He Had Everything, And Capitalism Killed Him

Added: 2026-05-22

[00:00:00]Capitalism killed my grandfather, and he was one of its biggest defenders. Bruce Johnston Sr., my grandfather, was the executive vice president and chief labor negotiator for US Steel from the '70s to the early '90s. He was so good at what he did that he was floated as a potential candidate to be NFL commissioner. He met with world leaders, US presidents, and he was paid extraordinarily well. But, his job placed him squarely on the side of capital against the workers who built that company. In the '90s, he was indicted. It was eventually thrown out, but the stress of it broke him. First, heart disease, then cancer. It killed him.

[00:00:36]>> And for what? To make a few people richer?

[00:00:40]Capitalism kills. Sometimes it's murder, sometimes it's manslaughter. My grandfather wasn't a bad man. He was a brilliant man doing exactly what the system rewarded him for. That's the insidious part. Capitalism doesn't need villains. It just needs incentives, and it creates them everywhere. When you optimize for money, you start making compromises. Like, maybe the budget's tight, so you pay someone a little less here and there.

[00:01:06]And you start seeing people as resources.

[00:01:09]And the moment you start doing that, you've lost something you cannot buy back. So, ask yourself, when was the last time you chose money over a person?

[00:01:18]Maybe it was small. Maybe it wasn't. I'm not here to judge it. I'm just saying, notice it, cuz those choices compound, and then they become your life. And then one day, you look up and you realize your life isn't actually one that you wanted. Money isn't real. People are.

[00:01:31]Success is not defined by how many coins are lining your coffin. It is defined by how many people you've helped while you're here. We can't escape capitalism, but we can be more aware of its dangers and make different choices. I honor my grandfather's memory every single day by choosing people over profit. That's what we're trying to do here at the Generic Movie People, and with our first film, Christ Camp 2005. Every decision we make is a people-first decision.

[00:02:01]Because I've seen what can happen when you get that math backwards. And I'm excited to continue sharing with you all what a people-first production company looks like. Have you ever had to choose between money and your values?

[00:02:15]What did you do? Tell me about it in the comments. I think this is an open discussion that we should be having because capitalism, man.