"My business partner and I purposefully pay normal taxes, avoiding accountants' crazy tax reduction schemes, because we think it's the right thing to do. We're a tiny speck compared to Apple, but the principle still applies. If the big players made it the norm, their investors would suck it up and deal with it."

I suspect that you and your partner have significantly more control over your enterprise than the officer of a public company does though. If you didn't your investors wouldn't suck it up, they would do as they see fit, which may be agree with your position or may be replace you.

Public companies are controlled by their share price more than they like to admit. Even if you are like Zuck and maintain complete management control of your public company, if that share price takes a huge hit it becomes very hard to attract and maintain talent/future investment/etc. Everyone has some authority to answer to.