Friday, April 22, 2016

Think Different or I'll Boycott You!

I know I often say I shy away from and avoid political posts. I don't even tolerate it in my social media timelines and in an election year that is a hard task to accomplish. There is something that is bugging me though about the political process and since I have a platform, here I go!

I just wanted to provide two quick reasons why I believe that the boycott is completely asinine in nature and in delivery:

  • Boycotts are lazy - In this political climate it seems to be easy for some to speak their minds via the retweet, repost, regram, or boycott than to actually bring about any activism. I am not advocating rioting and protesting, but a boycott is incredibly slothful and usually doesn't influence or impress your friends. Often times nowadays lazy activists on the other side will then call in a buycott and the effect is completely null 
  • Boycotts hurt regular people - Someone dear to me works for a company that is a target for a recent boycott because of a policy that they adopted. Avoiding that establishment on principle would be the best way to resolve this issue or communicating said dislike normally sufficies. But by calling for a boycott, that shot caller can then hide behind this slacktivism to declare they made some in-rows with that retailer. This dear person in my life relies on an income to keep her house going, to pay her bills, and to feed her nephews. So when you want to boycott an establishment, think about who's really going to suffer. I'll provide a hint, it's not the executives or CEO that made that unpopular decision.
So what do we do Mike? Honestly, I can't answer that question, but I just wanted to kind of express that I fully intend on buycotting just about any boycott and if I have a problem with the political leanings of an establishment or a state, I'll let my buying power affect change quietly without blaring a big obnoxious bullhorn. 

The best service and product is likely not going to be sold by someone who has your exact political leanings and beliefs. If we fully followed boycott logic, many of us would never eat out, go to a movie, watch television, or listen to music ever again. We can stand on our principles in the voting booth and at the register without the fanfare. 

What I still hold closest to my heart is that no one on earth has to agree with me, thank you for hearing my side.

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