Jordan Peterson - Derek Kreifels

1) Derek Kreifels, CEO of the State Financial Officers Foundation, explains the flaws of ESG policies to Jordan Peterson. Kreifels suggests that ESG aligns with deeply socialist centralized state planning, even if it sounds like corporations should serve more than their narrow self-interest. Kreifels also explains that market participants like states do not have to use bank or fund managers who want to hurt the primary industry of a state.

2) Derek Kreifels explains his organization, the State Financial Officers Foundation (SFOF), which consists of state treasurers, auditors, and controllers from 28 states who are predominantly Republican. He also clarifies that state treasurers act as the Chief Financial Officer for their respective state and manage daily transactions. They are known for their fiduciary responsibility, which means being responsible for some pool of money or organization and must operate according to legally binding rules.

3) Derek focuses on the concept of fiduciary duty and how it relates to ESG (environmental, social, and governance) investing. Fiduciary duty is the responsibility of an individual or organization to act in the best interest of another party, such as shareholders or state constituents. While ESG investing is supposed to promote ethical actions by corporations, it has been accused of subordinating fiduciary duty to political agendas. ESGcovers issues like environmentalism, social justice issues, and governance. The argument is that subordinating corporate concerns to a broader set of ethical principles, i.e. stakeholders' capitalism, is not sufficient and creates a conflict with fiduciary duty.

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4) Derek explains the radical environmentalist viewpoint that subordinates all corporate activities and enterprises to the pressing problem of carbon dioxide overproduction. This viewpoint, along with diversity, equity, and inclusivity movements, gets brought into the corporate domain, insisting that people should be identified primarily by their race or gender, constituting grounds for the distribution of resources and position.The fiduciary duty that merely serves the interests of corporations and shareholders proves insufficient, and it should subordinate to a broader view under ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) standards.

5) Derek discusses the state treasurers' stance on ESG investments. He says that their priority is to protect the signature industries of their states, which may be the oil, coal, or gas sector. He highlights that some states have passed laws to restrict doing business with banks or fund managers that are against their primary industry. Although he acknowledges the need to transition away from coal, he argues that "Net Zero" is a lieand unrealistic for the near term. He proposes a careful replacement of coal with liquid natural gas or nuclear, which should be encouraged instead of shunning the industry altogether.

6) Derek argues against the ESG movement, which he claims is not only inefficient but will also make things worse for theenvironment and drive people into poverty. He points to Germany's example as evidence that unpredictable renewable power sources lead to an increased reliance on coal and a rise in power costs. Additionally, for many developing nations, coal remains a better and less polluting energy source than options like wood, which is one of the lower quality sources of energy available. He also notes that American energy has done more for human flourishing than any other sector and argues that restricting countries' abilities to produce coal, natural gas or oil would undermine the stability ofthe industrial front and propel many people into poverty.

7) Derek highlights that the push towards ESG policies by companies like BlackRock and State Street is hypocritical because they are investing in China, which is the world's largest polluter and building coal-fired power plants. He points out that if companies do not invest in these kinds of projects in North America or Australia, but invest in China, they are still contributing to pollution in the atmosphere, rendering their ethical posturing meaningless.

8) Derek discusses the concerns around ESG investing in the US compared to China, where the latter has been buying rich minerals and owning them, which puts America at a disadvantage. They also discussed BlackRock's investment in China, which they believe is not a problem compared to the environmental and social policies that the company seems to be adopting, which are counterproductive to their capitalist enterprises' DNA. Some CEOs and top executives tell the author that they want to stay neutral on the issue of ESG and want banks to be banks and fund managers to be fund managers, and they should only work with companies that protect their fiduciary responsibility. The author believes that when ESG becomes a matter of compulsion and regulation, this is where they have gone too far, and it is foolish to attribute the evils of capitalism to capitalism itself.

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9) Derek explains that many CEOs and corporations go along with ESG and DEI movements because they are feeling guilty about their ill-gotten gains. The speaker emphasizes that this guilt has nothing to do with capitalism but instead comes from their moral standards. CEOs and corporations believe adopting ESG and DEI practices is easier than atoning for their sins. Furthermore, he points out that universities are producing leftist students who end up working for big companies, which gives rise to stakeholder capitalism. He claims that companies owned by BlackRock, State Street, and Vanguard leverage a tremendous amount of authority and direct the behavior of many publicly traded companies.

10) Derek focuses on how ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) investing is being used as a form of coercion to prevent small businesses from growth. ESG investing, which involves checking against a list of sustainable requirements, is often driven by giant investment corporations like Black Rock, State Street, and Vanguard, who have accumulated a large amount of capital through retiree's investments.

11) Derek discusses the issue with state treasurers' offices employing numerous state employees, leading to a one-size-fits-all problem. He believes that ESG requirements have conflicted with the goal of making money for pension investors and highlights the potential danger of weaponizing capital. He mentions instances where banks have de-platformed companies that they don't agree with and warns that this could lead to a larger issue that our country will face over the next few years. He also emphasizes the danger of centralized digital currencies and expresses his opinion that the Trudeau government lockdown of bank accounts was an act of outright treachery.

12) Derek a Canadian government's move to suspend the financial rights of people who contributed to the trucker convoy is discussed. He emphasizes how shocking this action was across the world as it set a dangerous precedent. The excerpt also highlights a proposal by the US Treasury Department that would monitor every American's bank accounts and how state treasurers led by Nebraska Treasure John Moranti raised awareness of this issue. He warns against the implications of the government's ability to monitor all transactions and emphasizes how decentralized controllers could limit people's access to basic needs while pushing for a reduction in Private Car ownership and caloric restriction. He concludes by saying digital currencies put forth by the government could facilitate this control, and people need to wake up to this reality.

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13) Derek discusses the potential pitfalls of centralized digital currency, where corporate interests would be replaced with government interests as the primary control over consumer data. Additionally, he references concerns raised by some state treasurers regarding coding and tracking of purchases related to guns and ammunition, though they have worked with credit card companies to mitigate such tracking. While he does not yet have a recommendation on digital currency, they believe that states will likely have varying policies and committees on the issue in the near future. Interms of ongoing goals, the organization aims to advocate for Americans and educate them on various financial issues, such as the impact of American energy policies on inflation and the role of companies like BlackRock.

14) Derek discusses how people can contribute to the fiduciary responsibility front by educating themselves on ESG investing and it sharmful effects. He suggests visiting the website ourmoneyourvalues.com, which includes educational resources and opportunities to connect with others impacted by ESG investing. Kreifels encourages people to share their stories with them, download resources, and follow their Twitter page at sfof_states.He emphasizes the importance of being aware of ESG investing as firms like BlackRock, State Street, and Vanguard, who make up nearly 20% of the biggest 500 companies in the US, have tremendous leverage in the market and are no longer operating solely in the financial interests of their clients.