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Whole Foods CEO Slams Health Reform, Angering Liberal Pro-Reform Whole Foods Customers
Unfortunately, that advice comes a few hours too late for Whole Foods CEO John Mackey, who did just that.
Mackey began his piece with a quote from Margaret Thatcher--"The problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people's money"--and went on to warn that "a massive new health-care entitlement that will create hundreds of billions of dollars of new unfunded deficits and move us much closer to a government takeover of our health-care system."
As a result of this misguided effort, it seems, his company's website has been fielding angry comments all afternoon, and has had to set up an online forum where customers can vent their frustrations, and, oh, call for a boycott!
Not seeing the "good for business" angle here.
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What a dumbass.
August 13, 2009 5:51 PM | Reply | Permalink
You took the words right off my keyboard!
August 13, 2009 10:51 PM | Reply | Permalink
It's the culture of the CEO. They have great disdain for most people.
Anyone in a big business who is a Board member or top manager belongs to that culture. It is the culture approved by the wealthy conservative owners and having that attitude is considered a requirement for being appointed to those positions.
August 14, 2009 8:16 AM | Reply | Permalink
Some guy named Richard actually condemned EVERY corporate executive and board member. The ALL have disdain for EVERYONE? Boy, that's one of the most discriminatory generalizations I've ever seen.
August 21, 2009 9:41 AM | Reply | Permalink
Lot's of ways to show support for this boycott-
Facebook group: Boycott Whole Foods. 2000 members joined in it's first day, and the momentum is growing. Please join. http://tinyurl.com/kq4pzw
August 14, 2009 8:53 AM | Reply | Permalink
His suggestions in his WSJ column are really horrible:
• Repeal all state laws which prevent insurance companies from competing across state lines. We should all have the legal right to purchase health insurance from any insurance company in any state and we should be able use that insurance wherever we live. Health insurance should be portable.
[Read: Allow the race to the bottom. A few small donations to Alabama politicians, and you are in the unregulated health insurance business nationwide.]
• Repeal government mandates regarding what insurance companies must cover. These mandates have increased the cost of health insurance by billions of dollars. What is insured and what is not insured should be determined by individual customer preferences and not through special-interest lobbying.
[Read: if you come down with something expensive, it's not going to be covered. Good luck with your bankruptcy.]
• Enact tort reform to end the ruinous lawsuits that force doctors to pay insurance costs of hundreds of thousands of dollars per year. These costs are passed back to us through much higher prices for health care.
[Read: I want to prove that I have no idea what I'm talking about, since studies have shown that the impact of tort reform in states that have enacted it (TX and CA I believe) has been minimal on health care costs.]
• Enact Medicare reform. We need to face up to the actuarial fact that Medicare is heading towards bankruptcy and enact reforms that create greater patient empowerment, choice and responsibility.
[Read: Might as well promise a pony.]
Many promoters of health-care reform believe that people have an intrinsic ethical right to health care—to equal access to doctors, medicines and hospitals. While all of us empathize with those who are sick, how can we say that all people have more of an intrinsic right to health care than they have to food or shelter?
Health care is a service that we all need, but just like food and shelter it is best provided through voluntary and mutually beneficial market exchanges. A careful reading of both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution will not reveal any intrinsic right to health care, food or shelter. That's because there isn't any. This "right" has never existed in America
[This is just a red herring. Supporters think health care is a moral imperative, not some enumerated right. Overall, it just reads like he is totally uncaring about the lives of Americans less fortunate than he is.]
Even in countries like Canada and the U.K., there is no intrinsic right to health care. Rather, citizens in these countries are told by government bureaucrats what health-care treatments they are eligible to receive and when they can receive them. All countries with socialized medicine ration health care by forcing their citizens to wait in lines to receive scarce treatments.
[Luckily, we don't have insurance company bureaucrats making those decisions now. Oh, wait.]
Unfortunately many of our health-care problems are self-inflicted: two-thirds of Americans are now overweight and one-third are obese. Most of the diseases that kill us and account for about 70% of all health-care spending—heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes and obesity—are mostly preventable through proper diet, exercise, not smoking, minimal alcohol consumption and other healthy lifestyle choices.
[Read, I have no sympathy for the fact that if you try to buy groceries on a budget, the cheapest options are the unhealthy processed foods.]
August 14, 2009 12:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
Even more brilliant than the time the SEC caught him talking smack about a competitor he was trying to acquire on stock trading bulletin boards. Under an assumed name.
August 13, 2009 5:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
Of course you read his rejoinder and noted that the SEC cleared him of charges before talking out your ass, right?
http://www2.wholefoodsmarket.com/blogs/jmackey/2008/05/21/back-to-blogging/#more-26
All of his posts are still on-line if you want to see how egregious (or not) they were:
http://www2.wholefoodsmarket.com/blogs/jmackey/2008/05/21/back-to-blogging/#more-26
August 14, 2009 3:32 AM | Reply | Permalink
The guy's a scumbag. He very obviously was trying to manipulate Wild Oats' stock price, no matter what he says in his blog.
Oh, and the SEC "clearing" him? You mean the same SEC that turned away any reports of Madoff for years? Yeah. I trust them.
August 14, 2009 8:06 AM | Reply | Permalink
I've said a lot of stuff here, elsewhere on the Internet and in the real world that created a justifiable basis for somebody to rip me for talking out my ass, but I'm really not seeing this as one of those times.
I said the SEC caught him, which it did, that he was talking smack about a competitor, which he was, and sarcastically said that was "brilliant," meaning stupid, which it was.
Yeah,the declawed, defanged, anti-enforcement George W. Bush SEC, the same bunch of zealous guardians of the integrity of the markets who slumbered through three reports providing intcontesable mathematical proof that Bernie Mehdoff was running a Ponzi scheme, decided not to turn the matter over to Enforcement.
Yay for John Mackey.
Still, personally, I have this odd notion that the CEO of a publicy traded company has a fiduciary duty to the stockholders to avoid actively doing things that draw the SEC's attention. Omissions that draw SEC scrutiny? It happens. Deliberate and intentional acts of commission? Please.
More germane to the matter at hand, let's look at some things Mackey said about the Yahoo episode after the SEC closed it's case without comment:
The company's customer base is extremely liberal compared to the demographic of grocery customers in general. Whole Foods deliberately cultvates customers who are politically active and engaged in issues, engaging in many "feel good" activities specifically designed to make shopping at Whole Foods feel ethical and, dare I say it, politically correct. It's not like he doesn't understand who his customers are.
And yet, despite the lessons he claims to have learned from his excellent adventures in Yahoo stock board posting, he just went out of his way to offend and anger his company's customers at a time of high emotion and in the one forum short of the New York Post or Fox News most perfectly calculated to enhance their rage.
So what's your excuse now, Johnny? Doesn't look like this news has hit your stock price yet but, let's face it, most Wall Street guys aren't really ideologically equipped to grasp how badly you've screwed up in advance. At some point, it's going to hit the price and what are you going to say then?
I'm sure your board's got your back, because that's how it works in this modern world where every state's corporate governance law has been Delawarefied, but what are you going to tell the stockholders this time?
So no, while I've admitted to talking out my ass on occaision, this would not be one of them.
August 14, 2009 9:26 AM | Reply | Permalink
Bravo Steve. I love when you tell Desidero off.
August 14, 2009 10:10 AM | Reply | Permalink
Nice Steve, hope it was at least therapeutic going to such great lengths to produce this very useful rebuttal to your terse detractor. Nothing in your original post was off the mark; what he did was idiotic and imbecillic and put his company and shareholders at risk, and it speaks volumes about his ego and greed. It's cold comfort knowing that the SEC did not find grounds for action.
August 14, 2009 11:00 AM | Reply | Permalink
Very nice post. Should make perfect sense to all but his closest relatives.
August 14, 2009 11:03 AM | Reply | Permalink
Yet another example of why we need the ability to rec comments!
August 14, 2009 11:09 AM | Reply | Permalink
Beautifully done. I love icy, focused, wholly accurate and correct anger righteously expressed in a fashion which directly burns the targetted dipshits' fingers all the way to their elbows.
Best and most clear writing I've ever seen from you. Keep it up!
August 15, 2009 10:16 AM | Reply | Permalink
Well if the SEC cleared him he must be innocent. They are a completely objective government agency, run by people who have absolutely no bias towards CEOs and business at all. They are totally in it to protect the average Joe from serial stock fraudsters like, for example, Bernie Madoff or Bank of America. Heck those guys can't get away with anything with the SEC on the case.
August 14, 2009 12:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, I gotta give him props for one thing.
He definitely places personal principle and integrity over financial concerns. :D
Wouldn't we all be proud if a Progressive person did that? Wouldn't we applaud and call for support if a Progressive placed personal integrity and fidelity to their principles over the health of their business?
So why, when a Conservative does it, do we take umbrage?
Just curious.
August 13, 2009 6:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
No, I think he's just stupid.
August 13, 2009 6:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes and the very special kind of stupid which seems to infect the inhabitants of corner offices: extreme egotism.
It's what makes CEO's so much fun to depose.
August 13, 2009 6:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
He built a business providing healthy food to people nation-wide from the ground up. He was a drop-out working in a health co-op, not a Harvard MBA. But if he gets that CEO tag, he becomes your enemy. What are you?
August 14, 2009 3:36 AM | Reply | Permalink
Shouldn't you be over at freerepublic or one of those other "libertarian" sites instead of trolling here?
August 14, 2009 8:18 AM | Reply | Permalink
Me? I'm a litigator. One who always looks forward to CEO depositions because they invariably think they're too smart, too tough and too busy to need to set aside even a few hours to prepare and they think every word that comes out of their mouth is God's own Gospel plated in 24k gold so why do they need to prepare.
Many occupations breed excessive, and even hubristic, egotism, mine not least among them. Often that egotism is an inevitable, and sometimes even a necessary and socially useful, attribute. No one wants a humble neurosurgeon, even if it makes them suboptimal dinner companions. No one wants a lawyer who lacks confidence in his or her own abilities. No corporation wants a CEO who is indecisive or who lacks confidence in his own ability to make correct decisions.
But in every case, one has to be vigilent in maintaining the line between healthy and destructive egotism. In the case of CEO's it's even more important that they police that line themselves because no one else is going to do it for them. When they don't, that otherwise healthy egotism all too easily gets them, their companies and, every once in a while, the entire frakking economy, into a lot of trouble.
August 14, 2009 9:52 AM | Reply | Permalink
He's the enemy, alright. He's trying to deny me affordable healthcare while the hypocrite probably the best coverage money can buy. Where did he get the money? Us. Fuck you.
August 14, 2009 11:10 AM | Reply | Permalink
Irony: if there were a public option, he'd be paying less for insurance. Unless he chose the public option, in which instance he'd be paying even less.
August 15, 2009 10:25 AM | Reply | Permalink
Selling healthy food. Selling.
August 14, 2009 5:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
I knew Jerry Rubin when he was a radical (and a jerk). He became a greedy capitalist conservative asshole.
Go ahead, say it: shit happens.
And I'll answer:
Yes -- and when it does, it needs to be identified for what it is: shit.
August 15, 2009 10:22 AM | Reply | Permalink
How is he my enemy?
August 15, 2009 11:23 AM | Reply | Permalink
I think his stupidity exceeds his ego.
August 15, 2009 10:19 AM | Reply | Permalink
Honest to goodness, I have read the comment several times about principles and ethics and I just can't decide if it is snark or not.
From this progressives point of view the editorial by Mackey didn't show me what I consider good ethics or principles. It's just a typical conservative viewpoint that basically says the hell with the other guy.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204251404574342170072865070.html
I've never even been in a Whole Foods so it really doesn't effect me personally, but I'm all for progressives spending their money in places that support the principles that Americans help other Americans. Obviously Mr. Mackey doesn't share that principle.
August 13, 2009 7:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
Usually when people choose their principle over their business or material things, it's because the decision would benefit the masses. Who benefits from this CEO repeating debunked talking points in an effort to help kill health care reform? Certainly not the majority.
August 13, 2009 7:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
Who benefits?
Hmmmm........
Those in the health care industry who will pay lower prices because massive insurance premiums and frivolous lawsuit judgments are not passed along to consumers and taxpayers?
Those who purchase Whole Foods products at a lower price - because astronomical health care premiums are not being passed along to consumers?
Ordinary taxpayers - who will pay lower premiums for their health care because billions and billions of dollars in unnecessary care and fraud are not passed along to them by insurance companies, doctors, labs, and other health care industry product line members?
As I have said many ties - I have no problem with a public option and health care for everyone PAID FOR THROUGH REALLOCATION OF FEDERAL FUNDS FROM WASTE CATEGORIES AND A MASSIVE CUT IN MILITARY SPENDING. I do accept that health care should be a social covenant between all members of society.
I do NOT think it is a good idea if funded through deficit spending or massive taxation on an economy that is already teetering on the bring of depression.
But then, I actually paid attention in Economics 101. I know many here think health care is like a banana - it grows on some tree and can be picked at random. Unfortunately, reality is not set up that way.
August 13, 2009 8:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
Really, you're not looking at a deficit-busting program. You're not looking at massive taxation.
On the contrary, this is the first step we need to take if we plan to bring costs under control. I'm not saying that HR3200 by itself will accomplish that. But it's a step in the right direction.
August 13, 2009 8:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
Tort Reform does not lower health care costs.
August 13, 2009 10:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
Nope. But the resistance to mere empirical data on the subject is seemingly insurmountable.
August 14, 2009 9:58 AM | Reply | Permalink
Nor are malpractice attornies in charge of raising insurance premiums.
August 15, 2009 10:29 AM | Reply | Permalink
Cause he and other CEO's don't have to worry about affording any treatment, but have the temerity to suggest what's good for the poor folk. Which coincidentally seems to be whatever results in taxes not being raised. As a doc, it's not unusual for me to see people putting up with excruciating pain, as they're worried about paying for treatment. Even copays. Even deductibles, especially high ones. Its often the doctors who get to explain deductibles to them: "Yes you had insurance, but since your deductible is $5,000, you're not going to be able to use it this year. Yes, I know you had $4,500 in expenses last year, but this is January, and the deductible reset last week." The house always wins. Even people who have decent insurance are afraid to use it, as they're afraid their rates will go up, or they'll get dropped from their plan. So, what he says results in poor people being in pain. Being a scrupulously honest selfish bastard is not that much better than being a regular selfish bastard.
August 14, 2009 10:12 AM | Reply | Permalink
The problem for them is the fact that he is not the owner of the company, he is just an employee, albeit the CEO, and his duty is to the company, its stockholders, and to its financial bottom line. If that is at cross purposes with his personal creed, and he can't fulfill his responsibilities, then he must resign. Now, there are Whole Foods outlets in my area. Rest assured, I won't be shopping there, and will be reminding my friends and acquaintances not to shop there. There's bad word of mouth, based on his irresponsible talk, at work. Conservative Christians tried to enforce a boycott of Disney for their policy towards gays. It didn't work because it was just 1 business located far away from most of its customers. Whole Foods markets are located around the country, in markets close to its customers. Disgust with its CEO's talk will have a noticeable effect on stores in non conservative areas.
August 14, 2009 4:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
and has had to set up an online forum where customers can vent their frustrations
JMG users earlier in the day were reporting that initially they tried to shut the discussion down by removing several parts of their forums, but people just moved to discussing in areas like "new product announcements". I guess they set up the health care discussion section just to prevent the rest of the forum from getting flooded-- if you look a number of the posts in there are moved from other subforums.
So did anybody read this guy's "Conscious Capitalism" book?
August 13, 2009 6:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
I wondered about this too. None of the people that I know that actually shop at Whole Foods are conservative.
My advice, support your local Farmers Market! Local is the new organic.
August 13, 2009 6:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
Who can afford Whole Foods anyway?
August 13, 2009 6:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hmm.
Anyone have any idea if this guy could find himself kicked to the curb, sans compensation, for damaging the brand and value of the company?
Seems like he may have just harmed the business - I doubt his contract says he still gets paid in the event of deliberate sabotage.
August 13, 2009 7:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
customer.questions@wholefoods.com
Let 'em have it!
August 13, 2009 7:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
Whole Foods is big in Charlottesville; they are breaking ground on a new, huge center. I shop there very often, (even buy Christmas trees from them) but I am not going to in the future unless this CEO boob wakes up.
I will not darken their doors until he admits that he was WRONG. I'm not talking about a wishy-washy "well I really meant this or that.." He needs to admit that he was wrong.
Liberals don't shop at republican-only stores.
August 13, 2009 7:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
Who provides your cellphone service? Your cable TV?
August 14, 2009 3:48 AM | Reply | Permalink
Corporations who keep their fucking mouths shut about public policy.
August 14, 2009 8:19 AM | Reply | Permalink
And none of which actively cultivate, or, indeed specialize, in serving liberal customers.
August 14, 2009 10:17 AM | Reply | Permalink
Corporations let their lobbyists do their talking (or trolls like you).
August 14, 2009 11:35 AM | Reply | Permalink
opps! Wrong dog -- my apologies!
August 14, 2009 11:36 AM | Reply | Permalink
It happens a lot. My breed is kind of common.
August 14, 2009 12:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
I will boycott. I do feel bad for the people who work there. They always look so very unhappy.
I am outraged by his comment that people have "no intrinsic right to health care".
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204251404574342170072865070.html
He obviously has never read a thing Obama has said about health care reform, that it must pay for itself and must not add to the deficit.
He was in trouble with the SEC during the acquisition of Wild Oats a few years ago for a fake blog posting on Yahoo Finance (using the juxtaposition of his wife's first name) expressing wildly optimistic projections about the future of Whole Foods. A real nut case.
August 13, 2009 7:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
The store is over priced plastic container fake organic anyway.
Almost as bad as Trader Joe's.
I have never seen more plastic yuppies, with more plastic surgery, buying more "organic" products, in more pounds of plastic containers... in my life anywhere...
Surprised we did not run into plastic 2 dimensional Gavin Newsom there... or a card board cut out likeness of mayor diggleball...
I was with a friend who just had to run in there for something... same with TJ's.
Juesuschrist, go to a coop and get it out of the bulk bin next time...
I have not been invited anywhere with that person in some time...
August 13, 2009 7:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
As charming as you seem to be, I can't imagine why....
August 13, 2009 7:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yeah... that's what I thought...
August 13, 2009 10:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
I didn't pick my nose in her car or anything...
Wait maybe it was the Newsom jokes. Could she have been that misguided?
August 13, 2009 10:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
I take exception to your comments about Trader Joes. They are much much cheaper than Whole Foods and they are owned by a German Group that sees to it that even their part time employees have access to health insurance through the company. They provide excellent benefits to their employees, including retirement. You obviously know nothing about this company. I am not, nor have ever been an employee of this company, but I know many people that have worked for them for years and they are a great employer.
August 14, 2009 11:13 AM | Reply | Permalink
That's good to know!
August 14, 2009 6:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
I sent them a letter to headquarters through their website and started a thread in one of their forums. I was happy to learn that I wasn't the first one there with a complaint.
August 13, 2009 7:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
Right-wing Filtering
Health Care Bill will pay for consultation with a nutritionist = Government is going to tell you what to eat!
August 13, 2009 7:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
And if you don't eat that they tell you, the Death Panel euthanizes you.
August 14, 2009 12:54 AM | Reply | Permalink
"what" they tell you.
August 14, 2009 11:01 AM | Reply | Permalink
That's better than them exiling you to a health insurance corporation.
August 15, 2009 10:37 AM | Reply | Permalink
I should learn to spell "dingle ball"... more caffeine please...
August 13, 2009 7:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
I think it's the Percodan shortage that's the culprit, but I'm riding the vibe, turn me on, EraserMan.
August 14, 2009 3:51 AM | Reply | Permalink
I wonder how many wealthy liberals who actually own the stock will be putting in their sell orders in the morning. That would be the most effective way to go after Mackey - see the stock price tank. However, I don't think this is likely to happen. Too bad.
August 13, 2009 7:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well just spreading a rumor that people are going to do that can cause a large dip. people hear that other people might sell their stock, thus if the stock goes down at all then they might sell their stock as well before it goes lower, thus making the stock go down even farther and so on.
August 14, 2009 1:44 AM | Reply | Permalink
I live a few miles north of Eureka CA--one of a handful of locales in the country that told Wal-Mart to take their proposed store and stuff it up their collective ass--so I don't think we'll be seeing a Whole Foods store up here any time soon. We have Eureka Natural Foods, a couple of Co-ops, and an extensive farmers' market network that all serve us nicely.
Not having a WF here means I'd have to drive 184 miles to get to the nearest store in order to tell them I was boycotting their facility. Could one of y'all do me a favor and act as my proxy?
I'd 'ppreciate it.
August 13, 2009 7:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
Whole Foods is prominent in more liberal communities. I feel fairly confident the boycott while have an impact in California in Marin County (where there are at least two stores and another store under construction) as well as Sonoma, Santa Rosa, Napa and Berkeley. In addition to being Democratic bastions (tho I'm not sure about Napa), there are many healthy alternatives, including year-round farmers markets and other independent markets. Boston and DC, where there also several WF's, are also very liberal. Also where I live near Chicago is very, very "Obama supportive". There are four WF's within a 15 mile drive from where we live, one just blocks away.
I do hope the stock price tanks also.
August 13, 2009 8:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
you obviously don't live anywhere near the South Side. Whole Foods is for Cub fans who throw beer on the Phillies.
August 14, 2009 10:05 AM | Reply | Permalink
Here's a guy who doesn't give a crap about the health care needs of his customers but wants us to trust his judgement on 'healthy' foods.
Right.....
August 13, 2009 8:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
I used to stop in Whole Foods while in Austin. The last dollar I spent there will be the last dollar I spend there.
August 13, 2009 8:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
Earlier, I was kinda making fun of the instant "Boycott!" reflex whenever liberals get mad at the CEO of a company.
Truth is, I'd been planning on eating off the hotbar there tonight, and I needed milk and like the WF store brand--doesn't taste like chemicals but doesn't cost as much as real organic milk.
Then I went over and read the editorial at the Wall Street Infernal.
And just found myself saying "I'll be goddamned if I'll put one penny in that motherfucker's pocket tonight." I let his union bashing and Paultard economics because I like the produce. I ignored that underhanded crap he was doing on the Yahoo stock bulletin boards because they have this kind of ridiculously expensive dry cat food that reduces the puking by about 80%--a big deal in a carpeted multiple cat household--but this is just too much for me.
Three quarter of the cars in the parking lot of his store still have Obama stickers in this very conservative town I live in. McCain stickers are a one in a hundred occurance there. (For whatever reason, North Carolinians seem to need to fly their campaign colors for years after the election, win or lose) and this egotistical prick thinks he can spout this nonsense without consequences?
Boycott? No. I'm not organizing or joining any organized ban. Just making a personal decision that I'm not going to buy anything there any time soon and that, if I do go back, I'm still going to cut way the hell back on my purchases there. I don't know how he makes this right short of firing himself.
I've just had enough. I'm pissed at all the lying sacks of shit who've been turning what should be a substantive, and somewhat dry, debate into a situation that is hovering on the brink of violence and threatens democracy itself and this asshole just gratuitiously decided to make himself a target for my pent up ire, so, no. I'm taking a break Markey. Don't know when, or if, I'll get back.
August 13, 2009 8:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
No kidding, its like that where my parents live in NC. The town is pretty split between red/blue but you see quite a bit more Obama stickers there then the other food store a block away.
I agree with your anger about the BS lying that keeps going on.
August 14, 2009 1:58 AM | Reply | Permalink
I'm in a liberal area where Obama stickers are the norm even in front of regular grocery stores. At the WF, the default is left of that. I rarely actually shop at WF, but I walk past because there is a liquor store next door. The smell of patchouli is strong.
Anyway, the few times that I do go there will be reduced to zero.
August 14, 2009 11:47 AM | Reply | Permalink
How DUMB was that. The MAJORITY of the people who go to whole foods market ARE progressives.
August 13, 2009 8:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ummm, quick question. Did anyone actually read the Op-ed before beginning the boycott? I've been looking for some rational debate from the Republican side (not teabaggers and screamers) and it looks like the Whole Foods CEO has brought it.
August 13, 2009 9:22 PM | Reply | Permalink
This guy said nothing new that McCain and others in the republican party haven't said already. Everything he's mentioned has been debated.
The only thing I agree with is Americans should eat healthier. But guess what? The US is fatter than it was last year so I am not going to hold my breath (w/o insurance) waiting for people to eat more fruits.
And you are asking some of the wonkiest people in the Left blogosphere if they read the article before they commented? maybe a few didn't but you'll most likely find that behavior at Huffpo, not here.
August 13, 2009 10:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
Eating healthier is a great idea.
Just bear in mind:
It will not do you one single bit of good WHATSOEVER if your genes are arranged so that you are at high risk for cancer, heart disease, hypx-thyroidism, and a very long list of other debilitating, life-threatening, largely chronic conditions. And let's not forget complications that arise from various conditions like pregnancy, secondary infections, etc.
Not one bit.
And that makes him a shyster and a grifter.
August 14, 2009 12:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
He has every right to express his opinion, but I don't plan on rewarding the guy because he's not screaming "Death Panel Nazis" at the top of his lungs. He is anti-reform (duh-oh yes, I have read the op-ed), I strongly disagree with is views, and I don't want to give him my money anymore now that he's gone on the record with it.
So what's the problem?
August 14, 2009 2:41 AM | Reply | Permalink
as a fellow a vegan I get what he's saying, health care reform should start at home with healthy choices and the government can be a safety net, i think if most of us are honest we could careless for the overweight smoker schmuck who dies without health care. he can obtain it,but it should cost a hell of alot too, just like the folks who drive too fast and cause accidents they are gonna pay through the nose, i've grown tired of the bailouts as well i guess.
August 13, 2009 9:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
Healthy food is expensive, and so is smoking, they tax smokers quite a bit but they subsidize unhealthy food and if you live in a poor area good luck finding a healthy food store in the first place.
August 14, 2009 1:53 AM | Reply | Permalink
And Mackey is competing against subsidized, corn syrup-laden food. And still stuccessful. You'd think someone would be appreciative. But liberals eat their own. Doomed species.
August 14, 2009 3:55 AM | Reply | Permalink
Right. Because you've never chowed down on some pan-roasted liberal flesh yourself.
August 14, 2009 10:10 AM | Reply | Permalink
Uh-huh. And if I had a dime for every conservative who all of a sudden doesn't remember who that Bush fella was, or if they do, claim he wasn't a *real* conservative (funny how the watchers of Faux News are experts on what's real and what's not) I could afford to shop at Whole Foods.
Just because Mackay sells *healthy* food doesn't make him a liberal, so I'm sorry but who is it we're snacking on?
August 14, 2009 5:50 PM | Reply | Permalink
I don't agree with much that he says but he's not ranting about death panels or anything like that. I don't see much of a problem with him expressing his opinion.
August 13, 2009 9:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
I called both my local and Headquarters, they had a special answering machine specifically for complaints about Mr Mackey's op-ed. I go there regularly with my partner/girlfriend and eat there for dinner quite often. It sucks but as many have said on this post if you have a farmer's market that can be one way to go. Until healthcare (a good bill) passes, Whole Foods is dead to me.
August 13, 2009 10:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
I once asked someone who worked at Whole Foods how they decide where to open their next store. My friend said that one of the biggest factors was the percentage of college-educated people who live in the city. Their demographic tends to be college-educated, upper middle class, and I suspect that that demographic tends to be much more liberal.
August 13, 2009 10:50 PM | Reply | Permalink
You can give 'em a degree, but can't make 'em think. Bob Somerby at Daily Howler has been wondering why these smart PhD types keep getting their keisters handed too them by shallow screaming conservatives. Several reasons - they get too interested in all the irrelevant stuff, don't have a thick enough skin, can't take a punch but instead get all woozy and panicky, more into the theory of psychology and communications and semantics than actually practicing it.
August 14, 2009 3:59 AM | Reply | Permalink
Liberals eat their own...not-liberals? What?
August 14, 2009 4:33 AM | Reply | Permalink
Generalize much?
August 14, 2009 9:02 AM | Reply | Permalink
i have no idea what ass-handings you're talking about but no matter how smart anyone is, it's impossible to convince an idiot with rational arguments. much easier to just manipulate them with fear and lies.
and shouting down rational arguments isn't winning a debate, it's preventing a debate from occurring.
one might also spend one's time pondering why a pacifist keeps losing a fight by getting punched in the nose. my guess is it's probably because that egghead pacifist spends too much time reading books and not enough time fighting and punching people in the nose.
August 14, 2009 10:30 AM | Reply | Permalink
Actually "phd types" are used to dealing with rational people in an analytical environment.
The American public is far from either...
August 14, 2009 10:38 AM | Reply | Permalink
Hmmm...Obama has had his keister handed to him? Damn, I missed it! Where was that, on Fox?
August 14, 2009 6:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
And everybody shushes them if they start to scream back.
Mackey is supporting the opposition. He does not get my money -- simple as that.
August 15, 2009 8:24 AM | Reply | Permalink
I don't get it. Didn't Mackey just say last month that Whole Foods basically peddles junk? So he's simultaneously contributing to the fattening of America, while telling people they don't need healthcare reform because his store CAN SAVE THEM.
How can anyone trust anything this man says?
August 13, 2009 10:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
Damn! I am going to have to give up my objections to overpriced, slightly old, you-know-there-has-to-be-some-chemicals-in-it, "fresh" fruit and vegetables, so that I can join the boycott!
August 13, 2009 10:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
I don't get it. Didn't Mackey just say last month that Whole Foods basically peddles junk? So he's simultaneously contributing to the fattening of America, while telling people they don't need healthcare reform because his store CAN SAVE THEM.
How can anyone trust anything this man says?
August 13, 2009 10:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
I prefer Wegmans to Whole Foods.
August 13, 2009 11:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
i think the man must be a genius! an evil genius, perhaps, but he's just expanded his brand's demographic considerably. thousands of tea baggers across the country will be taking their first steps into a whole foods this weekend. not being very good at economics, they won't notice how much they're being overcharged! never having eaten anything that even bothered to be mistaken for being actually organic, they will discover how delicious food might be!
of course, their corporate-funded and controlled masters will have to give them directions to the nearest whole foods if they are to find their way...
August 13, 2009 11:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
Whole Foods is on the verge of opening a store here on the UWS of Manhattan, the most liberal of liberal bastions. There ARE no conservatives in these here parts. We have Fairway Market, which is a great market, and like 'em or not, Trader Joe's is opening a store here soon too. We also have Greenmarkets in multiple locations on the weekends (some during the week, as well), and Fresh Direct which delivers and has a small but decent selection of locally-grown produce, fish, meats, etc.
I, for one, can't wait to see what happens when this news really gets out. Oh, there will be boycotts! Buh-bye Whole Foods, we hardly knew ye...
August 14, 2009 2:34 AM | Reply | Permalink
For me the most amazing thing was to see that high-deductible insurance plans and HSAs were listed by him as THE solution to the problem (other than everyone shopping at Whole Foods, of course). To me these things ARE the problem in its purest form.
I think the boycott can work. Where I live, every other car in their lot has an Obama sticker on it. It could affect them strongly.
If you do shop there and decide you are going to boycott, I suggest calling your local store manager and telling him or her why, in a friendly manner that puts the blame squarely on the CEO and not the manager. Make sure they know about it. I did. I think the manager was genuinely nonplussed. Leafletting the boycott in front of the stores might not be too bad either.
August 14, 2009 8:36 AM | Reply | Permalink
Scoundrel.
The guy is an idiot as well, since this kind of wingnut crap is going to alienate hs customer base. WF is not exactly a popular wingnut place to shop.
It's sad that Walmart is better positioned on this that WF.
WF obviously only cares about profit and themselves. Fuck em.
August 14, 2009 10:01 AM | Reply | Permalink
"Whole Foods" is an incredible rip-off and scam. They charge twice as much, if not more, for the same products that you can buy elsewhere. People have this warped sense about the products that they are "healthier", when they are not. They just cost insanely more. Total scam, as evidenced by this fools comments.
August 14, 2009 10:19 AM | Reply | Permalink
It's particularly ironic that he started his piece with a quote from Margaret Thatcher, since Thatcher never tried to buck the National Health system, knowing of its huge popularity. Notice that National Health is still very much a pillar of British society even after all those years of Thatcherism.
August 14, 2009 10:27 AM | Reply | Permalink
I buy very little there.
I live across the street from a significant Farmers' Market.
For me, this is something of an entertaining non-issue.
August 14, 2009 10:38 AM | Reply | Permalink
Whole Foods is moving into our community to compete against a locally owned food cooperative. You can bet that Mackey's comment will be making the rounds. Boycott, anyone? He may have made a dumb move from a corporate standpoint, but it was poetic justice.
August 14, 2009 10:44 AM | Reply | Permalink
Join FACEBOOK Whole Foods Boycott
http://www.facebook.com/wholefoods
August 14, 2009 11:16 AM | Reply | Permalink
That's the Whole Foods Page.
Boycott page link: http://tinyurl.com/kq4pzw
August 14, 2009 12:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
Let them eat shitakes!
August 14, 2009 11:16 AM | Reply | Permalink
I wouldn't advocate a widespread boycott, but I know I won't be shopping there until there's a change in leadership at Whole Foods. It's disgraceful that someone in a position of power who purports to run a business that promotes a healthy lifestyle would deny his own employees adequate health insurance coverage. Say what you want about Starbucks, at least they provide generous benefits for their employees.
August 14, 2009 11:24 AM | Reply | Permalink
I have been telling people,for a long time, that the best way to tell businesses that you are unhappy with what they are doing is to vote with your pocket book: DON'T SHOP THERE. I believe that the Whole Foods Boycott is an excellent application of this.
August 14, 2009 11:29 AM | Reply | Permalink
Mackey is saying those things publicly in spite of the consequences to his business, which is also characteristic of someone who has a great deal of confidence.
Boycotting one outfit on a single data point like this is senseless. Single issue boycotts rarely have the legs to carry on for the necessary amount of time it takes to have much effect. Instead, get your act together to properly decide all the businesses you patronize and your reasons for doing so, using a much more coordinated and longer lasting effort. I think it is more a priority exercise than one of boycott. You can still go to Whole Foods, for the one item you can't get anywhere else. That's fine. And bring your own bags, they probably effectively charge a buck each for paper or plastic.
I think that the conservative interests behind the opposition to the health care plan have been executing their plan very well. They have surprised the Obama Administration and the Democratic party with its efficacy.
Their tactics add up to emphasize how obfuscatory the health care bills are, by helping make things _more_ confusing, and not to clarify specific objections, thereby eating a larger chunk of support out from under the plan. They just fill the media with...noise.
In general, conservatives like to use short memes while liberals like detail; short authoritarian messages are excruciatingly destructive against someone defending long and complicated legislation with rambling replies.
Most of the objections I hear from more or less regular folks taking part in the opposition campaign use heavily authoritarian voice. "Get off my lawn!" They are very uncomfortable.
August 14, 2009 11:43 AM | Reply | Permalink
For me what it boils down to is that I am passionate about health care reform (including a public option) and I prefer to patronize those establishments with CEOs who are not actively working against what I believe in. I am not going to pay a fortune for food in order for Mr. Mackey to eat well.
Glenn Beck has lost several major advertisers because of a recent letter writing campaign. Will it take him off the air? Of course not, but it will cause his producers to sweat a little and that's the kind of "trickle-down effect" that I can get behind.
August 14, 2009 6:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
Forwarded Beutler's article to a friend in Mill Valley (Marin County)
Boy is HE PISSED
The Mill Valley store is the most profitable of the WF chain and they're opening a second store
We're now working on getting ironing board boycott "picket lines" set up in front
August 14, 2009 11:43 AM | Reply | Permalink
Boycott is an awesome idea. It will save people a ton of money and they will realize that whole foods is an incredible rip-off.
August 14, 2009 11:51 AM | Reply | Permalink
Is there anything on YouTube about the boycott in Mill Valley - like perhaps something about empty parking lots at noon on Friday. Since MV is 90+% Democratic and very liberal this would be interesting. Also, what about the Berkeley WF? Any boycott there? There are several good farmer's markets in Marin, some of which are 2 or 3 times weekly. And there are plenty of good local markets.
August 14, 2009 1:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
TWO Whole Foods Facebook pages
One, "Whole Foods Boycott"
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=119099537379
The other just "Whole Foods" (has 109,000 members!)
http://www.facebook.com/wholefoods
August 14, 2009 11:49 AM | Reply | Permalink
Whole Foods is a fraud anyway, all there crap is overpriced and none if it is any better than what you can get at 7-11.
August 14, 2009 12:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
The op-ed follows a string of positive Whole Foods coverage in the WSJ last week--earnings report, an interview and a feature announcing an imminent image makeover and business model retooling. Setting aside the particulars of the op-ed for a second, does this smell like a PR gambit to anyone else?
August 14, 2009 12:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
Before he fired off his editorial in the WSJ, this idiot should have looked up the Michael Jordan quote when asked why he wasn't more politically vocal about issues: "Republicans buy my shoes, too."
Could have saved himself, and his company, a lot of trouble.
I damn sure wouldn't want someone that was capable of making this piss poor of a business move at the helm of my company.
August 14, 2009 1:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
From Whole Foods Facebook Fan Page...
Early on, we adopted a set of core values to guide our purpose:
...
* Supporting team member happiness and excellence
* Caring about our communities & our environment
So - this is how Whole Foods cares about their community huh?
August 14, 2009 3:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes, I was one of the angry commenters.
August 14, 2009 3:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
The WF stores in the Chicagoland area are all rather diffferent. The one in Lakeview is reminiscent of a Twin-Cities co-op in some curious way. It's got a great selection and the workers seem to be having fun. My local WF in Palatine is more suburban and the selections are somewhat different, it's ok. I do think they have pushed "organic" in a good way if it really is organic, but it is too pricey. One nickname here is that they are "Whole Paycheck." I've been glad to shop there but I've had misgivings about their CEO and predatory practices, a Wall-Martization of the health food industry driving locals out of business.
Since my son works at a local Trader Joe's I'm shopping there more anyway, but WF needs to take a look in a mirror and see who they really want to be. I definitely will shop there less until they make some changes.
August 14, 2009 3:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
I passed out about 30 copies of the op ed at my local Whole Foods before they threatened me w/ arrest. Honestly most of the people I gave it too were completely disinterested, or so it seemed.
August 14, 2009 5:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'm looking forward to opening a can of free market whup ass on this guy.
August 14, 2009 6:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
The problem with boycotts is that, first of all, unless there is a truly big response, it probably won't be noticed; secondly people forget to stay away as their anger cools. I do plant to call the store and tell them so that my absence will be REGISTERED, if not NOTICED!
And I just have to laugh at the comment above about the food not being better than the 7-11! Really -- have you ever BEEN in a Whole Foods Store? The food is excellent! 7 -11 has good coffee and also lots of lottery tickets.
August 14, 2009 6:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
John Mackey obviously didn't write this op-ed because he thought it would be good for sales at Whole Foods, and it's foolish of you to suggest otherwise. Mackey took a stand on principle. You may disagree with his views, but he felt so strongly about them that he knowingly ran the risk of a boycott.
August 15, 2009 10:28 AM | Reply | Permalink
Principle? He opposes affordable health care for all, and that's principle?
August 15, 2009 10:59 AM | Reply | Permalink
Yes, the fact that this provocative and predictably controversial op ed appeared shortly after Mackey announced, in the WSJ, that Whole Foods would abandon the upscale gourmet market and refocus on low cost health foods and bulk staples, and which announcement just happened to coincide with an ambiguous earnings report after a long period of declining sales, is most likely one of those wild, random coincidences so common in the retail business world.
August 15, 2009 4:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hey y'all--Isigned up just to have a word with you. I am an employee of WF and would just like to add a bit of balance here. I AGREE with the negative comments about Mackey for the most part but I would just ask you to consider that there are other actions that WF has taken that are extremely positive. Tons of money has been raised for micro loans, including to local vendors, lots of produce is bought from local vendors too. I realize they are a corporation but they also have good benefits and most employees like their jobs and feel good about what WF is doing in the world. The food is the best and best for the environment. I haven't seen a doctor in many years. Most would not agree with Mackey's politics. I, for one, am disappointed. I just ask that before you go completely negative about WF that you consider the whole picture. Thanks for reading.
August 15, 2009 1:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
This is simply an unfortunate truth: The fish rots from the head. Get a new CEO and I'll consider returning as a customer if I haven't found a better alternative by then.
August 15, 2009 1:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
The health care debacle has guaranteed that I will never go to WF again, but the two stores they've opened in my town in the last 3 months had already turned me off. They have all the same stuff that our ridiculously overpriced local health food store has, and they add at least an extra dollar to the price of every item. If organic spinach costs $4.99 a pound at the local place, it's $5.99 a lb. at "Whole Paycheck" (the existing place, New Leaf, is known as "New Thief").
With the economy as bad as it is, WF was facing an uphill battle, but now that they're exposed as wingnuts, they're dead in the water in progression Northern California.
August 15, 2009 4:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
I used to spend an average of $200 a week (or, about $10,000 a year) at Whole Foods. This week, after reading Whole Foods CEO John Mackey's op-ed in the Wall Street Journal I've decided to no longer shop at Whole Foods unless Mackey reverses his opposition to Obama's health care reform or the Whole Foods board replaces him. I am shopping at Trader Joe's instead.
August 16, 2009 10:52 AM | Reply | Permalink
Thank Goodness John Mackey has the guts to stand up for what is right. We do not need the government controlling any more of us than it already does. I am soooooooooo pleased with Mr Mackey that I intend to buy at least $500 in WF gift certificates this week.
August 17, 2009 2:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
John Mackey is right and the LAST thing we need is another bloated revenue wasting liberty inhibiting government program. The BEST way to reduce costs and increase quality and widen access is to let the free market work. His proposals are simple and will have a great effect on health care in this country, without affecting anyone's LIBERTY. If Obamacare passes it will lead us down another step towards socialism and government tyranny. You can't have LIBERTY and Government handouts/mandates at the same time.
Keep speaking out Mr. Mackey!
Thanks!
August 18, 2009 3:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
Surely you folks cannot be serious. I challenge any of you to specify any logical reasons for why Mackey's suggestions on how to amend the current problems our healthcare system are unreasonable. Have you actually read the op-ed? Or are you once again listening to the bias of our current media? Keep in mind this is the same man who gave himself a $1 salary last year.
August 20, 2009 1:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
Someone needs to explain to Buetler how a public company works. Mackey doesn't own Whole Foods, its shareholders do. And many of them probably support healthcare reform. It's also my understanding that he didn't "rail against" reform; he simply stated his opinions on how he thinks reform shoud take shape. If you don't like it, then disagree with him, don't go off half-cocked and personally slam him.
August 21, 2009 9:39 AM | Reply | Permalink