Grande Dame

Yesterday I had plans to work on some other art projects, but after running myself into the ground the week before, thought it best I have one more day of rest and relaxation. So I laid in bed and surfed netflix for docs to watch. Dr Bronner’s Magic Soap Box kept popping up. I first tried Dr Bronner’s Peppermint Soap in my early 20′s in California. It was kind of a household staple of hippies and counterculture people. I always loved the smell and feeling I got when using it, and I, like many others sat in the bath and tried to read the mad rambling’s on the bottle’s label of the Moral ABC’s. I always assumed it was made by a fundamentalist cult out west, that was about as much thought as I gave it, then a few years ago I read about one of the Bronner’s protesting for hemp production outside the White house. So I thought it might be an interesting story, and gave it a go. And wow! I was really shocked. Emmanuel Bronner emigrated to the US from Germany in 1929. He was a chemist who came from a long line of Jewish soap makers. He pleaded with his parents to join him, but they stayed put, eventually having to sign their soap factory over to the Nazi’s and then both being killed in concentration camps. He married and had 3 children. Both he and his wife went a bit mad and the children were put in orphanages for years, the wife eventually died. He went on and on with his “Moral ABC” preaching, telling anyone who would listen that we are “All-One-God-Faith”. There was no dominant religion. He was obsessed and would go on for years with his mantra, some attribute it as a reaction to his parents being killed. After years of shock therapy he was released from an Illinois state hospital and made his way to California, leaving his children scattered in different places, while he set up his soap business in 1948 in a rundown tenement apartment. His sons eventually joined him and the business grew. Dr Bronner continued his rants, and spoke publicly on unity and the “earth spaceship”. All though many wrote him off as crazy ( and after seeing footage of him, he certainly was a man possessed!), he picked up many fans of his teachings along the way, including Eldrige Cleaver of The Black Panthers! He was a man on a mission with a strong conviction to change the world and in 1997, died at the age of 79.
Since then his sons and grandsons have taken over the business and have made it a successful multi million dollar operation. But not only that, they continue Dr Bronner’s legacy by leading with a wonderful business model. All of the CEO’s have a wage cap and no one at the top makes more than 5 times the wage of the entry level employee’s. They give generous bonus’s to all their workers. They were the first company to use fully recyclable plastic and hemp oil. They have scholarship programs and invest in many community projects. And on top of everything else they give away 70% of all of their net profit to charity!!! Can you believe that??? They really do follow the Moral ABC’s. If only the rest of the world’s corporations had a conscience and would follow their wonderful example! After watching this fascinating doc, that’s it, I am a customer for life! No other soap for me! It’s great knowing when you buy something, where your money is going and how it’s being spent. I urge everyone to watch this fascinating story! And please buy their products and help tip the balance of our world from wrong to right! Trailer below! Rent for itunes for only $2.99! Together we CAN change the world!! Enjoy! oxo gd