[AnimalMuppet]

Bluntly, we don't care what you "see". You have to make us see it, or we think you're just trying to make us do what makes life easier for you.

So, yes, you have to justify your reasoning to the team. You didn't hire robots; you hired humans who can think for themselves (and sometimes do), and who can make their own decisions. And one of their decisions may be that the CTO is an insensitive jerk on a power trip, and therefore that they should look for work elsewhere. If you don't want them to reach that conclusion, don't give them evidence that points toward it.