Boycott the Whole Foods Boycott
Punishing the store for bad politics is just a dumb idea.
Are good liberals going to stay away from the Whole Fods at 10th and South streets?
Last week in Lebanon, Pa., a good Christian man told Sen. Arlen Specter he was going to hell for supporting health care reform.
“One day, God’s gonna stand before you,” the man cried out in a video replayed endlessly on cable news and blogs. “And he’s gonna judge you and the rest of your damn cronies up on the Hill, and then you will get your just desserts.”
This kind of right-wing stupidity has dominated the last few weeks of the health reform debate. Angry crowds have gathered at congressional “town halls” across the country, warning darkly— and loudly, always very loudly—of socialism and Nazi “death panels” that will kill your sick grandmothers, infirm physicists and unhealthy children in the name of cutting health costs. It’s all crap, of course, but it’s made Democrats nervous that once again they’re going to lose a major fight over health care because they can’t match the Republican ability to lie, repeatedly, and at high volume.
So a number of liberals have apparently decided to rejoin dumbness with dumbness. They’ve decided to boycott Whole Foods.
Makes sense, right?
Here’s what happened: John Mackey, the CEO of Whole Foods, took to the pages of the Wall Street Journal on August 12 with an op-ed piece titled “The Whole Foods Alternative to ObamaCare.” He opened with a quote from Margaret Thatcher warning against the perils of socialism and proceeded to offer up a set of market-driven solutions to lower health insurance costs—all while offering a mild rebuke to reform efforts.
“A careful reading of both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution will not reveal any intrinsic right to health care, food or shelter,” Mackey wrote. “That’s because there isn’t any. This ‘right’ has never existed in America.”
Mackey’s op-ed so enraged the left that the folks at Daily Kos and like-minded liberals of Facebook declared they’d never again shop at Whole Foods.
“I won’t shop at Whole Foods again until Mackey is gone,” the commenter “libhomo” wrote at PW ’s politics blog, echoing the sentiments of many Democrats. “Mackey’s effort to take health care away from people (the real agenda of his op-ed) is reprehensible. I’m tired of abusive behavior from CEOs, and I am determined to fight back every time I can.”
Please. For weeks now, liberals have been complaining about the distortions and vicious behavior from the right. So an opponent of President Obama’s reform proposals comes along and offers a thoughtful-but-probably-mistaken- contrary opinion and we’re going to punish him for that? If that’s the case, why shouldn’t conservatives like Arlen Specter’s accuser in Lebanon scream and throw tantrums? A boycott would probably be counterproductive.
Don’t get me wrong. Purely as a business matter, Mackey’s op-ed was a stunningly bad piece of brand management. Whole Foods has always sold more than food; it sells ideas of food as an expression of environmental values and foodie pretentiousness that appeal more to the left than to the right. Whole Foods’ customers have always seemed to embody the “latte-sipping, arugula-eating” stereotype of liberals summoned by conservatives who claim to speak for “real America.”
Mackey’s op-ed punctured the self-image of his customers. So that was dumb.
But boycotting Whole Foods is a futile and impotent act that does nothing to get health reform passed. (Indeed, news of the boycott has sparked vows from conservatives that they’ll now go out of their way to shop at the store.) It won’t hurt Mackey; he’s set for life. His employees—including those at two stores in Philadelphia—are the ones who stand to suffer.
“You latte-sipping, arugula-munching liberal douchebags: as much as I hate having to deal with you every day in the store, please don’t fucking boycott,” wrote a “local Whole Foods employee.” “You and I both know that it’s not going to hurt Mackey, and that any financial effect that the company feels from this is going to manifest itself in A) higher prices for those customers left behind, B) wage freezes and/or benefits reductions for the little guys like me, down in the trenches having to put up with our new wing-nut neo-con customer base.”
Liberals like to think the angry nutcases are all on the other side of the aisle. But punishing people who disagree with you isn’t a liberal value. And neither is going without high-quality organic produce. It’s time to call off the boycott. ■
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Letters to the Editor
1. CJ said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 01:09AM
“Blaming Whole Foods. Thats smart. Screw these liberal nutjobs. Whole Foods Rocks.”
2. Anonymous said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 09:33AM
“Vote with your money. Its more effective than the ballot box. Business wants to be political and use influence. Fine. Sow, and reap.”
3. Mike Toreno said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 09:33AM
“That's an intelligent and cogent analysis. It recognizes the fact that if people stop shopping at Whole Foods, the money they would have spent will vanish from the economy. They won't shop for the products at other stores, thereby creating demand at those stores and increasing labor requirements at those stores.”
4. wendymae said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 09:40AM
““You latte-sipping, arugula-munching liberal douchebags: as much as I hate having to deal with you every day in the store, please don’t fucking boycott,”
well that douchebag gave me yet another reason to boycott.”
5. Ed Zorn said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 09:48AM
“Based on your logic, we squishy-softhearted liberals should also be watching Fox and eagerly patronizing their sponsors so we won't be "punishing" them for not agreeing with our values. We should be sending money to the Republicans so we're not "punishing" them. Oh yeah, and because they might otherwise fire some of their operatives and clerks.
This is an absurdist argument. We who are boycotting are not "punishing" anybody. We are, however, giving notice that we'll be spending our money in the few cases where we can) with businesses that aren't going to turn around and use it to work against us.
>“You latte-sipping, arugula-munching liberal douchebags: as much
>as I hate having to deal with you every day in the store, please
>don’t fucking boycott,” wrote a “local Whole Foods employee."
And this is one of the employees we're supposed to worry about? Sorry, man--this arugula-eschewing liberal is neither a douchebag nor a punching bag.
”
6. HENK said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 10:01AM
“I won't shop there anymore. Its my right as a capitalist to spend my money where I please and I see no reason why I should pay Mackey's salary. He doesn't support unions, he doesn't support health care and he seems to think that Maggie Thatcher was a great philosopher.”
7. Anonymous said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 10:03AM
“Real "Patriotic Americans" don't give a crap about the employees. Just like we don't care about your opinion!”
8. Anonymous said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 10:04AM
“Dear Mr. Mathis
If you actually took the time to read the link ("They’ve decided to boycott Whole Foods. ")at the top of YOUR OWN page you'd see the intention ISN'T to boycott WF forever, but for a sustained period of time.
Very clearly the writer of the Open Left story said the following:
1) Pretty much the only way to get the attention of corporate fat cats & the Senators & House members they own is to hit them in the pocket book. Remember when Sinclair Broadcasting was planning to air the anti-John Kerry "documentary" in 2004? The "sell Sinclair stock" meme was born & spread through the tubes & the stock started going down. Soon, plans for airing the documentary "changed." If a boycott of Whole Foods plan spreads, even if it is targeted for, say, the rest of August, they will notice. Similarly, a sell Whole Foods stock (WFMI) might also be effective...
Read the ENTIRE piece & you'd see, the writer states how a prolonged boycott could hurt workers.
This isn't stupid, it's smart.”
9. mc said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 10:05AM
“I can get better quality organic produce at my local supermarket for a much better price. I (used to) go to Whole Foods for other things, definitely not the produce. Now I choose to vote with my feet and shop elsewhere.”
10. nffcnnr said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 10:07AM
“"But boycotting Whole Foods is a futile and impotent act that does nothing to get health reform passed."
No one who is boycotting Whole Foods is doing it in an attempt to reform health care, Joel. The point of a consumer boycott is to not spend money at a retail establishment that does not represent the consumers' values. Mackey’s intellectually dishonest op-ed is anathema to progressives.
So you say this boycott is Futile? Impotent? Just wait.”
11. Jeremy Williamson said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 10:08AM
“Given that wealthy right-wing elites in the corporate media savaged John Kerry for having the audacity to drink green tea, just as they savaged Barack Obama for having the nerve to eat arugula, as if these elites were working-class heroes raised on hardtack and swill, I think your allegations of "foodie pretentiousness" would be more accurately leveled at the right.
But hey, I understand that it's much easier to write when you stick to a well-worn script.”
12. Anonymous said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 10:12AM
“it is very simple. if corporations and their mouthpieces want to wield power and influence in the political sphere then there will be repercussions. it's not like we can vote them out, right? so the only means of reigning in the influence of corporate power is to organize and not purchase their products.
i expect those on all political sides to do the same. you want to keep me as a customer, don't fucking mix your shit in my politics. corporations already wield enough power in this country. see? simple.
still i don't see how this equates with the loons i have personally witnessed screaming about government death squads at townhalls.
”
13. Nads said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 10:14AM
“Are you seriously equating the wingnut accusations of Nazism, Hitler comparisons, and eugenics with the progressives' corporate boycott?
If the anonymous local WF employee feels the consequences of the boycott, he should feel free to take it up with management and/or Mackey ... or get an education which allows him to the options to a) not work at WF anymore, and b) afford their prices.”
14. Susie from Philly said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 10:19AM
“Oh, come on. Real liberals were already boycotting Whole Foods because they're union busters - something I believe was covered thoroughly in the Philly Weekly, wasn't it?”
15. Allen Howard said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 10:21AM
“Mackey just told the world that his employees have lousy insurance. This is, of course, my opinion. Nevertheless, based on his "high deductible" plan, I can assure you that his employees aren't going in to see the doctor as often as others with "low copayment" plans. That, sir, is one of the benefits of the boycott - that perhaps his employees will get a little better treatment. Anyway, my take on Mackey is the same as my take on other conservatives: They just don't get the idea that improving the health of all will improve their quality of life, too.”
16. blackjack said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 10:22AM
“So, liberals are "latte-sipping, arugula-munching....douchebags" and conservatives are all "wing-nut neo-con(s)". There's a guy who really loves his job.
'Would you like some bile with your anger, sir?'”
17. coozledad said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 10:33AM
“The more these sweaty concern trolls come out swinging in defense of Whole Foods, the more likely it is to go under. It's not just that liberals are the only people who patronize the store, they're the only ones who read. And you're pissing them off.”
18. Anonymous said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 10:47AM
“By continuing to shop at Whole Foods instead of somewhere else, you're punishing the employees of grocery stores that aren't run by total ----heads.”
19. Anonymous said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 10:52AM
“"Liberals like to think the angry nutcases are all on the other side of the aisle. But punishing people who disagree with you isn’t a liberal value. And neither is going without high-quality organic produce. It’s time to call off the boycott. ■"
This is stupid. Decdiding that you do not want to spend your money supporting a company because of its politics is indeed a liberal value. Your idea that we owe these people a living and have to shop at WF or we are punishing them is absurd and you are a communist.
Boycott the stinking company. They suck. Their CEO sucks. It would be great to see them go bankrupt. And it is not punishing. It is the magic of the marketplace. Consumers vote with their pocketbooks.”
20. hells littlest angel said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 10:53AM
“I'm not boycotting Whole Foods. I'm just choosing not to do business with a company that is run by a jerkoff.
Is the author of this opinion piece Megan McArdle's teenage son? I mean, this is pretty fucking vapid opinionating.”
21. Jamey said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 11:03AM
“No, fuck you, Joel Mathis.
If the CEO of Whole Foods wants to publicly support a position that will harm my family and me, then I definitely will shop elsewhere. Eventually, the board of directors at Whole Foods will pitch the CEO--hopefully, before they decide to fire baggers and cashiers to offset lost revenues. But either way, I refuse to tacitly agree with Mackey by giving his company my money.”
22. Anonymous said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 11:03AM
“Clearly I cannot go around asking all of the businesses I frequent to tell me their political philosophies, nor do I want to. They are perfectly free to hold their own opinions, and vote any way they want, and obviously that's ok. The issue for me is when my money goes to support that business's effort to undermine what I hold near and dear. That's what John Mackay was doing -- because he is CEO of a very successful corporation, which got that way because of people like me, he has access to the bully pulpit of the WSJ to undermine something important to me. And I don't have to help him do it anymore.
”
23. vagina said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 11:06AM
“sounds like this op-ed writer as well as teh whole foods employee have sand in there vajayjays.
Get a real fucking job”
24. 60th Street said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 11:12AM
“I am not understanding how Liberals boycotting Whole Foods hurts employees. Shouldn't they get a nice influx of shiny happy new conservative customers into the store now to negate that loss?
Based on what douchebag Mackey and his douchebag anonymous employee said, it would appear this is what Whole Foods wants anyway.
”
25. ottnott said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 11:39AM
“
Guess I'll have to start buying cigarettes so that I'm not punishing the truck drivers that distribute the cancer sticks from the factory.
Not to mention the hospital workers employed to treat all those lung cancer victims.
”
26. Anonymous said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 11:39AM
“I hope all the people who are boycotting "because they don't want to pay the CEOs salary" realize that his salary is $1 a year, so you really are just hurting the people who have jobs at Whole foods. Plus isn't the beauty of America that all people are entitled to their own opinions. Just because someone has a different opinion than yours doesn't mean it is wrong - just different. The intolerance and the ignorance is unbelieveable...
Per wikipedia:
According to the BBC, John Mackey wrote a letter in 2006 to all of his staff announcing that he would reduce his own salary to $1 a year, donate his stock portfolio to charity and set up a $100,000 emergency fund for staff facing personal problems.[12] He wrote: "I am now 53 years old and I have reached a place in my life where I no longer want to work for money, but simply for the joy of the work itself and to better answer the call to service that I feel so clearly in my own heart."
”
27. ibc said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 11:41AM
““You latte-sipping, arugula-munching liberal douchebags: as much as I hate having to deal with you every day in the store, please don’t fucking boycott..."
Oh, cool! Thanks to this fuck-whistle, I can boycott Whole Foods and not feel the least bit guilty. Fuck 'em.”
28. Jeremy Williamson said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 11:51AM
“Anonymous 26, you are either too stupid to read the rest of the Wikipedia entry, or you are lying.
"While CEO of Whole Foods Market in 2008, he earned a total compensation of just $33,831, which included a base salary of $1, and a cash bonus of $33,830.[13] But he made $1.8 million exercising stock options, and received another $460,000 because of a company error that allowed stock options to expire unexercised. The grand total: $2.7 million. Another $4.4 million of options have vested, so he can exercise them if he wants."
So, if it's not obvious to you now, Mackey makes money from bonuses and stock options. If people boycott WF, the bonus and stock values decrease. Pretty simple.”
29. Anonymous said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 12:21PM
“"the ignorance is unbelieveable..."
no kidding. so i should probably inform you that a week before publishing
the op-ed in the wsj mackey sold off $1.4 million of whole foods stock.
per yahoo business:
Insider Filings - MACKEY JOHN P
6-Aug-09 50,000 WFMI Sale at $27.85 per share.
(Proceeds of $1,392,500)
working for free sure pays off sometimes, huh? maybe he donated it all to charity. in that case, praise be to you mr. mackey.
and one more time for the slow people in the room:
the issue is not with the speech of mr. mackey. it is with his position of power and the use of this position to gain access to the op-ed pages of one of the most influential papers in the nation. if he wants to stand on the street corner and hand out hand printed fliers, good for him. if he wants to use his ceo clout to enter the political fray at a national level, i'm not gonna support that in anyway. see the difference? one is free speech the other is bad business practices...”
30. DanF said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 01:08PM
“And I don't think it's been mentioned often enough - Whole Foods sold people a lifestyle as much as they sold them decent produce. Mackey did a lifestyle bait-and-switch on his customers and they are understandably angry.”
31. Anonymous said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 01:24PM
“Well put, Jeremy @ 28”
32. John said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 02:09PM
“Stock option sale....so what, so do all the employees, that is what you do with stock options, they are worthless unless you sell them
Also mention he takes $1 per year in wage
Boycotting a business because of a personal opinion....and you call yourself liberals...shame on you. You should be comfortable with someone boycotting your work place for your opinions too.
I work as a Corp Sustainability Manger, and they do more to advance corp efforts than anyone I know, including your employers.”
33. Cleveland Bob said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 02:39PM
“Ha! Things suck so bad on the West Side of Cleveland, we don't even have a Whole Foods market. So... ummm...there.”
34. rose said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 03:18PM
“just to lighten up the discussion...here's a great article on funny product names at whole foods...check it out: http://onthebutton.wordpress.com/2009/08/19/wholefoods/”
35. Anonymous said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 06:07PM
“another reason to boycott the philadelphia weekly.”
36. Dick Hertz said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 06:27PM
“Whole Foods treats their employees like crap. If you ever knew anyone who worked there, you'd know that in spades, as bad as Starbucks. Krogers and Safeway are union and have plenty of granola food, including their own brands that are better documented, and having a garden at home and going to the farmers market is way more fun. Costco is better than Whore Foods.
Since when does some wimpy opinion columnist have the sand to write some whinging apologia for a wealthy, disconnected jerkoff who clearly (by selling a LOT of stock beforehand) knew his idiot propaganda spiel wouldn't be received well by anyone but the most deranged Rand cultist? Why not just advertise yourself as Chief Corporate Apologist and PR Flack for Deranged Libertarian Anuses? How else are you supposed to get any satisfaction from a company or government hell-bent on doing you wrong? Were you born bent over?”
37. Eric the Red said... on Aug 19, 2009 at 09:36PM
“The local Whole Foods employee should consider getting a job at one of Whole Foods' competitors. If Whole Foods is boycotted, their sales will decline, perhaps causing the wage freeze and benefits reductions he describes. On the other hand, former Whole Foods cusomters will be making those purchases from other establishments. They will then (using local WHole Foods employee's logic) increase wages and benefits, as well as requiring additional employees to service their newly enhanced customer base. Don't be lazy, local Whole Foods employee! Find a better job with better benefits! Don't expect that others should subsidize you staying put when a better opportunity is yours for the asking!”
38. Lefty said... on Aug 20, 2009 at 09:17AM
“Why on Earth should I support a business that's headed by some one who writes editorials in the Wall Street Journal that approvingly quote Margaret Thatcher and imply that Obama's policies are the same as Socialism?
If I was a Republican, I can see why this would be a selling point; but I'm not. Whole Foods markets itself to people on the Left end of the political dial. It claims to be a progressive company. Their CEO's Op-Ed merely proved this to be nothing more than P.R. Baloney. Why would I patronize a business that is lying to me and manipulating me?”
39. nanorich said... on Aug 20, 2009 at 11:43AM
“As a participant in the WF boycott, I can say that the 20K plus people who signed up on Facebook in less than a week, have a better understanding of niche marketing than the person who attacked the boycott....
when one spends as much time cultivating such a customer base, and suddenly blows all that customer good will and makes those people look at what questionable enterprise WF is, and how it only seems to reflect their values, I would say the CEO who does that really owes his board an explanation.
In the meantime, MacKay has created an opportunity for his former customers to explore better alternatives to his over priced, over hyped store....and created a real grassroots movement to promote healthcare reform!
Thanks Mr. MacKay!
In the meantime, if he thinks his follow libertarians can step into the breech and actually pay his absurd prices...maybe he might wanna look into who buys food these days...and who lives off delivery pizza.
”
40. Sam said... on Aug 20, 2009 at 12:27PM
“Does anybody know any alternatives.........co-ops to whole foods around the Philly area ( other than trader joe's) ? I would appreciate it-Thanks.
PS. Please don't ask about my politics-i think I have every right to do anything with my money.
”
41. Eddie Snider said... on Aug 24, 2009 at 10:21PM
“Sigh. Another idiot columnist/social commentator strikes again. So, a CEO of a major company, that relies to a large extent on politically liberal customers, uses his Wall Street Journal access to sway public opinion...in the total opposite direction from what the liberal customer base believes. Do these left-leaning customers bring guns to the Whole Foods corporate headquarters? Lie and distort the words of the CEO? No. They make their point in a specific, effective way...boycotting the store. Mathis's attempt to link the right wing freak show with the folks boycotting Whole Foods, shows what little thought he put in to the above article. Obviously, not much thought went into this lame column.”
42. bob zimway said... on Aug 24, 2009 at 10:42PM
“Dear urban yuppie scum,
I'm so glad your genetic footprint has enabled you to lord this position, but speaking as one who lived both south and east in Philly, may I say that your defensive armor is wrinkled like linen on the Chester bus? Take a hit, rethink it.
”
43. mmgth said... on Aug 25, 2009 at 12:06AM
“Comparing righteous indignation at Mackey's WSJ editorial to Fox/Right Talk Radio engineered townhall nutjob lunacy is what is DUMB.”
44. sickofliberalprogressives said... on Aug 25, 2009 at 01:24PM
“Mackey's suggestions hit too close to home for libs. He nailed it. The liberal-progressives want to establish national socialism and government-controlled healthcare is the foot in the door.
”
45. brandon said... on Aug 26, 2009 at 10:47AM
“I guess people are not really entiltled to their opinion in America. I am a Democrat and I am ashamed that we are often intolerant.”
46. brandon said... on Aug 26, 2009 at 10:49AM
“bob zimway - I have lived in Philly for 20 years and I have never heard someone say "east in Philly". You obviously don't know what you are talking about.”
47. Paul said... on Aug 26, 2009 at 05:53PM
“Back in 2008, this Whole Foods, CEO John Mackey (how old is this kid?), was caught posting negative comments (trash talk) about a competitor on Yahoo Finance message boards in an effort to push down the stock price. So now I am suppose to take this loser seriously? Please, snore, snore.”
48. Anita Q. said... on Aug 28, 2009 at 07:00PM
“John Mackey's stores are not only expensive and cater to the wealthy but it also appears that he's against the general welfare and equal rights of all. Of course this food market supremo is going to be against government interference and regulations. Mackey is not only for more individual empowerment but wants to keep grabbing larger pieces of the pie. He has already proven himself to be a dirt ball for being against a union and humane conditions for the farmworkers who pick some of the fruits and vegetables for his stores. This conniving mega-businessman with megastores seems to also have little compassion or apathy for poor and working-class folk or for the small businesses he squeezed out. It is his type of selfish individualism that is destroying our communities, our culture, and society at large. I believe a boycott of his stores will send a strong message to him that health care is indeed an intrinsic (inalienable) right that belongs to all us as members of the human race.”
49. Paul said... on Sep 1, 2009 at 11:29AM
“We are all adults here, and as adults we know there are consequences for are actions, so if you do not agree with CEO John Mackey views on healthcare, you can a) do nothing, b) shop there, c) not shop there, d) protest and picket the stores, its your choice, live the dream!”
50. ConservativeLady said... on Sep 16, 2009 at 03:32PM
“So, let's say Mike Duke (CEO Wal-Mart) made the same exact comments on WJS. Where will Wally World constituents shop? I mean, really. Oh wait, most of them can't read so I guess a boycott wouldn't develop.”