Boycott what?
When I found out about this, ya.com wouldn't let me post anything and now it is to days outdated, but it doesn’t matter. The Soapbox Girls link to a site that suggested that people who disagree with Bush’s way of ruling the US and other parts of the world showed their discontent by not spending any money yesterday.
What nonsense. I boycott a number of companies that do things I dislike, therefore I don’t give them money so that they can go on doing those things. But applying boycotts to the elections means misunderstanding our role in politics. It means that people are seeing as consumers, and consumers only. Leaving aside the fact that the election may or may not have been fairly won (I think it hasn’t, but that’s just me), it’s incoherent to respond to a purely political problem with a purely economical solution. We are more than the money we make circulate.
Unhappy with the elections’ result? Watch the news. Start a political blog. Get involved in local politics. Volunteer in a non-profit that works in political causes that upset the current government. Make friends with people who don’t vote as you do, listen to them, and then explain to them why they are wrong. Join a political party. For God’s sake, vote, and pester your friends to do the same. If you’re in contact with children, make voting seem a great thing. Wear buttons. Put stickers on visible places. Use your imagination. Be an active citizen, not a passive consumer. And get ready for the next election!
What nonsense. I boycott a number of companies that do things I dislike, therefore I don’t give them money so that they can go on doing those things. But applying boycotts to the elections means misunderstanding our role in politics. It means that people are seeing as consumers, and consumers only. Leaving aside the fact that the election may or may not have been fairly won (I think it hasn’t, but that’s just me), it’s incoherent to respond to a purely political problem with a purely economical solution. We are more than the money we make circulate.
Unhappy with the elections’ result? Watch the news. Start a political blog. Get involved in local politics. Volunteer in a non-profit that works in political causes that upset the current government. Make friends with people who don’t vote as you do, listen to them, and then explain to them why they are wrong. Join a political party. For God’s sake, vote, and pester your friends to do the same. If you’re in contact with children, make voting seem a great thing. Wear buttons. Put stickers on visible places. Use your imagination. Be an active citizen, not a passive consumer. And get ready for the next election!