, Mom, I apologize."
The sound came from the second floor, and no one could be seen.
Catalina turned her head and looked at Chambers sitting on the sofa, with a hint of anger and questioning in her eyes.
"Hank has already apologized. His words were just self-deprecating. I don't think he meant to offend you. Can we try to forgive each other?" Chambers explained helpfully.
"So, you just sat on the sofa and watched all this happen."
Seeing his wife turning the blame on him, Chambers felt bored. He had to deal with too many things in the company every day, and when he got home, he just wanted to rest quietly for a while.
"Katrina, I don't want to argue with you over these unnecessary reasons. I can step in anytime if you need me. OK, just sit down quietly and watch the financial news for a while, okay?"
"I don't want to read any bullshit financial news. I'm really fed up with it all. Being busy with trivial housework every day has made my skin wrinkle. I'm going crazy. It's been a long time since I had an elegant relationship with my friends.
Went shopping."
Busy with trivial housework every day?
God! Do the gardeners, cleaners, cooks and drivers employed in the home just live on their own every day?
How long has it been since you, the hostess, washed a plate? Are you really embarrassed to say that?
"Uh... It seems that you just came back from Paris last week. At the beginning of the month, you maxed out your credit card in Los Angeles."
Catalina went crazy after hearing her husband's teasing; "This is already a thing of the last century to me. You don't understand what a woman needs?"
After saying that, Catalina went upstairs angrily.
Lisa said obediently, "Dad, I will finish the dishes."
"No need to bother, you can just put them in the sink and the cleaner will clean them tomorrow."
"It's better to clean them. The weather is so hot. These food residues will go rancid overnight and will emit an unpleasant smell."
"Thank you for your hard work, my lovely Lisa, you are already able to share the worries of your parents."
Chambers was saying beautiful words without moving his buttocks at all. He picked up the remote control and turned on the large-screen LCD TV. The International Financial Channel of NTV News Network appeared on the screen.
The animated logo of the International Financial Channel crosses the screen, forming a glittering "n" English letter. It is gaudy and old-fashioned, but it is indeed classic.
The famous financial host Heisenberg appeared on the screen and broadcast the key points of today's financial news with a smile.
Today, the key points of international financial news are;
1. The President of the United States participated in the Summit of the Seven Western Countries and was committed to promoting the process of international trade freedom. The leaders of the seven countries reached a consensus on this. In order to more fully reflect the global nature of the summit, Russia will be invited to participate in the 7+1 talks.
2. Today, July 1, 1997, the Hong Kong regime handover ceremony between the Chinese and British governments was held in Hong Kong. China resumed the exercise of sovereignty over Hong Kong from midnight.
Third, Atlantic Business Machines, a company owned by the world's richest man, Boss Wang, has encountered a serious collective rights lawsuit by small and medium shareholders. Currently, the Seventh Circuit Court of New York has accepted the complaint and will start legal proceedings in this regard.
…
After reporting the key points of the news, Heisenberg said with a smile;
Let us enter today's financial focus... focusing on the past and present of collective rights litigation cases involving small and medium-sized shareholders.
to this end
The column specially invited Mr. Carr, an entrepreneur, and Bloom, the famous economics professor at Stanford University, as well as independent writers from the financial community.
Mr. David Patrielli, as our special guest on today’s financial focus program.
Now welcome to the three special guests Mr.
The camera zooms out...
The three special guests sat behind the semicircular broadcast table, radially opposite the column host Heisenberg.
voice-over;
Let us first take a look at the VCR of the litigation background of this collective shareholder infringement case to understand the truth.
…
After acquiring Wangan Computer, the company was renamed Atlantic Business Machines Company, and successively launched popular desktop computer products and split personal LCD computer products, achieving comprehensive victory in the world market and receiving unanimous praise from consumers.
The company's market value has skyrocketed from US$623 million after its re-listing to a total market value of US$137.7 billion, making it one of the top ten largest companies in the United States.
In the dividends of each fiscal quarter, shareholders also received generous returns. In the first fiscal quarter of 1996, dividends were US$2.377 billion. In the second fiscal quarter, dividends were distributed...
on tv screen
After a background VCR was played, the column host Heisenberg first asked a question;
First of all, regarding this mass infringement case that caused a sensation across the United States, the key is that the claim amount of 12.5 billion US dollars is very staggering. What do the three guests think?
"Let me tell you something first." Professor Bloom was very expressive and got the first shot; "This is a typical business dispute. The small and medium shareholders are dissatisfied with the decision-making of the major shareholders and believe that their own rights and interests have been infringed, so they angrily resort to litigation.
court.
We understand this sentiment, but do not support this approach.
There are 100 Hamlets in the eyes of 100 people, but there can be no real 100 Hamlets. In fact, there can only be one.
From U.S. commercial law to federal law, judging from the legislative structure of civil law, major shareholders who hold the majority of equity have control over the company's business decisions, and the minority obeys the majority. This is the undoubted legislative basis.
This case is obviously an attempt to shake this legal foundation under the slogan of democracy, freedom or notarization, and the results will be disastrous.
As of today, I have looked at the information;
Atlantic Business Machines has a total of 1.72 million shareholders, and these shareholders have their own ideas and demands.
But it is impossible for a company to make 1.72 million decisions, and it is impossible to seek unanimous consent from everyone. In fact, it is impossible. The result would be disastrous.
It can be seen from this collective rights protection case of small and medium-sized shareholders that the focus of their main conflicts lies in;
They do not agree with Atlantic Business Machines Company to establish a production base in China, do not agree with the company transferring the entire production base to Yangtze River Technology Group, and do not agree with Yangtze Technology Group's OEM.
In complaint
It is believed that there are related transactions that erode the rights and interests of small and medium-sized shareholders.
Therefore, a staggering $12.5 billion in compensation was proposed, setting a record for the highest class action lawsuit in the history of U.S. securities. The starting point is undoubtedly absurd and completely untenable.
Because these questions all infringe upon the major shareholders' business management rights, they have no legal effect and can only be regarded as private complaints.
The major shareholder's business management rights are stipulated in the constitution. In the world-wide "Contract Law" and "Civil Code", the rule of the minority to obey the majority is the cornerstone of the law and cannot be questioned.
Therefore, the entire lawsuit is a farce and completely unworthy of defence."
The TV camera pulls back
Column host Heisenberg interrupted Professor Bloom's eloquent speech;
We have heard Professor Bloom's wonderful arguments, but we also want to hear different opinions. The facts of this collective shareholder rights protection case that has attracted national attention may be more complicated than we imagined.
"That's right."
Mr. David Pat Riley, an independent writer, spoke second;
"I studied this case carefully and found a very interesting detail.
Yangtze Technology Group is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Wang Consortium, and its transactions with Atlantic Business Machines are undoubtedly related transactions. Is there a shady secret hidden in it?
Of course, this is just an assumption.
Because on the Nasdaq market, listed companies have thousands of related transactions every year, I did not mark them all with suspicion.
Judging from Atlantic's dividends for each financial quarter, there are clear signs of rapid decline after the transaction, which further intensifies people's suspicions.
Because Atlantic Company continues to launch hit products, its profitability should be stronger, not weaker, which is completely unjustifiable.
This is the largest rights protection case in history and deserves discussion."
Mr. David Patrielli's speech caused an uproar among the audience, and the ratings skyrocketed.
Obviously, he has figured out the audience's preferences. Americans are very keen on conspiracy theories and have a kind of persecuted paranoia, which is reflected in American movies and TV dramas.
Whether it is "Nixon", "JFK", "House of Cards", "Level 1", "The Butler", "Prison Break"... and other popular film and television works, they all have related plots.
There are even more stories about the conspiracies of big companies. All kinds of hidden shady stories and dirty transactions can satisfy people's voyeurism.
And this kind of debate is something the TV station deliberately creates and hopes to see.
Only the heated debates between the guests and the confrontation of different opinions can attract the audience. The more sensational the opinions, the better, the more eye-catching the better, and the more newsy the better.
As for the truth of the matter, no one at the TV station cares about this. The only thing they care about is the ratings.