tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7578125528475198742.post1921775233768707225..comments2023-05-11T03:06:59.054-07:00Comments on The Well Run Dry: Whole Foods, John Mackey and Single-Payer Health CareTH in SoChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00483293929968668475noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7578125528475198742.post-53538055107450017842009-08-23T09:59:25.805-07:002009-08-23T09:59:25.805-07:00Very interesting (and thank you for expounding fur...Very interesting (and thank you for expounding further).<br /><br />I still feel there is value in writing/calling your Congressmen and Senators. Although I am certain many of these politicians do benefit financially from their public service duties, they still do need to remain elected to continue. If I feel my values are not represented by them, they lose my vote. And, I make sure I communicate my displeasure to other voters in my local area. I suppose that's somewhat similar to a boycott of big businesses that attempt to buy their way into politicians' voting preferences -- you influence a lot of people to make the decision-makers attention.ha1kuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01783614836081229996noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7578125528475198742.post-33631035277864618292009-08-23T00:07:42.145-07:002009-08-23T00:07:42.145-07:00Thanks for your continued readership. I'll tr...Thanks for your continued readership. I'll try here to be a bit clearer. My opposition to John Mackey and to Whole Foods is not because he is rich. Rather, it's because as a rich man and the head of a large business, he is using his position and power to defend a "health care" system that continues to bleed working-class people dry. A lot of dollars have gone into fighting single-payer health care, and most of those dollars have not come from working-class people, many of whom are finding themselves facing medical bankruptcy even though they have "insurance."<br /><br />It's not surprising that the health insurance/health care industry would lobby against genuine health care reform. Some might wonder then why employers completely unconnected to the health industry would also lobby against health care reform, employers like Safeway and Whole Foods. I think I know one reason. I know of at least one large construction engineering firm that makes money from its employee contributions to its health insurance plan, either through an interest-bearing account or through charging extra fees. (I can dig up the exact details, if you'd like.) It would not surprise me at all to find that many large employers have the same practice. Government-provided health care would deprive these employers of a coveted revenue stream.<br /><br />Why target rich people like John Mackey and rich corporations like Whole Foods? Because they - not ordinary people, but the rich - are the ones to whom Congress pays attention. This is why I think a boycott would work much better than writing to Congress on this issue. If a few large outfits like Whole Foods go out of business for not listening to their customers, there are hordes of entrepreneurs waiting to fill in the gap. This brings up another thing about Whole Foods - namely, that it has a bit of a history of anticompetitive practices against smaller health food store chains and sole proprietors. I may list some of these practices in a future post.TH in SoChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00483293929968668475noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7578125528475198742.post-59584810590235862752009-08-22T10:57:02.277-07:002009-08-22T10:57:02.277-07:00I admittedly am not familiar with Mackey or Whole ...I admittedly am not familiar with Mackey or Whole Foods, and probably much less your opposition to him and the company.<br /><br />Your post struck me as "Let's target the rich because -- they're rich!" I'm sure I'm over-simplifying the message of your post. After all, the business owners are supplying jobs, right? Could you share a bit more about your message here?<br /><br />Peace.ha1kuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01783614836081229996noreply@blogger.com