Apparently, English author George Orwell did not scare people enough in the American classroom to quench, decades later, their burgeoning desire for totalitarianism. Cracks in the façade of true social and economic education have led to a consumeristic society hell-bent on a reversal of fortune. Or so one mega-millionaire, Whole Foods CEO John Mackey, is saying.
The American Enterprise Institute hosted Mackey in discussing the cultural leadership – or lack thereof – when it comes to the environment of corporate America, where the man worth a cool $75 million mic-dropped this conversation starter:
"It needs to evolve. Otherwise, the socialists are going to take over – that's how I see it, and that's the path of poverty. They talk about trickle-down wealth, but socialism is trickle-up poverty. It just impoverishes everything."
Trickle-down economics, a flashback of vernacular from the Ronald Reagan era, was the theory that tax breaks and economic benefits for big business, investors, and entrepreneurs would stimulate economic growth for all – and Mackey is a fan. He issued a warning for those who buy into what progressives are selling: "Socialism has been tried 42 times in the last 100 years, and 42 failures, it doesn't work, it's the wrong way."
And then he made the 40th president of the United States queasy in his crypt. "We have to keep capitalism, I would argue; we need conscious capitalism."
Conscious Capitalism
Conscious capitalism may just be the abbreviated version of the random self-proclaimed moderates who boast that they are "socially liberal but fiscal conservative." Who has this elusive demographic been voting for all these years? Mackey makes nice in saying change is needed, but he lays the blame for the "greedy corporate America" reputation at the feet of our most brainwashing institutions: American universities.
And who might be running these institutes of higher learning? Well, folks who idolize Marx, Stalin, Che Guevara, and others associated with Communism.
"That's my fear," Markey continued, "that the Marxists and socialists – the academic community – is generally hostile to business. It always has been. This is not new." He continued by pointing out that brainwashing tactics at colleges and universities are reinforced politically by progressives who have an elected status to brandish from the bully pulpit. And we all know that in their eyes, capitalism is evil. Instead, the government is here to make your life better, and it’s knocking at the door. But that's simply hogwash.
Heck, our 40th U.S. president claimed these to be the most terrifying nine words in the English language: "I'm from the government, and I'm here to help." Don't answer the knock at the door.
Orwell Didn't Get The Job Done
How Orwell's messages of the past didn't scare the bejeezus out of every American is hard to fathom – but they sure are quoting the alarmist these days. And now folks in the business world are trying to blend corporate success with progressive socialism. Is that even possible? Or is it perhaps woke marketing on the part of millionaires trying to stay in the 1% zone and avoid the ever-present cancel culture that lurks in the shadows near the water cooler?
Mackey acknowledges the current political crisis by a clever "on the one hand" routine: "We have to recognize that some of the progressive insights are important, and they shouldn't go away. But we can't throw out capitalism and replace it with socialism. That will be a disaster." If Mackey is the new corporate elite, America might want to keep a close eye on what he does with Whole Foods and his 100,000 employees next. Hopefully, he knows what he is doing.
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Read more from Sarah Cowgill.
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