Political activism meets consumerism: a dilemma

[firecat]

I’m mad about what Mump is doing everywhere but what it’s doing to Canada really bugs me; I guess I feel kind of like Canada is one of my best friends. I grew up near the Ambassador Bridge in Detroit. I spent most of a year in Montreal. And I love how defiant they’re being toward Mump.

I’m not yet personally worried about money.

Should I:
-make a point of buying Canadian products to help Canada?
-avoid buying products subject to tariffs because that would mean less tariff money in Mump’s pocket?
-avoid buying anything unnecessary at all, in the hope that not participating in the economy will put more pressure on Mump?
-some combination of the above?
-something else?

I suppose I should make a poll but I am interested in people’s reasoning, not just their votes.

Comments

[mdlbear]

I'd be inclined to deliberately buy Canadian and European products. But I'm currently in Europe, so it's a little different. All I have to do is not buy American.

[sabotabby]

I would go for #3. We can't buy our way out of political crisis.

ETA: The exception is my book, of course.

(we like you, too.)

[jazzfish]

Soviet Canuckistani here. There's a lot of exhortation to Buy Canadian up here, I think mostly driven by companies who know an advertising opportunity when it gets dropped in their laps ("maplewashing").

Naive and mostly-unresearched analysis: buying tariffed products is LESS likely to give money to MAGAts, because one of the things about tariffs is that one can apply for an exemption, and last time one of the biggest unofficial exemption categories was "donated a large sum of money to Donald Trump". So point 2 is probably not the answer?

I personally incline towards Not Buying Anything but that's more due to my own tendencies to hunker down and hole up (things are gonna get worse before they get better) than to any political statement.

[adrian_turtle]

I would recommend reducing overall purchases and using the money for direct aid. If you want to make a point of helping Canada, you can contribute some of those funds for direct aid to Canadians. https://wefba.ca/ is for Windsor, and I'm sure you can find comparable organizations for Montreal or Vancouver. (ETA: Direct aid locally as well as in Canada. There is so much need everywhere, and conditions are only getting harder.)

Unions have strike funds. We talk about general strikes and long-term boycotts in a passionate yet disorganized way, but there needs to be some way to support comrades who are already in financial difficulty.

[stonepicnicking_okapi]

I have no real idea either so I will be reading others' comments with interest. I would lean toward #3 (less spending overall) because I am just not sure how the rest of it works or doesn't work. I've stopped going to Target.

[snippy]

I am doing "less spending overall." I'm afraid of costs rising quickly and unexpectedly, so I'm conserving cash. But if money isn't a major fear yet, squeezing the economy is one of very few things that billionaires respond to.

[senmut]

I'm trying to do the 'do not buy more than I must' approach.

[glaurung]

In terms of buying stuff, I think our best option currently is to boycott as many of the craven megacorps that have cancelled diversity initiatives/donated to Mump/otherwise bent the knee, as you can manage. I am finding alternatives to Target for the stuff I used to get from them, have utterly ceased using Amazon (was sort of boycotting them all along, but have gotten a lot more serious about not getting anything from them if it can possibly be avoided), will not be giving Home Despot any more of my money, etc.

[ljgeoff]

Last week, I broke our breakroom toaster. I decided to replace it with a small toaster oven. After a little research, I decided to go with a Breville Mini Smart Oven, from Sonoma Williams. Good ratings, good price, and made by a company that I'd like to support.

"On September 3, 2024 the non-profit first amendment legal firm America First Legal (AFL) (goes to Wikipedia) filed a complaint to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) against the Williams-Sonoma corporation for its extensive DEI racial hiring policies that specifically favor some skin colors over others." (quoted from racist Robert Zimmerman).

Because I live in a 2017 Dodge Caravan and don't have a post office box down here in Evansville, I'll drive to Indianapolis next week to pick up my purchase. I might wait and pick it up when I go up to Lansing for a doctor's appointment in three weeks. But I really like toast.

[heartonsnow]

I would say yes to all 3 but I am old fashioned.

[silveradept]

Your likely effective option is three, since that will do the most useful thing to the greatest number of toadies. You can certainly also try to purchase things that are in alignment with your values, but that may be exhausting to try and figure out.

[dylan_mx]

Point 2 is correct, as the money goes to US Treasury and the Congress (so the Republican) have a say on where it goes and what it funds (source: Euronews.com).

I'd go with Point 3, buying less is also good for the environment 'reduce, reuse, recycle' :) and I agree with adrian_turtle, the money you can afford to give is better given directly to organizations or no-profits that work towards the values you want to support.

You could even use it for some digital purchases online directly from Canadian folks, for example for fandom stuff on itch/gumroad/etsy (games, zines, commissions...) no shipping=no tariffs

[nocturnus33]

Any solidarity in consumption goes to the owner of the company, unless it is for small-scale solidarity economy.

As for Canadians, I don't cry for them. For example, Canadian pension funds, particularly the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (OTPP), have significant investments in Chilean infrastructure, especially in water utilities which are private enterprises and make water expensive for poor people in Chile. So, why help them?

Avoid superfluous expenses. Save your money and prepare for a recession. You, USA people, are in for a very hard times.