I am really tired of greed.  Greed is not a natural phenomenon.  The desire to take more than you need does not exist in the natural world.  We are masters of this skill however. 

This essay is not about greed in the corporate world, or greed within capitalism.  This essay is about the most dangerous kind of greed.  The kind that takes you off course and takes everyone else down with you.  I experienced a perfect example of this today.  Of course, as always, coupled with the “average” customer’s lack of attention, and inability to engage and complain, the problem only adds up and gets bigger and bigger. So what am I talking about?  Whole Foods.

“Ali!!!”  you say, shocked and appalled, “Whole Foods is not greedy, they are the pinnacle of environmental and organic food sources.  They are one of the major reasons people are eating better and becoming aware of the food crisis we have in our country today!  You have totally lost your mind… this Ultimate Spaceship business of yours needs to stop!”

I say, you kind sir, have either been asleep at the wheel, or haven’t been to the newer larger Whole Foods stores popping up everywhere like chicken pox on a babies ass!  Let’s not even begin to grapple with the energy costs of keeping one of these behemoth stores open.  How about the fact that they compete and smother local smaller organic sources (like FARMER’S!!!) because of their quantity and bulk programs.  I will defer to the ultimate sleuth on researching the data behind this mess (Shelley) to let you in on the secrets behind where Whole Foods gets their stuff!

But this… this is the kicker…  I took this picture at the Whole Foods in Thousand Oaks, California:

Go ahead, save the photo on your desktop and zoom in to see what’s on the menu… looks JUST like a regular market huh?  Bottom line… SELL OUTS!  Big time!  What makes you think that innocent Whole Foods really give a S%*@ about your or your planet’s well being… if there is a benefit to the planet and your life as a result of you satisfying your guilt in buying crap at the regular market, and they can profit from that… cool.  But they didn’t open to actually SAVE your world, or your local farmer… or your health.  They opened because they saw and capitalized on a void in the food industry and as any good businessperson does, analyzed the trends to come in the next decade and there you have it… Whole Foods.

http://michaelbluejay.com/main/wholefoods.html

http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2006/05/15/060515crat_atlarge

http://www.mindfully.org/Food/2006/Whole-Foods-Pastoral2006.htm

http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS173972+11-Apr-2008+BW20080411

There is nothing Whole about stuff in the picture.  Or for that matter, it is not Food.  This company is now part of the big Green Washing machine.  This idea of mixing junk, processed prepared foods for modern lazy consumers into the organic stuff is just the beginning of how this company is going to grow their profit margins.  You think that the organic beef that Whole Foods sells is a happy cow hanging around a green untouched pasture in middle America, but that is your misunderstanding of the reality.  If you haven’t watched Earthlings yet, you need to.  Chickens?  Same story.  Organic means no extra stuff… but it doesn’t mean no methane for the environment, no animal abuse, no heart disease from the abnormal consumption of meat in the 21st century.

I for one have added another one to my list... Whole Foods is now on my sell out list, and they won’t have the pleasure of getting my dollars.  I hope you do the same.  If you really want good ole’ fashioned organic food, find a CSA (community supported agriculture) farm nearby, and support a local farmer.  Then you will know for sure what you are eating, because you can go there and see it.  Plus you are staying local.

I keep telling everyone to read.  I don’t know how many of you actually read… by read I mean books.  But if you are going to start, please, being with Bill McKibben’s Deep Economy.  This book can serve as your primer and portal to enlightenment.  He writes logical, in simple terms, with clear approach to what the fundamental principles our great country was founded on.