No it doesn't, but SEC has the power to allow the stock to get traded in the first place. So the value is subject to SEC's presence. If there is no SEC, there is no 'stock' for you to get dividends from.

> BMW costs more than honda because it is objectively a better car. By objectively identifiable metrics.

You discount the people do don't give care about the objective metrics. There's a lot of personal preference involved when one chooses a car to buy (apart from buying power).

>But in the US people are moving from cold climates to warmer climates, on average

Last time I checked, US has of 4% of the world's population. I'd wager more than 4% of the world would love to move to a colder climate.

>So, no, you are completely wrong.

I don't think any of the facts I've stated are. If you're talking about my opinion that there is only subjective value, well, that's subjective too :)