Boycott Bush

Since we buy from left-wing companies and right-wing companies anyway, as well as from left-wing countries and right-wing countries, why don't we find out which ones are which and just give our dollars to those companies (and countries) that match our politics.

For example GM and Pepsi Cola are big contributors to the Bush campaign (see http://www.boycottbush.org). Whereas products such as Newman's Own contribute a lot to charities and Ecover products have a sensible environmental policy. Countries such as England and Australia supported the war in Iraq whereas Canada and Germany opposed the war.

Take the time to learn which companies match your politics. You can have some influence with every dollar you spend. All my life I heard expressions such as "Money talks" or "Money makes the world go around". These expressions are still true.

As just one small example, I had car insurance with some guy in the suburbs for 20 years or so. After researching different insurance companies I decided to stay with the same company but changed insurance agents. In so doing I killed 3 birds with one stone. My new agent is:
1) Female
2) Black
3) In Detroit (Detroit passed an anti-war resolution last year).
The insurance bill is the same.

Find things you can do. My new hobby is learning about companies and countries. I know which 30 countries are in the "Coalition of the willing" (countries that supported the war in Iraq), which countries mildly opposed the war, and which countries strongly opposed the war. When its time for me to buy another car, I will research who the owner of the dealership is, who the salesperson is (female, minority), and where the car is made. If you buy an airline ticket, there are other planes besides Boeing. Boeing is one of the biggest weapons manufacturers in the world.

For every dollar I spend, I ask, "Where does it go?" It does take a commitment of time but its a lot of fun doing something concrete. It's an easy form of activism for someone who has not been active before. If you were mistreated at work, do something about it. If you are a female and have been treated unfairly, get revenge by becoming active. Same thing if you are black. Become active in some small way. Rather than buying one brand, buy another. Start small. Later you can multiply this by 10, then multiply it by 10 again.

You can do as much as you want.