Class warfare summed up in a simple joke (with an accompanying cartoon)

I have all my metal goods made by a blacksmith.

 

I still shop at the local buggy whip store. They are much better for the environment.

 

It's not really exhausting to be me. It's a matter of taking the time to make considered choices with my consumer decisions. As Inky says, you can't be an absolutist. I try to shop at either Kroger, which is a union grocery store, or at another small local store that carries a lot of products made in the state, thereby helping to hopefully create jobs for people in this state and not in China. It's not that I have anything against the Chinese but I would prefer to employ those close to home.

 

Someone brought up Sam Zell a while ago to rebut my position that the "rich" are entrepreneurs.

And, I'm obviously not going to defend every action taken by every CEO. Zell and Frank Lorenzo -- to name a villain from my former industry -- are rightfully controversial.

And no, not every deal entered into by a billionaire exposes the individual billionaire to vast personal risk. But, most rich people got there by taking risks and by working many more than 40 hours a week -- often for no pay while getting the business of the ground.

And, the outright bashing of CEO's and millionaires is also silly.

Go to any hospital, college campus, or performing arts center. Who are the buildings named after?

The rich in America are incredibly philanthropic.

 

When I go to Starbucks I demand that my cup of coffee is fair trade. Most times they have to brew it.

 

How much of that is spurred by the goodness of their heart and how much by the tax benefits?

 

I don't know. How much?

 

I don't know, that's why I asked.

But some statistics might indicate the super rich aren't all that generous.

http://philanthropy.com/article/America-s-Biggest-Donors-Hit/126221/

 

While there are tax breaks for donating money, they aren't so generous that it wouldn't be better than just holding on to the money.

 

Julie got canned for sleeping with her subordinate and fr taking gifts from (and maybe also sleeping with) Howard Draft, but she had already worn out her welcome by then.

She launched an agency review and wanted to do new things. New slogan, new campaign, new focus.

Her advertising was all about living better and focussed on the nice stuff you can buy at Walmart. After she left, it went right back to Always Low Prices.

But, compare the amount of advertising and sponsorships they do. It's miniscule for a company their size and is dwarfed even by other discounters/retailers like Target, Best Buy, or Home Depot.

And, much of what they do spend is solely to defend themselves against the crazies who campaign against them.

There is one they currently run with the young African-American man who talks about working at Walmart. His boss says that the young man recently turned down a job at "one of the largest banks in America" and says how he "fully expects" to one day work for him.

There's another one in which a woman talks about how poor she was when she started to work at Walmart. Then one day she was able to stop getting food assistance and she was very proud of herself. Now, her son works at Walmart. He's "following in her footsteps" and she's very proud of him.

These ads are purely to fight the public perception of Walmart and are in direct response to the criticism of them.

 

There are many levels of wealth and many forms of charitable donations. Some are public, some are quiet. Some wealthy people use their social or political power to exert pressure on others to inspire change or increase awareness regarding issues they believe in. Can't really quantify those instances. Some rich people are greedy and can't see beyond their own bank accounts. There is no fair way to answer the question and no google query that will uncover an answer.