Politically correct buying

Discussion in 'Off-Topic Discussions' started by John Bear, Dec 31, 2005.

Loading...
  1. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    In another forum, Gregg said this:
    But this does raise an interesting peripheral point: The whole notion of the businesses to which we give our money, not really realizing the bad things about said businesses that would make us want to stop doing so if we only knew them.

    Our family frets about this a lot. There is rarely a simple answer. Companies we think are great on one variable (child care, the environment, whatever) are sometimes awful (i.e., we disagree) on others (unions, political donations, etc.).

    For years, we used to call our then-friend John Harrington, co-founder of Working Assets, to ask what bank he used, what gasoline he bought, what airline he preferred, etc. There was never a simple answer. "Well, if you support the guerilla insurgents in Mozambique, you'll choose Shell. But if you are for drilling in the Arctic, you'll choose Exxon." That sort of thing.
     
  2. Jigamafloo

    Jigamafloo New Member

    Dr Bear;

    Given (if you accept this conclusion) that life is shades of gray as opposed to black and white, what do you think the solution is?

    I try to have a social conscience as well, but all the soul searching usually leads to compromising on the order of a "70/30" solution just to get the job done. It seems that someone would starve if they insisted on a 100% solution.

    Respectfully,

    Dave
     
  3. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    Yes, 70-30 sounds about right, combined with some good old-fashioned "Don't look too closely" (per the libretto of The Fantasticks). And, of course, priorities. I disagree with that politician on issues 1 through 17, but her stand on 18 is so important to me, that I'll still vote for her.

    For years, we drove the really wonderful GM pure electric car, the EV-1, despite many problems with the GM company's behaviors in many other arenas. That sort of thing.
     
  4. Ian Anderson

    Ian Anderson Active Member

    I try to buy products* made in the USA. At least I know then that companies are mostly complying with generally good state and federal laws.

    *Especially bikes -- Interestingly world class bicycle frames and components are made in the USA and exported to the rest of the world. Many people know that Lance Armstrong and his team ride Trek bikes, but two European pro teams ride US manufactured Cannondale and Scot bikes, and this publicity helps the bike export business.
     

Share This Page