losthighway wrote: Thu Mar 17, 2022 2:13 pm One of the most powerful pitfalls of consumer activism is it shifts the burden of responsibility on to ourselves when a corporation is to blame.

Not to let Nestle or Charles Koch off too easy here, but they share plenty of blame with neoliberalism, or more properly the media outlets and governments that reinforce neoliberalism. (In Koch's case it's a self-reinforcing cycle.) Or, said another way,

enframed wrote: We're all thinking like corporations now.

Even seemingly innocuous hippie food companies aren't sure bets if you want to "vote with your wallet".
I'm not saying give up, and if it makes you feel better to stop giving money to someone you find unethical - there's value in that. Don't kid yourself that it carries much meaning to other people, though.

biscuitdough wrote: Thu Mar 17, 2022 6:30 pm If you didn’t already avoid the Koch Bros, you should. They own the game publisher Deep Silver, a bunch of building materials and glass making companies, and most of the bad brands of toilet paper.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koch_Industries

Oof. I was quite close to working for Molex. Bullet dodged.

Boycott Stabb!

I'm not sure why people are so attached to Amazon. It seems like most of their retail lines are the cheapest shit imaginable on eBay. I dislike the company greatly, but, even if I wanted said piece of shit, it's probably cheaper on eBay.

Mickey242 wrote: Thu Mar 17, 2022 7:35 pm Boycott Stabb!

More of a Joyride man, myself.

Krev wrote: Thu Mar 17, 2022 9:49 pm I'm not sure why people are so attached to Amazon. It seems like most of their retail lines are the cheapest shit imaginable on eBay. I dislike the company greatly, but, even if I wanted said piece of shit, it's probably cheaper on eBay.

They make everything easy, no shipping, and they sell most everything, And you can have some tide pods on your doorstep same day. I am not condoning the practice, but they play to peoples worst instincts. I’m guessing they’ve discovered we are willing to pay more for added convenience. Their bid for hippiedom by buying Whole Foods is a funny one.

brephophagist wrote: Thu Mar 17, 2022 6:34 pm Even seemingly innocuous hippie food companies aren't sure bets if you want to "vote with your wallet".

sigh.. I basically lived off that crap before I got better at cooking.

• Hobby Lobby

• Subway

• Founders Beer/ale/drinks

• Uber / Lyft / similar "not employees but contractors" ride sharing

• Same as above, but food delivery

Many chocolate companies find it difficult to commit to not using child slave labor. Fuck that, here are companies that won't:
https://www.slavefreechocolate.org/ethi ... -companies

Fulltone
Sweetwater

Krev wrote: Thu Mar 17, 2022 9:49 pm I'm not sure why people are so attached to Amazon. It seems like most of their retail lines are the cheapest shit imaginable on eBay. I dislike the company greatly, but, even if I wanted said piece of shit, it's probably cheaper on eBay.

I live a half hour drive from the closest store. If I need something for my shop, say steel wool, I can either spend an hour driving my van down to the store and back, wasting time and burning a couple gallons of gas or I can just order it on amazon and it'll be here in a day or two. I try to plan things out so I don't need to order things but that's not always a reality for me.

elisha wiesner wrote: Fri Mar 18, 2022 9:28 am

Krev wrote: Thu Mar 17, 2022 9:49 pm I'm not sure why people are so attached to Amazon. It seems like most of their retail lines are the cheapest shit imaginable on eBay. I dislike the company greatly, but, even if I wanted said piece of shit, it's probably cheaper on eBay.

I live a half hour drive from the closest store. If I need something for my shop, say steel wool, I can either spend an hour driving my van down to the store and back, wasting time and burning a couple gallons of gas or I can just order it on amazon and it'll be here in a day or two. I try to plan things out so I don't need to order things but that's not always a reality for me.

Yeah, I kinda overlooked the travel and time aspects. I buy very little from them, but it's sometimes too convenient to pass up. My family lives thousands of miles away, and it's nice to easily send my niece some Legos.