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Socially Responsible Consumerism - Voting With Our Wallets
Ever feel like this guy? I do, so for the most part, my family and I try not to buy corporate. Other factors such as quality and price are important too, but I am a vigilant political boycotter. Some say boycotts don't work, but it's possible to hold the grudge long enough to make lifestyle changes and avoid a product or company for much longer than a day! We are in the middle of an economic downturn and have just bailed out Wall Street, so the last thing we need to do is make companies richer that are contributing to the downfall of the middle class (and those falling out of it or who haven't been able to reach it.) Then there is the issue of the worker who makes the product and how the company treats them. Do they provide benefits? Are they unionized? Do they outsource? If they do, are sweatshops used? Is the product carcinogenic or toxic? It goes on and on. Then there is the issue of political contributions.
Our family has for the most part avoided corporate grocery stores since the last election, for example, with the exception of Costco (we knew their voting pattern) and we seldom eat fast food (that is partly a quality concern). I had avoided Starbucks, since I figured they put independent coffee companies out of business. There was a "Buy Blue" movement going for awhile, but some of the guides that were in vogue then have faded away. I found the guide just recently that I will describe below, which enables me to know the political donation pattern of a variety of companies. Based on this guide, I could look up Starbucks, for example, and I might more comfortably use them somewhat more now - or not - depending upon what I was to find..
I'd like to introduce the Good Guide, which is not the only guide of this type, but it is well organized and useful. On the home page, 61,000 household and personal products are rated for safety and effectiveness, and this is useful in its own right. Mid-page, there is a section where you will see a "donkey" symbol and an "elephant" symbol, and a message that says "Vote With Your Dollars." Click at this point and load the Good Guide for Political Contributions , which tells you how to vote with your dollars. You can then support the companies that make responsible political contributions.
Now go to the left of the guide and click on "Republican leaning companies." You probably won't be surprised to see Walmart, or Coors, or some of the drugs companies, because they are notorious. You will see more companies though, and they are ranked from top to bottom for strength of support. If you click on "Democratic leaning companies," there are Costco and Starbucks and also some of the telecoms and tech companies and the more environmentally friendly cosmetics companies. I hadn't known about Avon, for example. I had somehow gotten the idea that they leaned the other way. Now I won't be so likely to avoid those people in the workplace who may peddle them.
Then we have the sectors: airlines, computer/internet, finance, food and beverages, household chemicals, media and entertainment, personal care, pharmaceuticals, restaurants and drinking establishments, retail sales, supermarkets, telecommunications, tobacco and transportation.
It's possible to enter the name of a particular company. You can also "sort" alphabetically by company, by the largest total contribution, the largest PAC percentage and the largest individual percentage.
Here it says there is a way to embed this information on a blog. Let's try it now. (UPDATE: I used a little different code, from the Good Guide people. If it wasn't working on your computer, now it may - thanks Ryan!)
View data for other companies at GoodGuide.com
That looks pretty cool! Follow the "cookbook" above and move out of just the "personal care" realm. There are other sites like this, probably, but this one alone is enough to go beyond just flying the "corporate flag." Some corporations are probably here to stay and we need to support those that are responsible, along with small and medium size businesses. This is a start.
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I noticed that the embedded version of our tool isn't loading correctly as embedded in your post... Some blog engines automatically add "
" tags to the end of every line when you post a new entry, which confuses the flash application.
If you put all of the code for the GoodGuide political contributions application on one line in your entry editor, it should show up correctly. Please contact me if you have any problems!
Ryan Aipperspach, GoodGuide.com
Make that "<br/>" tags
Great points here DiAnne. I agree with boycotting and I do it in my own very small way. I don't drive which is a good thing but I am on social security which means that I cannot afford choice. I last for as long as I can with small, independent family supermarkets, but the extra cost eventually gets to me.
However, there are some larger places that I can and do boycott. My way is to let people know that I boycott them. The place won't miss my couple of dollars - but it may cause others to vote with their wallets too. Every little difference is important I believe.
The code worked before for me, but not for all machines.
Now I have the code from Ryan and it works too - click on one of the products and the guide opens. Then go to the left and make your selection from the pull-down items.
It's fun and revealing!
Ryan, thanks for the help for our author.
DiAnne that's a really cool article and blog post.
I actually am currently boycotting McDonalds. Yes, I end up with their coffee and breakfast on the mornings when I drag my sorry *** to work... But ever since seeing that the 'religious extremists on the Bush side of the aisle' successfully got a gay person fired there. I've joined the boycott.
Ok. So it's only about 8-15 per week. But that will add up.
And though overall, I think companies should stay the Hell out of our 'politics', I won't let those extremists win by being successful in their boycott without them losing my money too.
We are ALL about Burt's Bees, COSTCO, and Tom's of Maine. Otherwise we steer clear. I'll have an occasional Starbuck's protein plate (hard-boiled egg AND peanut butter--what could be better??) but am avoiding the coffee.
Working my way back to full body ownership anyway...
Thanks for this article.
I am still in Seoul, though my temporary return to Los Angeles will be tomorrow.
In South Korea, the corporatists (the top 10-15 corporations control the entire economy, pretty much) are doing everything to rape the population. The most notorious example is Samsung, which would rather offshore than let its workers unionize (or do anything close to it). Samsung even wishes Kim Jong-il stays in power in North Korea, so that (1) South Korean defense spending can stay up, and (2) the continuing personality cult/tension will help South Korea continue on the right-wing McCarthyist track.
I'm not only boycotting Samsung, but I will throw away my last Samsung product, a broken TV set, when I get home.
The masses in South Korea know better, however. They have driven Wal-Mart out completely, and Costco is doing very well here, with four locations in Seoul alone. In fact, South Korea is Costco's only outpost on the Eurasian landmass; although Costco also operates in the UK, Japan, and Taiwan, they are islands and not part of the landmass.
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