Last week I wrote about a protest in Oakland where a group of folks went to a Whole Foods and then sung a song expressing their displeasure with CEO John Mackey’s views on health care reform.  While the action is creative and right on in terms of spirit, I couldn’t help but feel they could have used their energy in a more productive way.

Likewise, when I read yesterday about a similar action that took place here in New York City after a screening of The Yes Men Fix The World, I felt the same way.  I adore The Yes Men and their antics but I still feel like Whole Foods is not the ultimate enemy here.  People, especially creative people like The Yes Men, need to be channeling their energy into projects that work toward promoting health care reform or exposing those who are really standing in the way of reform–which John Mackey is not.

According to Gothamist:

Following the 8 p.m. screening, almost 150 audience members marched over to the Whole Foods on Houston Street to send a message to CEO John Mackey, who’s outraged many with his conservative position on health care reform. The group was joined by five protesters ensconced in post-apocalyptic SurvivaBalls, which are described as ‘a self-contained living system—truly, a gated community for one. If you have a SurvivaBall, even if everyone else is dying, at least you can weather all storms. Around 10:30, the moviegoers spread throughout the store. Then one of the Yes Men agents announced “a spill in the public health aisle,’ and everyone came together chanting an anti-Mackey song to the tune of ‘Hey Mickey.’

I’m sure it was a sight to see and rather invigorating for those that participated in the event but I doubt any real change will come about because of it. A shame considering there is so much work to be done.