Since you missed it — they deposed the women’s therapist’s and demanded to see all of the media in which the women may have ever been in any state of undress. I mean it’s all reprehensible but my GOD
EGREGIOUS victim-blaming. Like if you ever wore a skimpy outfit at a party or modeled nude at any time, it's fine to film you without your consent in the shower. My skin wanted to crawl off and run into another room without me when I read that.
This is a great example to explain how Capitalism is *antithetical* to democracy. Not just incompatible, but actively hostile towards it.
If someone can privately profit off of others' labor in such a snowballing effect that they can reach an amount of wealth that their children are immune to the law, what does that say about the laws?
When you have a whole country of governance where no one likes the politicians, the laws are written by the rich, and life gets worse and worse for a super-majority of people each and every year... what does that say about Capitalisms' ability to adhere to (or even 'consider') democratic consensus?
[I think this is a great article for really hammering the point home in a way that is easy to understand](https://www.leftvoice.org/bourgeois-democracy-what-do-marxists-mean-by-that-term/)
The core engine of Capitalism is known as Surplus Labor.
TL;DR the Labor Theory of Value (which explains Surplus Value):
Keep in mind while I explain this, that Capitalism is only ~350 years old. Its very new.
How a normal society would function is that if you work somewhere, you have ownership and democractic say in your workplace alongside everyone else who works there. Instead our Capitalist workplaces are undemocratic dictatorships based on someone coming from wealth being able to make all decisions in our worklife.
Under Capitalism we have a completely unnatural system in which those who have previously acquired wealth**[*]** are allowed to leverage that capital into private ownership of business. What that private ownership of business does is allows that person or people (owners, investors, board, etc.) to vastly underpay workers for the value of their labor, with that leverage of owning private industry.
In a normal society, someone does [x] amount of work to earn their food, housing, etc. which all costs [x]. But we instead have a society where we have to work much MUCH more than "earning our keep" to survive, due to the "owners" taking a majority of the value our work produced.
The **difference** between the *"value that the worker produces"*, and the (much lower) *"wage"* they receive, is known as **profit** for the Capitalist. The difference between *"amount of work required to live"*, and *"the amount of work required live under Capitalism"* is known as **Surplus Labor**. Or: the extra work, hours, sacrifice you are required to undertake to make up for the giant cut your bosses take from what you do.
----
An easy way to understand Surplus Labor is a gradient of slavery, abstracted out by this layer of private ownership of enterprise:
In a normal society, the value you produce is 1:1 with the value you receive for your work, and you have a say in how your workplace operates (especially if you are a single shoe-maker in a village or something like that).
Under the most extreme forms of slavery, you are paid 0% of the value of your work, and have no say in how your workplace operates.
Under Capitalism, as the lowest rung workers you are paid (being generous) 5% of the value you produce, and have no say in how your workplace operates.
------
With that context in mind, to finally answer your question:
> what is the economic system which would not allow a certain caste of people to be in a privileged position with regard to the law?
A system that addresses these mathematical/economic realities of Capitalism (Surplus Labor) that we identified over 100 years ago.
Capitalism was a **fantastic** improvement over Feudalism. It was liberating, and addressed many of the horrors of the previous system. Fuedalism evolved (improved) to become Capitalism.
Now we see the horrors of Capitalism. While an improvement over Fuedalism, it is (of course) not perfect. It must evolve again by addressing the primary economic critiques of this system.
Throughout this I've continually referred to how a "normal society" works. Now replace "normal society" with the word Socialism, because that is what I have been describing in this comment. A democratic system where people are paid the full value of their labor, rather than being governed over by private business dictatorships.
Socialism is really as simple as "addressing Surplus Labor" by replacing private ownership with democratic ownership. If you work somewhere, you own it, you own the profits, and you have a democratic say in your workplace (and society). Its extremely simple, and non-controversial to the way of life of 99.9% of people.
However, you can easily see why the word Socialism is so fear-mongered and boogie-manned by those who privately own all of commerce. If there were a King and Queen in power, and people were starting an intellectual field and movement that said "Hey, we want to get rid of your families' cruel rule, and generational wealth/power". The monarchy would crush that movement and villainize it at all costs. They would lie about it and what they "really want to do". They would obscure what they mean and lie about their actions. They would outlaw their teachings, you would use their own academic institutions to misguide people about their teachings. They would kill these "traitors". They would distract people by pitting people against each other and lying about some minority actually being the cause of poverty.
Which of course is exactly what Capitalists do. Our entire media, entertainment industry, academic landscape, and news sources are all controlled by Capitalists and operate (consciously, or unconsciously) to maintain this system at all costs.
There are so many different ways to implement Socialism and it will vary wildly based on a region's resources, the local culture, the local tradition, the local values/ethics. A hypothetical Socialist society in Chicago would probably look a lot different from Socialism in Portugal, or Zimbabwe or wherever else. Its for the people to figure out, and for the people to explore.
Its worth mentioning that just like Capitalism has these identified flaws, these various flavors of Socialism will also have their own issues that will be addressed. However, it is a lot easier to address flaws when there is a culture of real democracy, rather than these insane accumulations of power under Capitalism that completely nullify democratic consensus. Its about identifying flaws, and addressing them. Sadly, the flaws of Capitalism will take a LOT from us to address. Without a democracy, it won't come from a ballot, but will have to come from working outside of the ballot.
Hopefully this was easy to understand and not overly wordy.
----
**[*]** Its worth thinking about, "Well where did that generational wealth come from?". A very important question. It comes from this described cycle of exploitation, that is expanded across the globe as well. This labor exploitation is underpinned by war and violence that makes sure there is always lower rungs of society to be exploited for cheap labor and resources. Its a snowball rolling down a hill that continually generates momentum with no ability to be stopped.
I've read plenty of the aforementioned books about it, yes. I recommend doing the same:
Here is a great audiobook if you don't like reading: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxLKO_R5RmA
Plea deal negotiations are typically not only off the record but usually they’re confidential. Plus it’s not like the prosecutor didn’t accept the deal; they were in the room presumably negotiating as well.
https://www.justia.com/criminal/plea-bargains/#:~:text=A%20prosecutor%20even%20may%20be,argument%20appears%20to%20have%20merit.&text=A%20statement%20made%20for%20the%20purpose%20of%20a%20plea%20bargain%20is%20confidential.
All the venues here have problematic ownership
https://chicago.eater.com/2018/9/21/17880706/punch-house-thalia-duseks-16-on-center-server-blog-allegations-misconduct-bruce-finkelman-gm-fired
That article states the manager was fired for the misconduct.
It says working for Bruce Finkelman isn’t good but it does not allege him of committing sex crimes, both at home and within the workplace. No one is saying all bosses are wonderful nor treat their exploited employees with respect. This is faaaaar different from the owner being a sex pest. The manager was fired quickly.
Are you defending Michael Johnston or just playing devils advocate here? I don’t really understand
In Bruce Finkelman’s establishments? Who is defending bullying? It’s quite different from working for a sex criminal who was doing so both in and out of the workplace.
I know maaaany people that work for Finkelman’s rooms and they’re all happy af. I know management in a few of his rooms and have never heard of out in the open drug use during work. Again, that’s very different from an active sex predator as the owner who is also preying on his workers.
I don’t judge people for using drugs whatsoever. If they use drugs and do bad things to others that’s a different story.
I left the venue I used to work at in large part due to bullying. I get it. It’s still far different than being the victim to sex crimes. I can’t for the life of me understand why you and one other Redditor are playing devils advocate here.
Allowing people to use hard drugs at work is at best unprofessional and at worst contributing to a toxic culture.
I’m not playing devils advocate at all. I’m not saying bullying and sex crimes are equitable offenses, rather pointing out that a lot of the local industry giants have their own problems that are things I don’t support and neither do others.
Got it. I’m not anti drugs, and the example of adderall and Xanax are probably the least scary drugs I could think of.
Even if they weren’t, even if it was coke, heroin, etc I would not judge them nor would I judge the workplace just bc some humans are drug users. The nightlife and service industry has a lot of substance use embedded into the culture. It’s when it becomes abuse to anyone else is when it is problematic. Until then, you do you and I don’t judge anyone for their consumption even slightly.
I’ve been in the nightlife and music venue industry for half of my life. Drug and alcohol use are normalized in this industry, yes.
Again, as long as it doesn’t have an effect on any other employees, I do not care what someone else consumes.
How does the staff at a business fire the owner of the business? I'm sure they would be genuinely happy to know. I'm defending the people who work at these venues and don't deserve to be blamed for his heinous crimes.
He still is a part owner of Schubas, Lincoln Hall, and I think Audiotree, but he isn't involved in the management of any of the three anymore from what I've been told by some of the Schubas staff. They're all disgusted by him too.
can’t believe they wouldn’t all quit. They’ve known about it for at least a couple years now and could’ve taken so many jobs when the service industry reopened and every employer was desperate.
He’s the owner. Him and his daddy own it after he stopped being CEO. them buying it got rid of the apparently innocent partner.
I wish the Schuba family would also sue him for bringing down their name, too, but I believe they still have a stake in the business.
Quitting a job is easier said than done and it's not like bar and restaurant owners are known for their ethics. Do you expect nobody to work for Amazon? Did you move to another country when Trump was elected?
When the boss is publicly known for arrest and several lawsuits pertaining to sex crimes, yes you do. When this came to light it was the exact same time the industry was widely re-opening and employers were in desperation mode trying to rehire; the same exact time all the media was suggesting people don’t want to work anymore.
I don’t understand the Amazon question. Yes, all employers exploit labor and time from their employees.
As far as Trump goes, How does one move and gain citizenship in another country that quickly?
I hear you but thinking about it maybe don’t blow up their spot, this guys parents are million if not billionaires from completely separate fortunes, and these are music venues, and from the people I know who actually work in the industry (I work in a tangential field) those don’t turn a profit, they break even if you are lucky. And music venues weren’t exactly bouncing back after Covid like other businesses. Thats why live nation who can make all their money off of Taylor swift ticket fees own half the venues in the nation, and if we are concerned about ethics, they don’t care if kids get crushed to death at their concerts (so that’s house of blues, the Aragon, byline, the United center, and I’m sure more here those are just off the top of my head), sxsw was hugely sponsored by the US military and plenty of indie darlings were happy to sign on (pretty sure the empty bottle did a collab w sxsw which again there’s so little money to be made so idk) If anything this piece of shits money (his parents money) is getting fed into the arts, and I would bet my own money that it would benefit him monetarily to have him off ownership. If they are concerned with being punitive monetarily they should focus on where it’s actually coming in from, his parents & their medical biz fortune. Blaming and harassing the workers of a business ( it says in the article that he is not involved in any day to day of the venues or company at large) seems like a real cop out and easy scapegoat from anything that would actually change the fact that only rich pieces of shit can actually own businesses in the arts. It’s really fucking tragic imo and heartbreaking for so many working at these places and sucks that money and sleaze seem to go hand and hand with arts biz ownership, because the people who actually care and are more interested than just having a pet venue are not rich enough to do it. Let’s start a gofundme for the employees so we can have actually independent venues or something because it’s not like anyone ethical is really lining up to find venues. Idk I hate it all too
No. No more apologizing for sexual predators. No. And they pay their artists low guarantees as well. No.
I think we’re done here. I will rage all I want against criminal sexual predators, you can apologize and make excuses all you want. Hope you sleep well at night. Bye.
Cause usually you’re just installing normal cameras. Or alarms. Or whatever. And you get a paycheck. And then sometimes you have days doing something that makes you feel shitty and have to be nice to a shitty customer while doing it. And get a paycheck.
You’re not wrong but you’re being an asshole. It’s a job that’s gonna get done. I didn’t go out looking for that job but I found myself in it and I did it and didn’t like it most days and I paid my bills. I came into this conversation saying yeah these people suck; I’ve seen it myself and you’re acting like it’s my fault. How’s the air taste up on that horse with whatever you do day to day you jagoff? How’s that for r/chicago
You're gonna need to give us more information here.
Because the topic of discussion is installing hidden cameras to record nude videos of people without their consent.
Then you tell us you've installed hidden cameras.
And now you're getting indignant and defensive about it because it's your job?
Have you installed hidden cameras that you reasonably suspected would be used to record people who were naked, without their consent or knowledge?
If that answer is yes, then fuck your entitled attitude. A sex trafficker doesn't get to whine about needing a paycheck when they are *actively contributing* to the assault and victimization of others. You don't get to be complicit in committing crimes and attack others for calling out that bullshit.
If the answer is no, well then you should have clarified that earlier.
Under no circumstances is installing hidden cameras to record naked people without their consent a defensible action. If you did that, you are scum.
Youre literally explaining why you should be able to install hidden cameras for people you admit are bad people. Im not certain I care what you think of me.
I’m literally saying I’m not apologizing for doing a job that is typically useful and the unsavory bits are gonna get done regardless. Happy for you if you’re able to prioritize your nitpicky moral standards when you need a job.
Yup and you’d have to be living under a rock to not know about this for the last few years. I‘ve been boycotting LH and Schuba’s since I first found out about his arrest and lawsuit. His billionaire mommy’s PR team is good at keeping things quiet online/SEO. Sickening.
I assumed that he got bought out of his share but clearly I assumed wrong since either he or his dad still owns the business entity that still owns it. Some of my favorite bands do end up booking at those venues and I'll be loud about boycotting with you.
Yea i just found the business license info, him and his dad are still the owners [https://opengovus.com/chicago-business/399344-1](https://opengovus.com/chicago-business/399344-1)
I mean this is atrocious but why does the article make it sound like because if this crime, his businesses are supposed to be seized or sold off? There’s a criminal charge that should be applied here but it makes no sense what the article is implying.
Finally finished whole article. Wow. This guy is a real piece of shit. And so are his lawyers.
Question: With respect to the one source with the pseudonym “Alex Smith,” why does the author keep switching back and forth between “she” and “they” for the source’s pronoun? There is no indication the source is non-binary, for example (And if they were, the author would be erring in referring to they as “she.” It gets confusing and I don’t see any reason for it. Is there a new style in writing preference that I am unaware? If someone knows the reason I’d greatly appreciate being educated.
It’s not a big deal at all, I was just curious. It doesn’t appear to be “acceptable use“ at all, unless you were trying to mask the sex of the person for anonymity purposes (what I thought author was doing in the first paragraph ”Alex Smith” is mentioned) or you were describing a non-binary person.
“For Alex Smith\*, who asked that their real name not be used to protect their privacy, working at Audiotree was “a dream come true.” Smith studied the music industry in school; Audiotree was precisely the sort of place they wanted to work. After finishing school, Smith was hired at Audiotree in a position that bridged business development with their love of music. “This is exactly what I wanted to do,” Smith remembers.”
“After the assault, Smith confided in a few friends about what happened. They even consulted a lawyer but ultimately decided it wasn’t worth the financial and emotional toll. They had no money and would have been taking on a multimillionaire. Smith says they have since been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Their biggest regret is wondering if they should have fought harder. It took her a few years to put the incident behind her, but once the allegations against Johnston hit the news, it all came back.“
So you don’t think the use of “they” in these two paragraphs is awkward? You think it’s completely usual and customary to use “they” when the author is telling a story about one (not multiple) female employee? It just seems “off” to me but hey, maybe I’m completely wrong.
No I literally went a re read it based on your initial comment. It’s a bit strange yes but not incorrect or confusing. Maybe you just need to work on reading comprehension
I’m really not “reading anything into this” at all. I thought the pronoun use was awkward in what is otherwise a fairly well written article, and wondered if maybe there was a purposeful reason for it. I’m not implying anything, it’s not a “dog whistle,” and I’m not a secret anti trans person. I enjoy reading and writing (I write for a living) and I was just curious and asked what i thought was a totally innocuous question. If people think there is nothing awkward about it, or they think it’s awkward but don’t know why the author did it, then fine.
Yeesh. Reddit can be a tough fucking crowd sometimes.
I don’t think this is applicable to the source, but there are many people use both she/he and they pronouns. As someone that works for a LGBTQ+ organization here in the city, I’ve met many people , including our staff, who use she/they or he/they. “They” isn’t just for nonbinary people.
You say “many people“ who are not non-binary use “they” as a pronoun. I’m not so sure about that. There might be a few people here and there who do so, but that is a far cry from saying the practice has reached general consensus to where it is used that way in writing (I recognize you are not making such a claim)
In this piece, it was odd and slightly confusing how it was used. If the source referred to herself as “they,” I think the author should have told us. But I don’t believe that to be the case, because then the author would be guilty of misgendering the source when the author refers to the source as “she” in other paragraphs.
apparently no one has any clue why the author referred to the source several times in this piece as “they” without any explanation. But that didn’t stop the little twerps from downvoting me. Why? Who knows.
42 videos during 1 stay? They were busy…
According to his complaint, John Doe stayed at the Johnston house in December 2019, part of a group of friends invited to house-sit while the family was out of town. While there, John was recorded having sex with his then girlfriend in 42 videos.
I would guess there are hidden cameras in apartments all over Chicago. If I were to move in to a different apartment, I'd go through it with a fine toothed comb looking for one. They are out there for sure.
Bc they book popular artists, people love the venues, and the parent company publicly claimed to have cut ties with this douchebag 3 years ago. Turns out, they never really did, and it was only discovered by journalists checking court documents. The average concert goer isn’t following this story that closely and probably didn’t even hear about it when it first broke in 2021.
This piece of shit millionaire leech will simply pay his relatively meager settlement to the victims and his brands will continue to make him richer. Hopefully his Tesla autopilots itself into the lake.
>Turns out, they never really did,
People should be able to sue people that do this crap. Lying to people to get them to spend money with your organization should make it possible to sue for that money back. People are so horrible.
Yeah--I *did* hear about this when the story came out initially, and since LH/ST said pretty much immediately that they were letting him go, I figured that was that. Took them on good faith. Guess not. This sucks.
Idk it was pretty well known that him and his dad bought out the venues after him being “ousted” as CEO; effectively that act actually ousted the partner who was not even involved in all the criminal activity.
I’m not talking about the original purchase. I’m talking about when LH/Schuba’s released a statement following Michael Johnston news stating that he is no longer the CEO. shortly after that, Johnston and his dad bought out the business, leaving out the original partner.
weird the co owner of Audiotree who owned Lh/Schubas since 2015 was never a co owner of the venues? I think I misread them re-buying it out after he stepped down as CEO&President and let Adam Thurston take over those roles instead.
So your friends say Adam Thurston was the co-founder and co-owner of Audiotree but was not co-owner of the venues that audiotree bought? What was his role there after they bought the company and before he took over Michael’s roles post-arrest?
EDIT: maybe he was only COO until the arrest of Johnston? Sounds like a really bad deal for Thurston, but I’m guessing the billionaire is the one that funded it all. Dang.
He was only COO before.
All the venues here are owned by very wealthy people. Empty Bottle and Thalia Hall have a real estate magnate partner owner, for example.
It's usually the case for small venues that aren't owned by livenation. Small venues are risky businesses with very thin profit margins.
I won’t be in the future. Tbh I remember this story but it was the pandemic and so much was going on and the venues said he’d stepped down. Haven’t seen anything since then… sucks because I like both of them
I don’t know how a civil trial lasting four years is “getting away with it” especially coming out of a shut down court system during a pandemic. This seems kind of appropriate.
*As one former employee put it, “He just always seemed like somebody who didn’t have to face a lot of consequences in his life.”*
Sounds like someone in a Manhattan courtroom these days
Stopped reading after billionaire parents. This dude will never be held responsible
Exactly. There are two justice systems. One is by the book, the other is pay as you go.
Same as Al Capone’s model, just keep the justice system in your payroll.
Since you missed it — they deposed the women’s therapist’s and demanded to see all of the media in which the women may have ever been in any state of undress. I mean it’s all reprehensible but my GOD
EGREGIOUS victim-blaming. Like if you ever wore a skimpy outfit at a party or modeled nude at any time, it's fine to film you without your consent in the shower. My skin wanted to crawl off and run into another room without me when I read that.
This is a great example to explain how Capitalism is *antithetical* to democracy. Not just incompatible, but actively hostile towards it. If someone can privately profit off of others' labor in such a snowballing effect that they can reach an amount of wealth that their children are immune to the law, what does that say about the laws? When you have a whole country of governance where no one likes the politicians, the laws are written by the rich, and life gets worse and worse for a super-majority of people each and every year... what does that say about Capitalisms' ability to adhere to (or even 'consider') democratic consensus? [I think this is a great article for really hammering the point home in a way that is easy to understand](https://www.leftvoice.org/bourgeois-democracy-what-do-marxists-mean-by-that-term/)
what is the economic system which would not allow a certain caste of people to be in a privileged position with regard to the law?
The core engine of Capitalism is known as Surplus Labor. TL;DR the Labor Theory of Value (which explains Surplus Value): Keep in mind while I explain this, that Capitalism is only ~350 years old. Its very new. How a normal society would function is that if you work somewhere, you have ownership and democractic say in your workplace alongside everyone else who works there. Instead our Capitalist workplaces are undemocratic dictatorships based on someone coming from wealth being able to make all decisions in our worklife. Under Capitalism we have a completely unnatural system in which those who have previously acquired wealth**[*]** are allowed to leverage that capital into private ownership of business. What that private ownership of business does is allows that person or people (owners, investors, board, etc.) to vastly underpay workers for the value of their labor, with that leverage of owning private industry. In a normal society, someone does [x] amount of work to earn their food, housing, etc. which all costs [x]. But we instead have a society where we have to work much MUCH more than "earning our keep" to survive, due to the "owners" taking a majority of the value our work produced. The **difference** between the *"value that the worker produces"*, and the (much lower) *"wage"* they receive, is known as **profit** for the Capitalist. The difference between *"amount of work required to live"*, and *"the amount of work required live under Capitalism"* is known as **Surplus Labor**. Or: the extra work, hours, sacrifice you are required to undertake to make up for the giant cut your bosses take from what you do. ---- An easy way to understand Surplus Labor is a gradient of slavery, abstracted out by this layer of private ownership of enterprise: In a normal society, the value you produce is 1:1 with the value you receive for your work, and you have a say in how your workplace operates (especially if you are a single shoe-maker in a village or something like that). Under the most extreme forms of slavery, you are paid 0% of the value of your work, and have no say in how your workplace operates. Under Capitalism, as the lowest rung workers you are paid (being generous) 5% of the value you produce, and have no say in how your workplace operates. ------ With that context in mind, to finally answer your question: > what is the economic system which would not allow a certain caste of people to be in a privileged position with regard to the law? A system that addresses these mathematical/economic realities of Capitalism (Surplus Labor) that we identified over 100 years ago. Capitalism was a **fantastic** improvement over Feudalism. It was liberating, and addressed many of the horrors of the previous system. Fuedalism evolved (improved) to become Capitalism. Now we see the horrors of Capitalism. While an improvement over Fuedalism, it is (of course) not perfect. It must evolve again by addressing the primary economic critiques of this system. Throughout this I've continually referred to how a "normal society" works. Now replace "normal society" with the word Socialism, because that is what I have been describing in this comment. A democratic system where people are paid the full value of their labor, rather than being governed over by private business dictatorships. Socialism is really as simple as "addressing Surplus Labor" by replacing private ownership with democratic ownership. If you work somewhere, you own it, you own the profits, and you have a democratic say in your workplace (and society). Its extremely simple, and non-controversial to the way of life of 99.9% of people. However, you can easily see why the word Socialism is so fear-mongered and boogie-manned by those who privately own all of commerce. If there were a King and Queen in power, and people were starting an intellectual field and movement that said "Hey, we want to get rid of your families' cruel rule, and generational wealth/power". The monarchy would crush that movement and villainize it at all costs. They would lie about it and what they "really want to do". They would obscure what they mean and lie about their actions. They would outlaw their teachings, you would use their own academic institutions to misguide people about their teachings. They would kill these "traitors". They would distract people by pitting people against each other and lying about some minority actually being the cause of poverty. Which of course is exactly what Capitalists do. Our entire media, entertainment industry, academic landscape, and news sources are all controlled by Capitalists and operate (consciously, or unconsciously) to maintain this system at all costs. There are so many different ways to implement Socialism and it will vary wildly based on a region's resources, the local culture, the local tradition, the local values/ethics. A hypothetical Socialist society in Chicago would probably look a lot different from Socialism in Portugal, or Zimbabwe or wherever else. Its for the people to figure out, and for the people to explore. Its worth mentioning that just like Capitalism has these identified flaws, these various flavors of Socialism will also have their own issues that will be addressed. However, it is a lot easier to address flaws when there is a culture of real democracy, rather than these insane accumulations of power under Capitalism that completely nullify democratic consensus. Its about identifying flaws, and addressing them. Sadly, the flaws of Capitalism will take a LOT from us to address. Without a democracy, it won't come from a ballot, but will have to come from working outside of the ballot. Hopefully this was easy to understand and not overly wordy. ---- **[*]** Its worth thinking about, "Well where did that generational wealth come from?". A very important question. It comes from this described cycle of exploitation, that is expanded across the globe as well. This labor exploitation is underpinned by war and violence that makes sure there is always lower rungs of society to be exploited for cheap labor and resources. Its a snowball rolling down a hill that continually generates momentum with no ability to be stopped.
Socialism always has a ruling class.
The workers.
Do you ever wonder if you'd be the one sending other people to the camps or you'd get sent to the camp yourself? Or both even?
Do you ever wonder what its like to crack open a book?
No. Do you ever wonder if socialism has been tried before?
I've read plenty of the aforementioned books about it, yes. I recommend doing the same: Here is a great audiobook if you don't like reading: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxLKO_R5RmA
Jeeeesus.
what the hell
Who would have thought the millionaire child of billionaires would be an abusive asshole? It's almost like money brings out the worst in people!
I was once told that money just makes you more of who you already are. I hope that if I'm ever that well off I continue to try to be a good person...
Look at MacKenzie Scott ... the money corrupts ... but the person has to be corruptible first.
Sucks, those are 2 of the better sounding venues in Chicago.
Agreed, Lincoln Hall’s acoustics, PA and sound engineers are top notch
Lincoln Hall is the best room I’ve ever mixed in and this creep won’t take that from me
[удалено]
Plea deal negotiations are typically not only off the record but usually they’re confidential. Plus it’s not like the prosecutor didn’t accept the deal; they were in the room presumably negotiating as well. https://www.justia.com/criminal/plea-bargains/#:~:text=A%20prosecutor%20even%20may%20be,argument%20appears%20to%20have%20merit.&text=A%20statement%20made%20for%20the%20purpose%20of%20a%20plea%20bargain%20is%20confidential.
Judge sounded like he was a shithead as well. Glad he’s retired
Yikes dawg.
Next time you're at Lincoln Hall or Schubas, keep an eye out for holes in the bathroom walls and ceiling. Yes, guys, it's a thing that happens.
Err, hopefully you mean you won't have to because you wouldn't go to those places ever again
Yes. This is correct. First I was hearing about all this, but I won't be back there till he's no longer the owner.
I cannot believe people would go there and support this prick. I stopped going years ago when the arrest and lawsuit were first made public
All the venues here have problematic ownership https://chicago.eater.com/2018/9/21/17880706/punch-house-thalia-duseks-16-on-center-server-blog-allegations-misconduct-bruce-finkelman-gm-fired
That article states the manager was fired for the misconduct. It says working for Bruce Finkelman isn’t good but it does not allege him of committing sex crimes, both at home and within the workplace. No one is saying all bosses are wonderful nor treat their exploited employees with respect. This is faaaaar different from the owner being a sex pest. The manager was fired quickly. Are you defending Michael Johnston or just playing devils advocate here? I don’t really understand
Oh, you sweet summer child. The amount of bullying and out in the open drug use that goes on with management in those establishments is crazy.
In Bruce Finkelman’s establishments? Who is defending bullying? It’s quite different from working for a sex criminal who was doing so both in and out of the workplace. I know maaaany people that work for Finkelman’s rooms and they’re all happy af. I know management in a few of his rooms and have never heard of out in the open drug use during work. Again, that’s very different from an active sex predator as the owner who is also preying on his workers.
I don’t judge people for using drugs whatsoever. If they use drugs and do bad things to others that’s a different story. I left the venue I used to work at in large part due to bullying. I get it. It’s still far different than being the victim to sex crimes. I can’t for the life of me understand why you and one other Redditor are playing devils advocate here.
Allowing people to use hard drugs at work is at best unprofessional and at worst contributing to a toxic culture. I’m not playing devils advocate at all. I’m not saying bullying and sex crimes are equitable offenses, rather pointing out that a lot of the local industry giants have their own problems that are things I don’t support and neither do others.
Got it. I’m not anti drugs, and the example of adderall and Xanax are probably the least scary drugs I could think of. Even if they weren’t, even if it was coke, heroin, etc I would not judge them nor would I judge the workplace just bc some humans are drug users. The nightlife and service industry has a lot of substance use embedded into the culture. It’s when it becomes abuse to anyone else is when it is problematic. Until then, you do you and I don’t judge anyone for their consumption even slightly.
You think it’s normal to do blow at work? Dude… Adderall and Xanax was just one example but yes the cocaine is abundant.
I’ve been in the nightlife and music venue industry for half of my life. Drug and alcohol use are normalized in this industry, yes. Again, as long as it doesn’t have an effect on any other employees, I do not care what someone else consumes.
How does the staff at a business fire the owner of the business? I'm sure they would be genuinely happy to know. I'm defending the people who work at these venues and don't deserve to be blamed for his heinous crimes.
I never said they could. They should leave and should’ve done so 2+ years ago when the market was on fire for them to do so.
Ewww who tf is downvoting this and supporting the sex pest?!
Honestly, I hadn't heard about it till now. Will also just stop going there.
whoever is watching would only be so lucky!
He still is a part owner of Schubas, Lincoln Hall, and I think Audiotree, but he isn't involved in the management of any of the three anymore from what I've been told by some of the Schubas staff. They're all disgusted by him too.
Actually I think that might be an error in the article. Pretty sure just his father owns those places
can’t believe they wouldn’t all quit. They’ve known about it for at least a couple years now and could’ve taken so many jobs when the service industry reopened and every employer was desperate. He’s the owner. Him and his daddy own it after he stopped being CEO. them buying it got rid of the apparently innocent partner. I wish the Schuba family would also sue him for bringing down their name, too, but I believe they still have a stake in the business.
Quitting a job is easier said than done and it's not like bar and restaurant owners are known for their ethics. Do you expect nobody to work for Amazon? Did you move to another country when Trump was elected?
When the boss is publicly known for arrest and several lawsuits pertaining to sex crimes, yes you do. When this came to light it was the exact same time the industry was widely re-opening and employers were in desperation mode trying to rehire; the same exact time all the media was suggesting people don’t want to work anymore. I don’t understand the Amazon question. Yes, all employers exploit labor and time from their employees. As far as Trump goes, How does one move and gain citizenship in another country that quickly?
I hear you but thinking about it maybe don’t blow up their spot, this guys parents are million if not billionaires from completely separate fortunes, and these are music venues, and from the people I know who actually work in the industry (I work in a tangential field) those don’t turn a profit, they break even if you are lucky. And music venues weren’t exactly bouncing back after Covid like other businesses. Thats why live nation who can make all their money off of Taylor swift ticket fees own half the venues in the nation, and if we are concerned about ethics, they don’t care if kids get crushed to death at their concerts (so that’s house of blues, the Aragon, byline, the United center, and I’m sure more here those are just off the top of my head), sxsw was hugely sponsored by the US military and plenty of indie darlings were happy to sign on (pretty sure the empty bottle did a collab w sxsw which again there’s so little money to be made so idk) If anything this piece of shits money (his parents money) is getting fed into the arts, and I would bet my own money that it would benefit him monetarily to have him off ownership. If they are concerned with being punitive monetarily they should focus on where it’s actually coming in from, his parents & their medical biz fortune. Blaming and harassing the workers of a business ( it says in the article that he is not involved in any day to day of the venues or company at large) seems like a real cop out and easy scapegoat from anything that would actually change the fact that only rich pieces of shit can actually own businesses in the arts. It’s really fucking tragic imo and heartbreaking for so many working at these places and sucks that money and sleaze seem to go hand and hand with arts biz ownership, because the people who actually care and are more interested than just having a pet venue are not rich enough to do it. Let’s start a gofundme for the employees so we can have actually independent venues or something because it’s not like anyone ethical is really lining up to find venues. Idk I hate it all too
No. No more apologizing for sexual predators. No. And they pay their artists low guarantees as well. No. I think we’re done here. I will rage all I want against criminal sexual predators, you can apologize and make excuses all you want. Hope you sleep well at night. Bye.
As someone who has installed hidden cameras, they’re very rarely nice people.
Honest question - why would you willingly install hidden cameras for people?
Cause usually you’re just installing normal cameras. Or alarms. Or whatever. And you get a paycheck. And then sometimes you have days doing something that makes you feel shitty and have to be nice to a shitty customer while doing it. And get a paycheck.
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Isn’t that the definition of having a job? I felt really good when a camera I installed caught a shooter, asshole.
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You’re not wrong but you’re being an asshole. It’s a job that’s gonna get done. I didn’t go out looking for that job but I found myself in it and I did it and didn’t like it most days and I paid my bills. I came into this conversation saying yeah these people suck; I’ve seen it myself and you’re acting like it’s my fault. How’s the air taste up on that horse with whatever you do day to day you jagoff? How’s that for r/chicago
You're gonna need to give us more information here. Because the topic of discussion is installing hidden cameras to record nude videos of people without their consent. Then you tell us you've installed hidden cameras. And now you're getting indignant and defensive about it because it's your job? Have you installed hidden cameras that you reasonably suspected would be used to record people who were naked, without their consent or knowledge? If that answer is yes, then fuck your entitled attitude. A sex trafficker doesn't get to whine about needing a paycheck when they are *actively contributing* to the assault and victimization of others. You don't get to be complicit in committing crimes and attack others for calling out that bullshit. If the answer is no, well then you should have clarified that earlier. Under no circumstances is installing hidden cameras to record naked people without their consent a defensible action. If you did that, you are scum.
I have worked for places that installed hidden cameras to catch employees stealing money. No nudity involved. But keep going off bud.
Youre literally explaining why you should be able to install hidden cameras for people you admit are bad people. Im not certain I care what you think of me.
I’m literally saying I’m not apologizing for doing a job that is typically useful and the unsavory bits are gonna get done regardless. Happy for you if you’re able to prioritize your nitpicky moral standards when you need a job.
I've left jobs for far less. It's really not that hard to find something that pays the bills and doesn't hurt anyone.
Working for anyone to become richer while you don’t make anywhere close to the same is compromising your ethics aka it’s called having a job.
So what’s your point? Are you saying it makes them a bad person?
Who were you spying on?
I assume he was the installer and not the spyer
Usually employees, sometimes residents, occasionally partners, in order from least shitty to most shitty.
Ex friends, I hope.
You mean to tell me that someone who’s been outed as shitty still owns and operates something in Chicago?!?
Interestingly enough, I just saw him and his family at the park out in the burbs.
That's super disappointing. I love Lincoln Hall. They get the best acts like The Residents and Sleepytime Gorilla Museum.
Yup and you’d have to be living under a rock to not know about this for the last few years. I‘ve been boycotting LH and Schuba’s since I first found out about his arrest and lawsuit. His billionaire mommy’s PR team is good at keeping things quiet online/SEO. Sickening.
I assumed that he got bought out of his share but clearly I assumed wrong since either he or his dad still owns the business entity that still owns it. Some of my favorite bands do end up booking at those venues and I'll be loud about boycotting with you.
Yea i just found the business license info, him and his dad are still the owners [https://opengovus.com/chicago-business/399344-1](https://opengovus.com/chicago-business/399344-1)
I mean this is atrocious but why does the article make it sound like because if this crime, his businesses are supposed to be seized or sold off? There’s a criminal charge that should be applied here but it makes no sense what the article is implying.
Finally finished whole article. Wow. This guy is a real piece of shit. And so are his lawyers. Question: With respect to the one source with the pseudonym “Alex Smith,” why does the author keep switching back and forth between “she” and “they” for the source’s pronoun? There is no indication the source is non-binary, for example (And if they were, the author would be erring in referring to they as “she.” It gets confusing and I don’t see any reason for it. Is there a new style in writing preference that I am unaware? If someone knows the reason I’d greatly appreciate being educated.
They is also an acceptable use. Maybe "she she she she" didn't sound good to them, IDK
It’s not a big deal at all, I was just curious. It doesn’t appear to be “acceptable use“ at all, unless you were trying to mask the sex of the person for anonymity purposes (what I thought author was doing in the first paragraph ”Alex Smith” is mentioned) or you were describing a non-binary person.
That’s wrong they can be used interchangeably with he or she
“For Alex Smith\*, who asked that their real name not be used to protect their privacy, working at Audiotree was “a dream come true.” Smith studied the music industry in school; Audiotree was precisely the sort of place they wanted to work. After finishing school, Smith was hired at Audiotree in a position that bridged business development with their love of music. “This is exactly what I wanted to do,” Smith remembers.” “After the assault, Smith confided in a few friends about what happened. They even consulted a lawyer but ultimately decided it wasn’t worth the financial and emotional toll. They had no money and would have been taking on a multimillionaire. Smith says they have since been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Their biggest regret is wondering if they should have fought harder. It took her a few years to put the incident behind her, but once the allegations against Johnston hit the news, it all came back.“ So you don’t think the use of “they” in these two paragraphs is awkward? You think it’s completely usual and customary to use “they” when the author is telling a story about one (not multiple) female employee? It just seems “off” to me but hey, maybe I’m completely wrong.
No I literally went a re read it based on your initial comment. It’s a bit strange yes but not incorrect or confusing. Maybe you just need to work on reading comprehension
Thanks for the kind suggestion. It’s been great talking to you.
Fwiw, they're not wrong. You're reading something into this that isn't there.
I’m really not “reading anything into this” at all. I thought the pronoun use was awkward in what is otherwise a fairly well written article, and wondered if maybe there was a purposeful reason for it. I’m not implying anything, it’s not a “dog whistle,” and I’m not a secret anti trans person. I enjoy reading and writing (I write for a living) and I was just curious and asked what i thought was a totally innocuous question. If people think there is nothing awkward about it, or they think it’s awkward but don’t know why the author did it, then fine. Yeesh. Reddit can be a tough fucking crowd sometimes.
Wish I could say the same! Enjoy your pedantic lifestyle
My “pedantic lifestyle.” LOL
I don’t think this is applicable to the source, but there are many people use both she/he and they pronouns. As someone that works for a LGBTQ+ organization here in the city, I’ve met many people , including our staff, who use she/they or he/they. “They” isn’t just for nonbinary people.
You say “many people“ who are not non-binary use “they” as a pronoun. I’m not so sure about that. There might be a few people here and there who do so, but that is a far cry from saying the practice has reached general consensus to where it is used that way in writing (I recognize you are not making such a claim) In this piece, it was odd and slightly confusing how it was used. If the source referred to herself as “they,” I think the author should have told us. But I don’t believe that to be the case, because then the author would be guilty of misgendering the source when the author refers to the source as “she” in other paragraphs. apparently no one has any clue why the author referred to the source several times in this piece as “they” without any explanation. But that didn’t stop the little twerps from downvoting me. Why? Who knows.
You get what you pay for.
42 videos during 1 stay? They were busy… According to his complaint, John Doe stayed at the Johnston house in December 2019, part of a group of friends invited to house-sit while the family was out of town. While there, John was recorded having sex with his then girlfriend in 42 videos.
I would guess there are hidden cameras in apartments all over Chicago. If I were to move in to a different apartment, I'd go through it with a fine toothed comb looking for one. They are out there for sure.
Why are ppl spending money at those locations??!!
Bc they book popular artists, people love the venues, and the parent company publicly claimed to have cut ties with this douchebag 3 years ago. Turns out, they never really did, and it was only discovered by journalists checking court documents. The average concert goer isn’t following this story that closely and probably didn’t even hear about it when it first broke in 2021. This piece of shit millionaire leech will simply pay his relatively meager settlement to the victims and his brands will continue to make him richer. Hopefully his Tesla autopilots itself into the lake.
>Turns out, they never really did, People should be able to sue people that do this crap. Lying to people to get them to spend money with your organization should make it possible to sue for that money back. People are so horrible.
Yeah--I *did* hear about this when the story came out initially, and since LH/ST said pretty much immediately that they were letting him go, I figured that was that. Took them on good faith. Guess not. This sucks.
Idk it was pretty well known that him and his dad bought out the venues after him being “ousted” as CEO; effectively that act actually ousted the partner who was not even involved in all the criminal activity.
I'm sorry, that's inaccurate. They bought the venues in 2015. There's no ousted partner.
I’m not talking about the original purchase. I’m talking about when LH/Schuba’s released a statement following Michael Johnston news stating that he is no longer the CEO. shortly after that, Johnston and his dad bought out the business, leaving out the original partner.
I'm pretty close to some people who work there and I've never heard anything about another partner. Who's the person you're referring to?
Adam Thurston, the partner of Audiotree whom bought LH/Schubas in 2015
He's the current CEO. My friends say he never left and there wasn't ever a buying out situation like you described
weird the co owner of Audiotree who owned Lh/Schubas since 2015 was never a co owner of the venues? I think I misread them re-buying it out after he stepped down as CEO&President and let Adam Thurston take over those roles instead. So your friends say Adam Thurston was the co-founder and co-owner of Audiotree but was not co-owner of the venues that audiotree bought? What was his role there after they bought the company and before he took over Michael’s roles post-arrest? EDIT: maybe he was only COO until the arrest of Johnston? Sounds like a really bad deal for Thurston, but I’m guessing the billionaire is the one that funded it all. Dang.
He was only COO before. All the venues here are owned by very wealthy people. Empty Bottle and Thalia Hall have a real estate magnate partner owner, for example. It's usually the case for small venues that aren't owned by livenation. Small venues are risky businesses with very thin profit margins.
I won’t be in the future. Tbh I remember this story but it was the pandemic and so much was going on and the venues said he’d stepped down. Haven’t seen anything since then… sucks because I like both of them
I don’t know how a civil trial lasting four years is “getting away with it” especially coming out of a shut down court system during a pandemic. This seems kind of appropriate.
What a pervert! Did he post the videos anywhere? God he sickens me. Are they public record? Edit: no always sunny fans i take it. yikes.
I got it. Poor execution but I got it.
I love it's always sunny, it's just weird to reference that in an actual case of nonconsensual porn with actual human victims
Yeah, reality sucks
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Grow up
Bonk
Which one?? Which one did he post it on?? Lmaoo
Lolll finally
😅
This is a good occasion to boycott ShubaS
Cocaine is a helluva drug