Why rich celebrity support is not hypocritical

Elizabeth Warren’s Star Support Criticized - NYTimes.com: "The black-and-white video, called “The Elitist,” labels Ms. Warren the “biggest hypocrite in a political campaign” for raising money from wealthy celebrities while supporting populist causes. Ms. Warren, a Harvard law professor, built a national reputation in recent years as a dogged consumer advocate, testifying before Congress on economic issues and setting up the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau."

'via Blog this'

I was brought up among celebrities who supported liberal causes. The notion that such support is hypocritical is specious. When you have wealth you can do one of two things. Reject it or use it as you wish. One of my childhood adult buddies won an Academy Award. She also  fought the McCarthy virus. Her brother was a prominent liberal journalist who likewise fought McCarthy.Were they alive today, they would be supporting Elizabeth Warren. Was William Buckley a hypocrite for using his wealth to defend privilege? Of course not. Which is why Scott Brown is tilting at windmills. How someone with wealth spends money is a matter of choice and inclination. Wealthy people with good inclination will naturally work against injustice, convinced that the common good is not inimical to individual goods. That is not hypocrisy. That is the result of embracing tolerance, democracy, helpfulness and non-idolatry. Those values are universal. They drive human progress.



Charles Sanders Peirce - Thinking in Threes