高中时读伏尼契的革命浪漫小说《牛虻》,没有完全理解,但打开了我心灵里《钢铁是怎样炼成的》主人公保尔以外的窗口。其实,牛虻这个词的英文 gadfly 被广泛理解为“对现存体制不断发起挑战、批判的个人”,来源于苏格拉底的人格典型。 占领华尔街运动从去年 9 月自发兴起,虽然在意料之中,也引起我们的关注,期待朝更广泛的社会运动发展。与 1989 年天安门运动和目前的阿拉伯之春一样,占领运动的实质就是在决定我们生活的公共空间确保我们的发言权,其中之一就是占领决定全球化走向的各大公司的股东大会。我因为无法亲自赴会,赶快与占领洛杉矶的人士联系,让他们去占领 10 月 15 日在洛杉矶举行的新闻集团股东大会。可惜,尽管有数百人(包括从英国飞来的议员)在会场外抗议,也可以用我的股东证明代表我“合法”入场,却没有一个“牛虻”直捣会场。看来,占领运动还需要技巧和艺术。 我那时( 10 月 10 日)刚完成与 HP 惠普公司的第一轮对话,以后催促进一步深入 ,没有得到回复。今年 3 月 6 日在英特尔的外部人权专家会议上意外遇到对话时的惠普人权项目经理,就再次发电邮给惠普,收到惠普的投资关系主管的敷衍回答,说没有时间在人权问题上 entertain (招待)我了。这样,唯一剩下的机会是在股东大会上与董事会的对话了。 3 月 21 日举行的惠普股东大会除了法定的 3 项公司提案外,只有一项来自股东的提案,提案者正是在 2010 年新闻集团股东大会上宣读我的人权提案的老朋友 John Chevedden 。他只有 80 股,几乎不够价值 2000 美元的提案标准,一看就知道是一个“牛虻”股东活动家。与我一样, Chevedden 也没有钱专门为了宣读提案飞来出席股东大会,就请在硅谷本地的我代读。我很早赶到会场,向“老相识”副总裁兼副总律师 Ritenour “报道” 。他很客气地解释说惠普并不拒绝和我交流,并把我引到会场的前排入座。 我迅速浏览 Rules of conduct 会议行为规则,好笑不已,一看就知道是针对 Chevedden 和我设计的 :”A proponent of the proposal will be given the opportunity to present the proposal. There will be no questions and answers during the presentation of the stockholder proposal. 本会要表决一个股东提案,一个提案的支持者将有机会宣读提案,在提案宣读期间将不允许问答。 ” (这是因为我 2009 年占领谷歌股东大会的插曲 。) ”There is a time of two minutes per stockholder during the question and answer session. In addition, there will be a limit of six minutes per general topic. 问答期间一个股东只有两分钟时间,而且,每一个总题只有六分钟时间。 ” ”Inappropriate conduct: Conduct which is not incompliance with these rules or which is not appropriate, including derogatory reference to individuals or comments that are otherwise in bad taste, will not be permitted and may be a basis for removal from the meeting. 不适当行为:不符合以上规则或不适当的行为、包括对个人的贬损或坏品味的评论,将不被容许并可以被驱逐出会场。 ” (这可能与我 2008 年在思科股东大会上的争执有关 ) Chevedden 的提案内容本身已经火力十足,我只需读完提案就严厉谴责以 Whitman 为首的董事们了;否则,拥有 30 多万员工的惠普不至于在股东大会上这样如临大敌。我走到麦克风前,宣读要求公司高层保持一定量股票的第 4 号提案,包括以下内容:“ The Corporate Library, an independent research firm, rated our company D, with Very High Concern in executive pay and High in Governance Risk Assessment. 把我们公司评为‘ D ’、高层报酬‘非常令人担忧’、公司治理风险‘高’。”“ Our named executive officers were given discretionary bonuses of $1.6 million. 高层官员一律拿走 1 百 60 万美元奖金。”“ The Economist, September 17, 2011 article titled,The Doofus Factor said the directors of HP, a stumbling SiliconValley giant, were accused of serial ineptitude spanning the appointment and dismissal of Carly Fiorina, the firing of Mark Hurd, and the selection of Léo Apotheker. 董事会一系列无能的任命和解雇执行长的行为(其中 Fiorina 和 Whitman 一样,转换跑道用个人资产竞选代表加州的联邦参议员,失败)”“ Apparently HP hired Apotheker without his ever meeting the full board. (显然,惠普在所有董事并没有面谈前就任命了 Apotheker )”“ Our new CEO Margaret Whitman made a fortune by taking eBay public. But Ms. Whitman flagged badly as eBay grew into a mature business—as it became more like HP is now. She also failed when she tried to translate her corporate celebrity into a political career. She lost miserably despite spending $100 million of her own money. (新执行长 Whitman 靠 eBay 发财,但 eBay 与惠普一样,成为大企业后就停滞了。 Whitman 也没法把她的企业成名转换成政治家,花掉了 1 亿美元个人资产还是失掉了州长选举。)”(这比以往的总统选举花费还多。读到这里,我停顿了一下,打量主席台上的 Whitman 。)“ The corporate Library reported that Director Lawrence Babbio received 38% in negative votes. And directors Kennedy Thompson and Sari Baldauf each received 22% in negative votes. (董事 Babbio 得到 38% 、 Thompson 和 Baldauf 各得到 22% 的否决票。)”当我读这些事实时,会场鸦雀无声。我想到将来有一天,中国的民众也可以占领人民大会堂等公共空间宣读类似的痛斥李鹏、江泽民、唐家璇等权贵的提案。 在问答期间,那个我很熟悉的总是为公司辩解的白人老头第一个走到麦克风前责骂 Chevedden 是个要搞垮美国公司、特别是要搞臭甲骨文公司执行长 Ellison 这样的富豪的活动分子。这真是难得的殊荣!美国要是再有几个这样的 gadfly ,这个世界就好过多了。虽然我不是富豪的敌人,但为这样的战友感到欣慰和自豪。我引用另外一个 gadfly 的著作 ,提出惠普的人权实践问题,指出虽然公司已经有不错的纸面人权政策,但关键在于如何有独立的机构确认其执行。 Whitman 果然老练,以“惠普不能撤离中国”把议题转移开(我过去在 eBay 的股东大会上第一次见识过她的手法)。我指出她没有回答我的问题,知道下一步只能向 Chevedden 那样,诉诸股东提案了。 令人欣慰的是, Chevedden 的提案竟然得到 24.4% 的股东赞成。当代美国的股东毕竟比古代雅典公民更懂得维护自己的权利,我们的“ gadfly 式企业治理”事业毕竟比被雅典法庭毒害的苏格拉底和被美国法庭判处 22 年监禁的伯克曼有较光明的前途。 赵京: “ 推动惠普公司的人权政策改变的第一步 ”http://cpri.tripod.com/cpr2011/hp111010.pdf 赵京: “ 惠普 HP 公司面对人权提案的黔驴之计 ”http://cpri.tripod.com/cpr2010/hp.pdf 赵京: “ 专横卑鄙的 Google (谷歌) 2009 年股东大会 ”http://cpri.tripod.com/cpr2009/google-c.html 赵京: “Cisco 思科公司股东大会关注中国人权 ”http://cpri.tripod.com/cpr2008/cisco.pdf John Harrington, The Challenge to Power: Money,Investing, and Democracy. Chelsea Green Publishing Company, 2005.
Columbia University recently announced plans to offer a course next semester in which students can study and participate in the movement. The class will be offered through the anthropology department and will be taught by Dr. Hannah Appel, a veteran of the movement. It is called “Occupy the Field: Global Finance, Inequality, Social Movement.” Upperclassmen and graduate students will be able to take the class. “Class requirements will be divided between seminar at Columbia and fieldwork in and around the Occupy movement,” according to the class syllabus. “In addition to scheduled seminar , this class will meet off-campus several times, and students will be expected to be involved in ongoing OWS projects outside of class, to be developed in close conversation with the instructor.” Could this type of class be dangerous for the students who will be involved in it? Appel thinks not. “As a regular participant in the Occupy movement… I can say with absolute certainty that there is no foreseeable risk in teaching this as a field-based class,” she said. She also encourages students not to break the law when they are conducting their fieldwork though, because then there could be problems http://www.eduinreview.com/blog/2012/01/columbia-university-offers-course-allowing-students-to-participate-in-occupy-wall-street/