I thought about boycotts tonight. With the a new movement to boycott Coke products gaining some traction (related to the Georgia vote suppression bills and Coke's response) I began to ask myself some questions and fell down the rabbit hole in the process.
Some people feel boycotts don't work, others feel they do.
I believe they can work, but things get tricky.
I began to boycott companies and products decades ago and some of those early decisions continue to influence my purchasing power today.
Let's take Exxon. When the Exxon Valdez disaster happened, I consciously chose to boycott their gas stations. I still try to avoid them, 30 years and a name change later (Exxon Mobil) I only make a gas purchase there if there is no alternative and I am in big need. As in, it is the only gas station on a road trip for 50 miles and I am going to run out of gas in 20 miles. That is a rarity but it has happened. 30 years is a long time to boycott a company and gas purchases are frequent purchases. But I feel that disaster could have been avoided and they did not do enough to fix a problem which continuers to plague Alaska and their wildlife systems. So, I continue to boycott them.
In the 1980's, Beechnut sold what was labeled as "100% pure apple juice to babies when in fact they knowingly had been diluting it with beet sugar and corn syrup. They lost a major lawsuit over this misdeed. When my children were born in the 1990's, I refused to buy their baby food because I felt that act was completely inexcusable and they could not be trusted, even a decade+ later. Today Beechnut is known for having product lines which are GMO free and organic which are 3rd party tested. I am very anti GMO foods. If I had a baby today, would I purchase their product because of their change of philosophy (I don't for one minute believe they did this because it was the right thing to do, I believe it was economically driven, but more and more consumers are demanding clean and healthy products, especially for their children and they decided to move the needle).
So, would I reward them with my purchasing power for what they are doing now or for what they did in the past. Good question. They would likely be in the miix of baby food companies I would support, but not my first choice. There are others who have a smaller footprint but bigger heart.
Now for my last example.
Do I boycott all Bayer products because they now own the Monsanto line? To me, Monsanto is one of the most vial companies in existence, so how can Bayer be trustworthy for deciding to purchase a corporation I consider unredeemable. Why should I support any of their products with my money?
Oh wait! Bayer is the Parent Company of the eye pharmaceutical which my retinal doctor injects in my eye to save my vision. I just found that out tonight.
Damn...
Boycotting rules can be as clear as London Fog.
I attempt to make my purchases with intent and knowledge because I like supporting businesses which tend to share a similar life philosophy to my own, at least in some way and avoid those in conflict with my value system.
But it is a messy process.
I would love to hear your thoughts on boycotts and protests.
@lovendures, i am with you on still boycotting Exxon. And also BP, after they almost ruined the Gulf of Mexico.
Bayer also made the poison gas that Hitler used in the gas chambers. They were also Hitler's biggest financial contributor. And they purchased prisoners from him for ghastly medical experiments. Is it any wonder that they have merged w Monsanto?
Miracle Gro got busted for putting chemicals that kill birds- in the bird seed. And this was after they had been specifically told by the Govt not to do that.
Daimler-Benz (Mercedes) used Hitler's prisoners of war to build weapons for the Nazis. I once got hit by a car. In a split second, my bicycle disappeared out from under me, and i found myself pinned to the hood of a car, as it sped out onto a busy road. I actually had time to notice the Mercedes hood ornament between my legs, and it really pissed me off. When the driver finally stopped, i made him take my bike to have it repaired. After he paid for it, i bitched him out real good- not for running into me- but for having a car from a company that was built on the backs of my People. I wanted him to think about that every time he saw that stupid hood ornament.
Looks like Delta is getting a lot of flack regarding comments made regarding the new Georgia bills. This weekend they came out with. statement which praised the bill. Not the wisest move on their part.
We had a big one recently in the UK about an Elite Super League in football (soccer) where the top 6 teams were going to create their own elite league where they played each other and didn't play the smaller teams. The big push was financially driven, with the big sponsors being JP Morgan. Many fans across the UK did not want this to happen, and many fans, football celebrities, and pundits managed to gain momentum with their voice of disapproval with this new elite league and it worked. All the top clubs pulled out. A big win for the little people.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/56795811
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/56823501
In other news, here in the UK, we had a big protest march in London from people who were anti-lockdown, anti-vaccine, anti-mask, etc. Some people were marching and wearing the Star of David on their clothes to try and make comparisons with their suffering (having to wear masks, take vaccines etc) to that of the suffering of the Jews from the Nazis. As expected there was uproar over this, and as expected there were also people defending them. I really do wonder what goes through people's heads sometimes.
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/anti-lockdown-protesters-wear-nazi-23979308
Yep, a big win for the little people regarding the boycott of the elite super league, and it proves what collective power the little people can have when everyone comes together for the greater good.
The protest march over the weekend in London was definitely disturbing and also very disappointing. You'd think with all the progress being made in the West with vaccinations and the horrible situation happening over in India, that these people would logically be able to see how stupid they are behaving. I hate to say it, but many of these people are selfish and are in total denial of reality. I try my best to avoid interacting with these people because I find their energy so negative, that it ends up affecting mine.
The Kroger Co. has hired Elaine Chao to it's Board of Directors. Chao is the wife of Moscow Mitch McConnell. This action has caused widespread disgust and nausea with the grocer chain. In response to national calls for a boycott, Keith Dailey, VP of Kroger, is "disappointed" in people "...choosing to engage in partisan political attacks, instead of celebrating diversity in the corporate boardroom." Wow. So, the only woman they could find to be on their Board of Directors just happens to be a fascist. And yet Mr. Dailey is going to lecture *us* on diversity!?! Well, i got news for that little prick: I live in the most diverse city in the USA right now, and i will be happy to diversify my grocery spending. We have Asian grocery stores, Latin American grocery stores, Middle Eastern, Phillipino, and even Nigerian grocery stores. Not to mention, Fiesta, Sprouts, Whole Foods, Trader Joes, and HEB. And probably a whole bunch of other stores that i haven't even thought of. So ciao!, Kroger.
here is a list of other stores that are owned by Kroger:
- Baker’s
- City Market
- Dillons
- Food 4 Less
- Foods Co
- Fred Meyer
- Fry’s
- Gerbes
- Harris Teeter
- King Soopers
- Jay C Food Store
- Kroger
- Pay-Less Super Markets
- QFC
- Ralphs
- Smith’s Food and Drug
thank you for not shopping at these stores!
The Kroger Co. has hired Elaine Chao to it's Board of Directors. Chao is the wife of Moscow Mitch McConnell. This action has caused widespread disgust and nausea with the grocer chain. In response to national calls for a boycott, Keith Dailey, VP of Kroger, is "disappointed" in people "...choosing to engage in partisan political attacks, instead of celebrating diversity in the corporate boardroom." Wow. So, the only woman they could find to be on their Board of Directors just happens to be a fascist. And yet Mr. Dailey is going to lecture *us* on diversity!?! Well, i got news for that little prick: I live in the most diverse city in the USA right now, and i will be happy to diversify my grocery spending. We have Asian grocery stores, Latin American grocery stores, Middle Eastern, Phillipino, and even Nigerian grocery stores. Not to mention, Fiesta, Sprouts, Whole Foods, Trader Joes, and HEB. And probably a whole bunch of other stores that i haven't even thought of. So ciao!, Kroger.
here is a list of other stores that are owned by Kroger:
- Baker’s
- City Market
- Dillons
- Food 4 Less
- Foods Co
- Fred Meyer
- Fry’s
- Gerbes
- Harris Teeter
- King Soopers
- Jay C Food Store
- Kroger
- Pay-Less Super Markets
- QFC
- Ralphs
- Smith’s Food and Drug
thank you for not shopping at these stores!
This is an excellent post Unk-p!
Kroger is HUGE and in some places nearly the only game in town. I stopped going to my local Frys early in the pandemic (only shopped there once a month at the time) because they handled the pandemic horribly. Trader Joes, Sprouts and even Safeway did a much better job. When we travel to Colorado however, City Market is one of the one places in the town to shop. Not the only one however. It will take more work to shop elsewhere but it can be done.
I agree there are many other places to shop that allow for supporting diversity and better ethics. Kroger is wrong. They are way behind the game on diversifying and they chose a horrible ambassador as an example to communicate their cooperate values. Well, scratch that. Perhaps she is the perfect choice to demonstrate their corporate values.
As Maya Angelou once said: When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.
People run corporations. Believe them.
Thank you so much for informing us on this situation.
@theungamer @unk-p @lovendures. Okay, we don't have any of those stores where I live, but I love your idea of putting your money where your values are. And also voting with your pocketbook. Yes.
If anyone in this community has money to buy mutual funds, consider moving your money to socially responsible mutual funds, like Parnassus. Parnassus has done incredibly well since its inception 35 years ago. For example, they do not invest in fossil fuel companies. It's a win-win because (1) you are investing in good (versus rogue) companies, and (2) the good companies are the future.
Socially responsible mutual funds do something called ESG investing. ESG stands for E nvironmental S ocial and G overnance, and refers to the three key factors when measuring the sustainability and ethical impact of an investment in a business or company. Most socially responsible investors check companies out using ESG criteria to screen investments.
@unk-p that last post was just bliss
though I dare say there’s something amiss
whats happened down there
gives me a terrible scare
so you’re right, let’s boycott the penis.
(good god look what you’ve done to us man.)
@theungamer the name "Ralph" sounds suspiciously like someone who may be harboring a penis- so boycott away!
@dannyboy bwa-ha-ha!
@unk-p Ralphs is a Kroger owned company that just appointed a deplorable to their board of directors. Not a pleasant place to shop so will particularly enjoy the boycott. I still believe it meets the Penis boycott criteria. Onward!
If anyone in this community has money to buy mutual funds, consider moving your money to socially responsible mutual funds, like Parnassus.
This is a good idea. A lot of people have retirement accounts (401K and such) through their employer that are invested in mutual funds. A great many don't pay much attention to the accounts and just continue with whatever default funds their money was deposited in by the company managing the account. A wiser choice is to take a close look at what you're actually invested in and make sure you're happy with supporting those companies. It's not that hard to do what with all the resources available online for research.
And on the topic of conscious investing: I have a modest amount invested in individual stocks; The last few years I've been trying to move more towards companies that are working on such things as wind power, solar power, and efficient battery storage of energy. They haven't done badly and I feel like I'm actually doing something significant to solve the problems. Companies developing new tech need capital.
Ralphs is a Kroger owned company that just appointed a deplorable to their board of directors.
i get it, i was just poking fun about how the kroger co felt the need to try and gender a grocery store with a name like that. Besides, everyone knows that "Ralph's" is just a euphemism for Elaine Chao .