Butch Stewart’s model for success is the best example of how capitalism is supposed to work
With the recent passing of Jamaican business mogul Gordon "Butch" Stewart on January 4, at the age of 79, I have been reflecting on his life and legacy, and it made me realize something very important. By simply looking at his pictures, I was able to tell that he really enjoyed life, and lived it to its fullest potential, in and out of the boardroom. And though he was not without flaws, the way he lived, and how he treated people, particularly those who work for him is a page that the typical American capitalist should take from his book.
Modern day capitalism in America is a far cry from what capitalism is supposed to be, and perhaps that status quo exists entirely by design. Capitalism is best defined by the American declaration of independence, particularly as it relates to the pursuit of happiness. All men are born with the inalienable right to pursue happiness, regardless of the nature of said happiness. Capitalism as I understand it, allows for happiness to be pursued if it happens to be of a materialistic nature, but the danger of capitalism lies in whether one's own pursuit of happiness somehow involves them imposing their will over the will of another. Capitalism as it exists currently is such where one believes himself as having the right to pursue not only his own wealth, but also the poverty of another. This is especially true if the capitalist in question sees a particular person as someone who should be serving him, and if that person dares to display any form of self-esteem, or independence, the capitalist in question will go after him with a vengeance, and intentionally see to it that he is destroyed if the person allows it.
This corrupt version of capitalism has created a huge wealth gap in the United States where the elite 1% of the population are oppressing the working class by maintaining a tight grip on how wealth is distributed. What kind of system do we have if capitalism only applies to the elites, but not the masses? The system that we currently have is not capitalism, but rather, a system of narcissistic greed and entitlement that's being run by criminals, and made worse by the incompetence of the outgoing US president, Donald Trump. True capitalism is the right to pursue one's own happiness to the extent that it doesn't interfere with another man's pursuit of happiness. Healthy competition where the best man wins fair and square without cheating, doesn't count as interfering with another man's pursuit of happiness, and is actually apart of how capitalism is really supposed to work.
Butch Stewart was such a man. Though the bulk of his wealth was earned from Sandals Beach Resort on the north coast, he got his start by selling air conditioners, and other appliances in Kingston during the 1960's before opening his very first appliance store, Appliance Traders Limited (ATL) in 1968. Other business ventures of his includes the foundation of his own newspaper company, the "Jamaica Observer" in 1993. Later on, his appliance store, ATL, had expanded to include a car dealership section which served as the franchise holder for Honda in Jamaica, not to be confused with Stewart's Auto Sales, which served as the Jamaican franchise holder for Suzuki.
A stalwart in many respects, Butch was a fearless dreamer who pursued his goals, and accomplished so much in his time on earth, yet the only stain on his reputation was that he got wrongfully blamed for ruining Air Jamaica, when in fact, it seems like he was actually trying to save the national airline after the divestment of the Patterson administration in the 1990's. He pursued wealth, as was well within his rights. He enjoyed the fruits of his labor, also within his rights. But I've yet to hear one complaint of him not playing fair, or that he was intentionally trying to "box food outta man mouth". He understood capitalism, and played it to the best of his abilities. He provided jobs for so many ordinary Jamaicans.
I've never had the honor of working for him, nor have I ever met him personally, but I assume he treated his employees fairly, most of whom seem to love him. He knew that his wealth didn't have to be paid for at the expense of others, and that every man being allowed to eat a food wouldn't compromise his earning potential. He started from scratch, he was not an overnight success, he probably encountered many oppositions on his way up.
He worked really hard for what he wanted. I'm sure he must've had insecurities, after all, a man is just a man, but unlike the imposters in the states, Butch Stewart didn't allow his insecurities to get the better of him. Instead, he used them to help motivate him on the path to excellence, and when he finally took off in the 80's and the 90's, he remained humble despite his wealth. One of his most endearing legacies besides setting the example of how capitalism should really work, is also that he left behind a tidy little nest egg to make sure his kids would be in want for nothing.
A tidy little nest egg, so that they can live comfortably without being forced to head out in the cold at some ungodly hour of the night to work some exploitive job for a few measly crumbs, just to keep a damn roof over their heads, a page that the penniless, wannabe slave master, caribbean royalty in their dreams, narcissistic parents demanding worship from their kids can take out of the book of Butch Stewart. I do believe that one of the best paths towards getting to a place where it is normal for us as a society to respect the rights of all men to participate in a free and fair pursuit of happiness, is for 'Stewartism' to be taught as a subject to econ students in colleges and universities around the world, but primarily in America where it is needed the most.
