CEO dismisses criticism as “class warfare”
A California power company is shutting down all safety checks. The utility says teams from an out-of-state corporation can perform the inspections at a lower cost. Tohd Power & Light, headquartered in New Moldova, California, is slashing jobs and tightening its corporate belt in order to boost profits. In 2013, Tohd P&L earned $1.7 billion on revenues of $16.4 billion. That’s a downtick in profits of 6% from 2012. CEO Danvorious Tohd says he expects profits to climb by at least 15% in 2014.
Tohd P&L has contracted with a Nevada company, DarnGood Inspectin’ Inc, to check its natural gas pipes, electrical lines, warehouses, physical plants, and all other infrastructure.
In recent years, Tohd P&L has eliminated its vehicle maintenance department, its cafeteria workers, most of its administrative aide pool, most of its
accounting pool, and all of its janitors. These functions are now contracted out to other companies, or to individuals who work as independent contractors.
Tohd says, “Now, as we jettison this final peripheral function, safety inspections, all we do is deliver gas and electricity. We can focus on what we do best, which is buy low, sell high.”
Tohd responded to criticism that this latest cut could lead to lowered safety standards and increased risk for people who live near power plants and major gas lines. Most such facilities are strategically located in working class communities, Tohd explained, so the danger is well contained. Mr. Tohd says that as CEO his most important duty is to maximize returns for shareholders. “If you’re not rich and getting richer, what’s the point in living?” he asks.
Tohd goes on to say, “That Tom Peters gentleman, the venture capitalist who finally told the truth about all these scumbag 98 percenters, he’s on to something. I feel like people are vilifying me all the time.”
Tohd provides an example of this vilification: “Look at our Community Responsiveness Board. Whenever you see that mentioned in the paper, do they talk about what a great job it’s doing or how its members are spending hours each year thinking about how our activities might affect normal people? No, they just write about how everyone on the board is either my family member or a lawyer working for my family trust. Do you see how mean-spirited that is? They’re implying that my family doesn’t care about anything but themselves. That’s the kind of attack we rich folk have to live with every single day.”
Tohd further points out that this sort of “class warfare” is entirely unidirectional. He and his ilk absorb the blows without retaliating. “It’s one of the burdens of wealth,” he says. “I could cut off electricity for everyone who complains about this mythical ‘safety problem.’ We know who they are. We track all that social media stuff against our records. But do we do it? No. Sure, one time I gave the go-ahead, but I was just mad that the Warriors lost and I called it off the next morning.”
Tohd says he’s “sick and tired of the middle class complaining about ‘oh, the rates are too high,’ or ‘oh, how will my kids eat?’ If you were a good parent—and a good person—you would be wealthy, instead of middle class, and you wouldn’t have these mundane concerns. If you think about it, the middle class are childish, always complaining. People worry about the demise of the middle class, but I say, if they’re going to be such whiners, good riddance! The middle class can’t be choked out soon enough, in my opinion.”
When it’s shown that “choking out” the middle class simply means there will be greater and greater numbers of poor people, whom he seems to hate even more than the middle class, Tohd says that poses no problem. “Yes, I hate the poor. Who in his right mind doesn’t? But at least they’re easier to control.”
Tohd says one of the things he finds most distasteful about the middle class and the poor are their tacit demands “to be treated with respect, even reverence. If you’re rich, you constantly have to attest to the ‘greatness’ of the middle class and the ‘nobility’ of the poor. It’s sickening. But all rich people have to do it. I swear to God, the only thing more repulsive than the middle class and the poor is kowtowing to the middle class and the poor.”
Tohd Power & Light is known for innovative strategies and tactics to ratchet profits skyward. Several months ago, CEO Dan Tohd convinced California residents, lawmakers, and regulators that fining the company after it was caught intentionally overcharging customers would be “a mistake, because fining businesses kills jobs.”
Tohd Power & Light closed at $66.45 per share yesterday, a gain of $0.75.
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