Capitalism, Coffee

I enjoyed watching Living with Coffee. It was very interesting to put a face to the coffee I pick up on the way to class (almost) every day. And while I think it was good to really understand what goes into making this product, it more importantly pointed out that Free Trade only accounts for a small percentage of the coffee produced worldwide. I think that educating more coffee producers will help them understand not only that they deserve to be paid more, but how to make that happen.

I also enjoyed reading Conscious Capitalism. I completely agree that capitalism has been the greatest man-made invention in history in that free-enterprise capitalism is completely voluntary and creates prosperity, which does in effect make the world a better place. There is less world hunger, there are more girls getting an education, and building stable communities. However, I feel that Whole Foods is an exception to this rule. The truth is, more often than not businesses are only in it for self-serving, rather than community-serving, purposes. And while actions have been taking to adjust this behavior, both capitalists and governments have chosen to lay their loyalty with the self-serving few over the well-being of the many. I hope that other businesses can look to Whole Foods as a representative ambassador to free-enterprise capitalism.